Siri for Pre-iPhone 4S Jailbroken iPhones Available, but It Remains Complicated

Grant Paul (chpwn) has posted a new tool for Jailbroken iPhones that allows Siri to run on pre-iPhone 4S devices. The tool (called Spire) gets around any copyright issues by downloading Siri from device images housed directly on Apple's servers and installs them on your device. The download is about 100MB, so a Wi-Fi connection is recommended.

It's not quite as simple as that, however. Siri still requires special authentication when connecting to Apple's servers. For early testers, this has meant pulling the authentication key from a valid iPhone 4S. Not only that, but the key must be regenerated every 24 hours.

For Spire users, that means setting up a proxy server, and connecting an iPhone 4S to it regularly.

However, Spire is not a complete solution. Apple still requires authorization to use Siri, so information from an iPhone 4S is still required. To insert this information, Spire allows you to enter your own proxy server address. By using this (ancient) SiriProxy fork, you can setup a proxy using your own iPhone 4S to insert the needed information reasonably easily.

So, it's not quite as plug-and-go, but it's a step closer to that reality, if you are desperate for Siri -- and have an iPhone 4S at your beck and call. The proxy workaround is required while we wait for the iPhone 4S jailbreak that should simplify the matter somewhat, but even then you'll still need regular access to an iPhone 4S-generated authentication key.

Top Rated Comments

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BaldiMac

98 months ago

It downloads every part of siri from apple servers, it is completely legal.

That's just plain wrong. Copyright law doesn't disappear because you have access to copyrighted material. :rolleyes:

Rating: 7 Votes

BaldiMac

98 months ago

True, but seriously... Who honestly cares about that sort of thing? The people just want the stuff and can care less as to the legality of it all.

Maybe people who rely on copyright law to make a living?

Regardless, my point was just that I feel MacRumors should avoid giving out (bad) legal advice in their posts.

Rating: 7 Votes

BaldiMac

98 months ago

Why does this article imply that this solution avoids copyright issues? Seems like some pretty bad advice to give your readers, considering the complete lack of legal analysis.

Rating: 6 Votes

thewitt

98 months ago

Unless you pay Nuance their license fee, you are running the software illegally. Apple pays Nuance for every 4S shipped...

Rating: 5 Votes

BaldiMac

98 months ago

Ya but it says they can't distribute apples software, and they are not, you are getting it directly from apple.

This discussion is pointless if you don't have a basic understanding of copyright law. You don't have unlimited rights to Apple's software just because you can access it

Rating: 5 Votes

besweeeet

98 months ago

Why does this article imply that this solution avoids copyright issues? Seems like some pretty bad advice to give your readers, considering the complete lack of legal analysis.

Especially considering that the majority of users can care less about legality issues, so it's irrelevant IMO.

Rating: 5 Votes

kycophpd

98 months ago

If a user feels they'd rather break the law than pay for a product, the product is clearly at fault. Apple made this very clear when they opened the iTunes Store to take on Music Piracy. If people would prefer to go about the hassle of 'pirating' Siri than buy a 4S, Apple have got something wrong. I'd say it was that they didn't offer Siri to 4 and 3GS users.

So Sony got it wrong when they did not release software to make Madden 2012 work for my original Playstation? The product is not clearly at fault in either of these. The product evolved just as the software evolved. So the user can choose to move up in products, if not stay on the one you have.

Rating: 5 Votes

Amazing Iceman

98 months ago

If Time = Money, then it's less expensive to buy an iPhone 4S than spending all that time and effort trying to make it work on an old phone.

But it's good to know there are qualified people who researched this possibility to the point of making it available. :D

Rating: 5 Votes

BaldiMac

98 months ago

I wonder if you apply the same logic to the things that you own. :D Apple doesn't have an obligation to make Siri available to anyone that wants it.

Rating: 5 Votes

trajen

98 months ago

What a waste of time... If you have to own a 4S or have access to one every 24 hours just to get this "hack" to work, WTF is the point?

Rating: 5 Votes

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