Apple is needlessly restrictive when it comes to things it allows to run on its own devices. iPhones have been locked down tightly since they first launched, back in 2007, and illicit methods of breaking into the device were the only ways around that — fact until fairly recently. Thankfully, that's all changed now.

Jailbreaking, traditionally speaking, describes a number of methods that take advantage of vulnerabilities in iOS to allow unfettered access. Not only can these methods potentially break your phone, but they're often quickly patched away by Apple. That's why this newer (but not that new) method is a preferable solution even if it's technically complicated for non-Europeans.

Enter Altstore

Thanks to an EU ruling, most Europeans can simply navigate to the AltStore download page, and run it directly on their iPhones without much hassle. Sweet, right? Too bad the rest of us have a lot more work to do to get access to those sweet, sweet prohibited apps.

Here in the good ol' US of A, you need to run dedicated software on a Mac or Windows PC. Those apps allow you access to the AltStore on your phone, once you've gone through each of the steps to set it up properly.

After it's set up, you can have a total of three unofficial apps installed at once, but how you get them requires some research.

Getting apps from other sources

By default, a brand new copy of AltStore will offer you up two apps: Delta (a retro game emulator) and Clip (a clipboard log), but that's not all you can run.

To be able to download other apps, you'll need to add sources, and that's where things get a little complicated and fraught.

You can opt into a selection of "Trusted Sources" that are available in the app by default, and that will give you access to Dolphin (a Gamecube and Wii emulator), UTM (a generic x86 PC emulator) and a few more apps that the people behind AltStore have verified as safe to use. If you're running AltStore to begin with, we have to assume you trust their judgment, right?

As for non-vetted sources, that's completely up to you. There's a sizable AltStore Subreddit, but you have to take your chances with security and privacy concerns. If you're unsure of how much you trust something, it's best to not install it at all.

Getting your own apps out there

If you have an app idea that you just know Apple wouldn't approve of, a service like AltStore is a great way to give people an opportunity to experience things that the company is too scared to allow on the App Store.

Provided you already have a working iOS app ready to roll, all you need to do is follow these steps to create your own source. Once you have it published online, any AltStore user can add your source and download your app.

Is it worth it?

Your mileage may vary. The process to get it up and running can be tedious, and enabling certain features (like just-in-time compilation for Dolphin) can be a huge pain in the butt.

If you're not particularly invested in running a specific kind of app that Apple doesn't want, it's almost certainly not worth the hassle outside of the EU. But if you can't live without a Gamecube in your pocket, you shouldn't let Apple stop you.

[Image: Rafael Fernandez]