Asus recently confirmed on Twitter that an official tool for unlocking the bootloader on the Transformer Prime will be made available in February. The company didn’t give an exact date for when the tool would be released, but the good news is Transformer Prime owners have just a few weeks to wait until they can unlock the bootloader on the quad-core tablet. Asus originally promised that the tool would be made available after upset customers lashed out in January. An unlocked bootloader allows Android users to install custom ROMs and kernels, but it does come with several consequences. As we noted earlier this year, unlocking the bootloader will void Asus’s warranty and some services, such as Google’s video rental application, will not work properly. 

[Via Pocketnow]

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Apple released iOS 4.3.4 on Friday in an effort to fix a security vulnerability that was present on both the iPhone and the iPad. The fix was supposed to prevent hackers from using a PDF security hole to jailbreak both devices. That didn’t quite work. The next day iPhone Dev Team was able to route around the security fix and issued a jailbreak tool for iOS 4.3.4. iPhone Dev Team has released the latest redsn0w jailbreak tool, but unfortunately it forces iOS 4.3.4 users to keep their iPhone or iPad tethered to their computer during sync and reboot. In other words, if you haven’t already updated to iOS 4.3.4 and want your iPhone or iPad to remain jailbroken, you’re going to be best off sticking with iOS 4.3.3 until another workaround is found.

[Via Mac Observer]

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Microsoft is aiming to assuage the pains of mobile application developers looking to migrate their iOS applications from Apple’s mobile operating system to Windows Phone. “Launched today, the iPhone/iOS to Windows Phone 7 API mapping tool helps developers find their way around when they discover the Windows Phone platform,” writes Microsoft in a blog post. “Think of the API mapping tool as being like a translation dictionary.” The tool will allow iOS developers to easily find the equivalent API calls, classes, methods, and notification events  in C#, as well as download working bits of sample code. “Don’t expect a mapping for all of the APIs, simply because the platforms are built upon different architectures and user interfaces,” the post continues. “For this first round we focused on identifying the one-to-one mapping when it exists. In the following versions we’ll expand the scope and anytime the concepts are similar enough, we’ll do our best to provide the appropriate guidance.” Microsoft’s tool can be found here.

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Want to root your DROID X? Find yourself confused by all these references to this mysterious adb program and its cryptic commands? If you are nodding your head in agreement, then you need to point your browser to the forums at Alldroid where member Sil3ntKi113 has packaged up a simple and easy rooting tool for Windows users. The application installs all the files and drivers necessary for rooting the DROID X, and launches with two simple buttons — “root me” and “unroot me”. Initial feedback suggests that the program roots the DROID X as well as the manual method of typing terminal commands. Purists may turn up their noses at the ease of rooting that is provided by this application, but for those who are new to Android, this application is a life saver.

[Via Droid Life]

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Whew. About a month ago, a German group by the name of Chaos Computer Club exposed a vulnerability in Nokia’s S60 handsets that allowed attackers to remotely disable messaging by simply sending a string of specifically formatted SMS messages. Dubbed the Curse of Silence, Chaos Computer Club responsibly contacted Nokia and carriers long before releasing details to the public and while some carriers responded immediately, Nokia apparently hung back for a while as it prepared a fix. S60 users whose carriers weren’t among the responsible few that addressed the issue need not worry as Nokia as finally released a cleanup tool, free of charge of course, that will repair any device affected by the exploit. While a preventative solution would have been preferable, something is better than nothing and the fix is confirmed to work. If you found yourself the victim of a CoS attack hit the read link, follow the simple instructions and you should be back in action in no time.

[Via Symbian-Guru]

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We don’t cover many web apps here on BGR but every now and then we come across something we think a large number of our readers would really enjoy. This just so happens to be one of those times. We discovered this service last week and we have to say, we were impressed from the start. In a sentence, Soshiku is a management tool that allows users to schedule assignments, outline tasks, manage courses and collaborate on group assignments online – for free. Ahh, we love that last word and if you’re a student so do you. The Soshiku site is simple and well organized; within 10 minutes of signing up you’ll already have your courses entered and assignments lined up. The service even includes free configurable email and SMS notifications to communicate impending deadlines or tasks. Beyond that, Shosiku adds an extra layer of accessibility by allowing users to add new courses or assignments via email or SMS. In our testing, we really couldn’t think of anything the site creator didn’t cover – and did we mention he’s a 17-year-old student himself? We might not go as far as to say Soshiku makes schoolwork fun, but it will definitely keep you more organized than you’ve ever been before. Organization leads to increased efficiency and increased efficiency leads to more time to par… Well, more time to do whatever it is you enjoy doing.

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