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How to Use AltStore on iOS Devicesby@scotthickman
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5,443 reads

How to Use AltStore on iOS Devices

by Scott HickmanOctober 21st, 2020
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The AltStore is an alternative to the App Store on iOS giving you many new possibilities for your iPhone. It allows you to sideload any IPA app that you have downloaded from the internet that isn't normally available in the regular App Store. Unc0ver is a jailbreak, which means that you can have the freedom to do to whatever you want and operate within your iOS device. It is considered one of the safest and easiest to use jailbreaks available to use on iOS devices.

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Recently, I discovered the AltStore, an alternative to the App Store on iOS giving you many new possibilities for your iPhone, like jailbreaking, downloading emulators or any other .ipa app you can find on the internet. In this article, I'm going to explain how you can get your hands on the AtlStore and what you can then do with it.


Downloading the AltStore to your iOS device

The AltStore is super easy to download however you will need to do this via a Mac or Pc.

Here are a few requirements before downloading:

You need to be running MacOS 10.14.4 and up or Windows 10

If you are on windows you need to have iTunes and iCloud downloaded on your PC from apple.com (it must be from apple.com and not the windows version).

And finally, your iOS device must be running iOS 12.2 and up for thee app to work.

Now let us get into how we download AltStore:

1. First, you will need to download the AltServer from the store's website here.

2. You will then need to open that .zip file then on windows, you will follow the setup wizard and on Mac, you will need to drag the AltStore to your Applications file.

3.Once you open the application you will need to install the mail plugin on your Mac (this step is only for Mac users)

4. And finally, plug in your device to your computer and make sure to trust the computer so you can install the AtlStore App on it and you'll have to put in your Apple ID: (for windows users this will be in your bottom right toolbar)

5. Now that it's on your device you'll need to trust the app by going to setting > general > device management > tap on your Apple ID > tap trust.

6. And you're good to go!

If you have any trouble installing the AltStore to your device I recommend watching this video by OPERATIONiDROID.

What can you do with the Altstore?

As I previously mentioned, the AltStore allows you to sideload any IPA app that you downloaded from the internet that isn't normally available in the regular App Store.

Here are some of the apps that I recommend:

Delta

If you're interested in retro gaming one of the best emulators is Delta, developed by Riley Testut (also the developer of the AltStore) it allows you to play classic games in your pocket from systems such as: Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo 64, Game Boy (Color), Game Boy Advance and many more to come!

If you're not a fan of the touch screen controls, Delta also supports PS4 and Xbox One controllers, all MFI game controllers and also Bluetooth keyboard and mouse.

You can also easily save and load save states for any game from the pause menu. Or you can even Sync your games, game saves, save states, cheats, controller skins, and controller mappings between devices using Google Drive or Dropbox.

Dolphin iOS

Dolphin iOS is built on the code of the Dolphin emulator for Mac and Pc allowing you to play Wii and Gamecube games directly on your iOS device.

Like Delta, you can use a controller to play your favourite games and you can save and load save states however you do not get the possibility to sync.

I personally am a huge fan of this app and have had great fun playing some Wii games however if you are going to download ROMS from the internet, they must be of games you have previously owned.

If you want to see the app in action, check out this video by Snazzy Labs where he downloads it on to an iPad Pro 2020.

Unc0ver

Unc0ver is a jailbreak, which means that you can have the freedom to do whatever you would like to do to your iOS device. Allowing you to change what you want and operate within your purview, unc0ver unlocks the true power of your iDevice.

Unc0ver supports iOS 11.0 through to iOS 13.5.5 Beta 1 (Excluding 13.5.1) and is considered one of the safest and easiest to use jailbreaks available. If you want to experiment with tweaking your iOS device this is the jailbreak I recommend.

If you want more information about the unc0ver jailbreak and a step by step guide on how to set it up, check out this video by Linus Tech Tips.

This story was originally posted on The Detechtor, where I cover stories on how tech impacts our lives, if you enjoyed it, check out some of my other stories!