Back in April, Apple announced iOS 4 (which was known as iPhone OS 4 back then), introducing features like multitasking, background wallpapers for the home screen, unified Mail inbox, improved Push Notifications, folders to help organize your apps, and many others. Apple announced at their WWDC 2010 keynote earlier this week that iOS 4 would be available to the public beginning June 21st, as a free upgrade for all iDevices. However, why would you wait. Apple released the Gold Master of iOS 4, which is the final build, to developers at the conference. With UDID activation not required now, you might as well try it.
First of all, to install iOS 4 on your iDevice, you need to have a Mac running the iTunes 9.2 beta (download available below). Sorry Windows users, you can't try this yet. Next, you need to go to this website and find the EXACT model of your iPod touch or iPhone. MAKE SURE YOU ARE DOWNLOADING THE CORRECT ONE!
Then, download both the iTunes 9.2 beta (and install it) and the .IPSW file for the iOS 4 install. Once you install iTunes 9.2 on your Mac, sync your iPod touch or iPhone and make sure to back it up incase something goes wrong (Right-click device in sidebar>Backup). Next, once the sync and backup is complete, click the "Restore" button in iTunes (making sure that the iDevice you wish to upgrade is selected). Next, navigate to the .IPSW file that you downloaded earlier and select it. Once you do that, you should notice your iDevice restart and you should be running on iOS 4 in about 10-15 minutes. PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT BY RESTORING YOUR DEVICE, ALL DATA ON IT WILL BE ERASED. AFTER iOS 4 INSTALLS, YOU MUST SYNC YOUR DEVICE TO GET ALL OF YOUR DATA BACK!
That's basically it! You should be successfully running on iOS 4 within a few hours! Remember to use this tutorial at your own risk and It's All Tech is not responsible for any data loss or damages caused.
Also note that if you have an iPod touch 2nd generation or iPhone 3G, your device will not be able to support all of the features of iOS 4, such as background wallpapers and multitasking. Stay tuned for a tutorial on how to enable these things on your device.
Post your experience in the comments below!
Download link for iTunes 9.2 beta (Mac only). iOS 4 (all devices): http://gumballtech.com/2010/06/07/download-ios4iphone-os-4-0-gm-here-itunes-9-2-beta-included/
[...] days ago we gave you a tutorial on how install iOS 4 Gold Master onto an iDevice. As promised, here is a tutorial on how to enable multitasking and wallpapers on the home screen on [...]