Constant Error 1602 when trying to restore Jailbroken phone

Spoontaster · Dec 19, 2012

So I bought an iPhone 4 off eBay which was jailbroken (on OS 5.0.1 I think). I went to restore the phone and it came up with Error 1602.

I've tried every solution to fix this issue including putting it into DFU mode, using iReb, using a different computer/USB cable.

Other things to note: only when the phone is plugged directly into the wall will it function "almost" normal. When unplugged from the wall, either just the phone or connected to the computer, it shows nothing. Won't turn on or do anything. The computer only recognizes it in DFU mode.

I've filed a claim through PayPal (still ongoing) but the guy I bought it from said I ruined the phone by trying to restore it.

Can anyone help me? I don't want to be out $250 :-(

willerz2 · Dec 19, 2012

Let's break this down.

When plugged in the wall, does the iPhone show that it already holds some charge? Otherwise, unplugging it will cause your phone to be "dead" since well, it doesn't have a charge on it. Attempting restore and getting an error shouldn't cause a hardware problem of this particular kind.

Error 160X is a driver/port error. Delete anything iTunes related, even the physical folders themselves in C:\Program Files, etc etc. Then go into Device Manager, and see if you see anything Apple/iPhone related. There should be an Apple Mobile Device of some sort in the Device Manager tree somewhere. Remove it. Reboot your computer. Download iTunes 11. Install. Start up iTunes for the first time. Once you're fully loaded up, plug in your iPhone, and wait for your computer to recognize and download the driver for the iPhone. If this doesn't occur, then we're going to need another computer. But we'll start off with this for now.

I would assume you tried upgrading to the latest version of iOS no? Which would be 6.0.1. On a jailbroken iPhone, it's recommended that you put the iPhone into DFU mode before performing a restore of any kind.

Now, assuming the iPhone is indeed jailbroken, and Cydia is in there and that the iPhone hasn't even touched the iOS 6.0.1 pedestal yet, you can try to hold the volume up button while plugging in your iPhone and keep it held until it boots up to the springboard. This of course, will be done after you solve the recognition problem on your computer. Check out the firmware if you would like, then manually put the iPhone into DFU mode again if you wish to restore to the latest iOS. Or if you would like to keep an untethered jailbreak, open up Cydia, and on the top of the screen of the main page, there should be a line that says "iOS:" and a list of iOS will follow it. Those will be the iOS that you can upgrade to. You should see 5.0.1. If you see 5.1.1 that also works in your favor. That means you can restore your iPhone to either 5.0.1 or 5.1.1 if you wish to keep an untethered iOS 5 jailbreak.

Spoontaster · Dec 19, 2012

Yes, when plugged into the wall, it takes about 4 minutes to boot up and then shows it holds at 54% charge but doesn't charge any more than that.

And yes, unplugging it shuts it off immediately and cannot turn it back on unless plugged back into the wall.

When I got the phone, I just went to restore. Didn't know that I should have used DFU mode.

I will try to restore it on a fresh computer (luckily I just reformatted a computer a bit ago and doesn't have anything Apple on it).

If that doesn't work, I will do the next thing you suggested and then get back to you.

Thank you for your suggestion!

willerz2 · Dec 19, 2012

Not sure if it works for the outlet, but again, try holding the volume up button while plugging your phone into the wall and keep holding it until it fully boots up. The 4 minute boot up gave it away that there's something wrong with software rather than hardware