HTG Explains: What’s the Difference Between Jailbreaking, Rooting, and Unlocking?

Compared to a PC, phones and tablets are fairly locked-down devices. Jailbreaking, rooting, and unlocking are all ways of bypassing their limitations, and doing things that manufacturers and carriers don’t want you to do.

Some countries have laws that prevent you from doing these things with the devices you paid for and legally own — we won’t get into those laws here.