The iOS 7 beta is ready for your iPhone 4S if you're willing to jump through some hoops

Apple's iOS 7 is out now as a developer beta and you can get it today for your iPhone 4S with these steps. The process itself is not that difficult but it costs money and there are some risks. 

Warning: Getting the iOS 7 beta preview on your iPhone 4S comes with all the risks associated with a beta product: Expect some crashes and bugs, and there's even the chance of you losing your data or having your device be inoperable. Make sure you back up your device beforehand. 

• iOS 7 release dates for iPhone 5, iPhone 4S, iPhone 4
• iOS 7 features

Ok, now that you've definitely read the warning, you're ready to download and install iOS 7 beta on your iPhone 4S. The first step is to head over and sign up for the Apple Developer Program here -- Please note that due to the demand, the site has been extremely slow, so you may want to wait a day or so. 

Additionally, signing up for the Apple Developer Program will cost $99 for a year. You can pay through your Apple ID but I want to make sure it's clear: Getting the iOS 7 beta isn't free. Once you're in, head over to the iOS Developer section and find the prominent area about iOS 7. Make sure you register your device's UDID in the Developer Center before you install the iOS 7 beta. 

Download the proper version of the beta for the iPhone 4S you have. You should also go ahead and download the latest version of iTunes here. Open the .dmg file and extract the iOS beta file - it will be a file that ends with ".ipsw."

Once you've downloaded all that, connect your iPhone 4S to your computer and launch iTunes. Tap on the "iPhone" button in iTunes, which brings up your device's stats. You should probably back up your device at this point. 

Hold down the "Option" buttona then hit the "Restore iPhone" button and you'll be given a file chooser window. Pick the iOS 7 beta file you just downloaded and you should be using iOS 7 in about 10 minutes. 

Let us know if you do this and how you like iOS 7. We've tried it out ourselves and you can check it out here:

iOS 7 hands-on preview: Best new features