Sure, the usa Army could continue to develop expensive proprietary gadgets to be used inside the field, or they are able to make the switch to (relatively) inexpensive off-the-shelf smartphones. It is a change that’s been considered for some time , and the military is now on the tail end of a six-week trial of greater than 300 Android, iPhone, and Windows Phone devices for military use. The implications had been promising, in keeping with program director Michael McCarthy, stating that younger soldiers who grew up with smartphones and handhelds are very comfortable using them for military purposes.
Soldiers within the field can text GPS coordinates, send pictures in their surroundings, or file common reports directly from their phone. Despite positive results, the military still has some hurdles to leap before taking the plunge — a few of the phones had OS bugs, others (specifically, iPhones running on AT&T) couldn’t get signal within the New Mexico and Texas testing areas, and not one of the devices were secure enough to be used in overseas operations. The military is thinking about tying the phones to tactical radios to assist encrypt transmissions, and are testing self contained “cell tower in a suitcase” equipment to confirm coverage in sensitive locations. The army hopes to push out limited deployment this year, and military program director Ed Mazzanti has stated that they expect to choose two mobile operating systems for official use, noting that “iPhone and Android were okay received.” Sure, using multiple platforms may also help protect soldiers against cyber attacks , but we won’t be the sole ones worried the military is unintentionally breeding a generation of fanboys with guns, do we?
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