Filed under: iPod Family, Odds and ends, iPod touch
Grab your US Army-issue iPod touch, soldier!
Contemporary soldiers are fighting what Newsweek calls "Networked Warfare." Portable electronic devices and other equipment keep them connected to each other, weapons systems and real-time intelligence where ever they may be. In Iraq, the iPod touch is finding a role with the US military.
In one scenario, touches with language software have replaced much pricier translation units. In fact, soldiers are finding that iPods can replace several devices, lessening the burden of gear that must be carried around. Indian development firm Next Wave Systems is reportedly developing a system that would allow a soldier to receive intelligence almost instantly from a picture snapped with the iPod. Additionally, the U.S. Department of Defense is developing software that will let soldiers monitor video from aerial drones.
As for the iPod's durability, Newsweek reports that it's held up to military life with the proper outer casing. What's more, most of today's soldiers have used or already own an iPod touch, so training time can be kept to a minimum.
At one point, the article notes that, "Apple devices make it easy to shoot, store and play video." Of course, neither the iPhone nor iPod touch we all know can shoot video, though it's possible the Newsweek author is thinking of another Apple product (or just maybe there's a milspec iPhone that does video in advance of the 3.0 release). It's interesting to see a consumer product being used in such an important role. Good luck and be safe to everyone who lifts one in service.
Photo via tikigod at Flickr (here's the story behind it).
Thanks to everyone who sent this in!
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
PSM said 1:09PM on 5-19-2009
Or maybe the military is just jailbreaking their iPhones.
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Eric Warnke said 1:10PM on 5-19-2009
This is begging for trouble. The environmental specs on most Apple products do not come close to conforming to the sandbox.
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mad matt said 1:41PM on 5-19-2009
thats not an ipod touch in the picture ;)
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LD said 1:49PM on 5-19-2009
That's why they linked to the story behind that photo.
SpinThis! said 1:22PM on 5-19-2009
I highly doubt the military is sending out civilian-band wi-fi (even encrypted)... these devices are definitely heavily modified with receivers tweaked and running custom software and hardware so the Touch can receive military transmissions on whatever band they want.
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natebrogdon said 1:51PM on 5-19-2009
Actually, you'd be surprised at how much commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) and open-source equipment and software the military uses. Very little is done on secure, closed networks. End user devices are really no more secure than the most secure settings on your home router. It's the backside, server-level security that protects against intrusion. In fact, I would say that many home networks are more secure than many of the unclassified tactical networks. Except for the fact that, around operations centers and air fields, the network "cloud" usually has triple-strand razor wire around it, so getting close enough to pick up the network for the casual interloper is a non-issue.
As far as environmentals withstanding "the sandbox", unless a soldier is wearing their iPod on their helmet, it would do quiite well, as long as it's in a case that protects the dock port. When I was there, most of us sat outside our living areas listening to our iPods or watching movies on our personal laptops. Even in some of the most severe sand and dust storms, it was easy to protect your equipment.
Eric Warnke said 1:58PM on 5-19-2009
I have no doubt it would work most of the time, but the fact of the matter is the iPod Touch is only rated to 95deg F.
natebrogdon said 3:07PM on 5-19-2009
Dunno what to tell you. I sat on the tarmac at BIAP in May, with my Touch tucked under my flak jacket. For three hours. It was muy caliente that day. And, dare I say...moist. For me, it was a choice of maybe ruining my Touch, or going insane staring at the C-130 that wasn't there. This was after using it for almost a year over there, in temps that went from 26 to 125. With over two weeks where it went from 45-125 in the same day.
It's sort of like underwater camera housings. They're usually given a rating of 130-200 feet. They're usually tested well beyond that. They don't RECOMMEND that you go below that level...but it doesn't magically disintegrate at 131 feet.
Most of the equipment we use over there is either COTS, or has COTS components. And most of it isn't rated to perform in that type of environment. But, it does. Does it drop the lifespan? Sure. But if a commander has to make a choice of using something that's readily available now, and having to replace it more frequently, or waiting possibly YEARS for something that's MIL-SPEC and environmentally compliant, yet now more expensive...they typically go with the former.
natebrogdon said 3:08PM on 5-19-2009
The military doesn't even have man-portable radios that will do full-sepctrum communications, much less something that fits into the palm of your hand. In fact, they don't have radios that are vehicle-mounted that can do full-spectrum communications.
Albenheimer said 1:26PM on 5-19-2009
And with the US Military Handbook app (as reviewed by TUAW last week) available, our soldiers have a wealth of information at their fingertips.
http://www.tuaw.com/2009/05/12/us-military-handbook-for-iphone-ipod-touch/
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GCarden said 1:30PM on 5-19-2009
"...a system that would allow a soldier to receive intelligence almost instantly from a picture snapped with the iPod."
Are these the new Touches with the built-in cameras that haven't been announced at WWDC yet? ;-P
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Taylor said 5:11AM on 5-20-2009
I was gonna say.
iPod touches can't snap pictures.
Perhaps some of these soldiers take their iPhones from home and keep em in airplane mode?
russ d said 1:44PM on 5-19-2009
Maybe that hole is where they tried to add a cmos chip, since the ipod touch doesn't have a camera on it...
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Jemaleddin said 1:55PM on 5-19-2009
Ummmm - an iPod touch doesn't have a camera, making this sentence even more confusing than the one about video:
"Indian development firm Next Wave Systems is reportedly developing a system that would allow a soldier to receive intelligence almost instantly from a picture snapped with the iPod."
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directeco said 2:55PM on 5-19-2009
Next Wave Systems is an company based in Indiana, not India...
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natebrogdon said 3:07PM on 5-19-2009
Indiana, India...tomato, potato...it's all the same, right?
Jake J. said 5:27PM on 5-19-2009
Maybe when they said "Shoot, store, and play video", "Shoot" and "Store" were referring to photos, and "Play Video" obviously referred to video.
Just my 2 cents worth.
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brian g said 9:47PM on 5-19-2009
Left my iPhone in the car and it got up to about 145-150 F. (Love that Arizona sun) Unlike my Blackberry or my Ericsson I didn't have to wait for it to cool to use it again. It just worked. I did have to use a spare T-shirt to keep from burning my hands.
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jonzey231 said 11:16PM on 6-01-2009
That is an iPod Classic. It has a hold button. lol
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