U.S. military enlists iPod Touch for battlefield
The U.S. military has found the iPod Touch to be a valuable battlefield tool for soldiers.
(Credit: Apple)Updated at 1:25 p.m. PDT to clarify that apps being developed for iPhone as well.
The hottest new battlefield weapon in Baghdad is also a hot item on the home front.
Apple's iPod Touch is proving to be a valuable tool to members of the U.S. military, according to a report in Newsweek.
The report notes that the iPod performs many functions in this time of "networked warfare," enabling soldiers to be linked with other soldiers, as well as intelligence resources, such as aerial images from drones and translation software.
Soldiers can use applications to add translated phrases to maps and photos, as well as show villagers video messages from local leaders. A new program called Vcommunicator translates spoken and written Arabic, Kurdish, as well as two Afghan languages.
Another application developed for the iPhone allows soldiers to take a photo of a street sign, upload it, and immediately receive intelligence on the local area, such as water and sympathizers. Because new recruits are already familiar with how the iPod and iPhone work, it's also easier to train soldiers on loading content, the report notes.
Oh yeah, this rugged device, which retails for less than $230, was developed in the private sector without taxpayer money. Considering the military's history of being charged for $435 hammers, $640 toilet seats, and $7,600 coffeemakers by contractors, this is a great deal.
Steven Musil is the night news editor at CNET News. Before joining CNET News in 2000, Steven spent 10 years at various Bay Area newspapers. E-mail Steven. 
Not with an iPod Touch. No camera.
Makes me question the validity of CNET "news" when I see things like this... when a simple, checkable fact/feature is misreported. How can I trust more obscure things you report, like military practices?
Im against the military using commercial products without any modifications! - still cool I guess
As to the hammers the contract with manufacturer stipulated that all tools used had to purchased from the manufacturer. This would make sense for special tools for an engine or whatever that you can't order from a hardware store, but not for things like a screwdriver or hammer. The fault goes to the contract oversight folks and the people involved in the pork barrel industry.
The toilets were not the things upon which you sit your butt. They were sheet metal covers/casings/enclosures for the head (toilet for you landlubbers). My ship was in the shipyard at the time and I asked one of the sheet metal shop guys about it. He said yes it would cost that much because a big part of the expensive is the drawings and such work going into making just a few of these things. If they were making hundreds or more of the coverings then the unit cost goes down.
The cost of the hammer, toilet seat, or whatever has nothing to do with middle east politics. It has to do with rd tape and bureaucracy. Yes it is way overblown in terms of cost, you think hammer is bad, think about the Hundreds of millions put in to fighter jet design!
I don't think it's fair to compare a hammer to a F-22. one is amazingly simple, the other incredibly complex. Jets and planes in commercial/private sector are incredibly expensive... so you can't blame political red tape for the insane cost of a 747 being sold to Delta or whatnot.
Well, one "Concorde Aircraft" is now sitting on the deck of an old Aircraft Carrier in New York's Hudson River after billions of pound sterling were spent on their development; so, how about that for "useful spending" - huh!
How long did the Concorde fly before it was retired? It was replaced by something bigger and better. It was a great looking plane, but it wasn't going to be in service forever. I'm amazed that you didn't tell us that the Concorde would live again if they simply upgraded the flight control software to e-comm station or whatever it's called now. There was a reason IBM retired OS/2, much like there was a reason the Concorde is now a tourist attraction.
The iPhone can do almost everything the iPod touch can. The only thing the iPhone can't do is Nike+, but that isn't that big of a deal.
Hope this helps,
curlytop999
Oh, and the these devices run about $2,400. Our dear reporter forgot about the custom camo paint job which had to be done to mil-spec.
stop with the MS marketing crap
PCs and Macs are tools we use to help make our lives convenient
stop calling yourself one , that is unless you like referring to yourself as a Tool !
Be sure to look in the mirror before you start casting such comments about blatantly. You're quite guilty yourself of exactly the same thing in regards to any and all things Apple. You may not be aware of that, but it is anyone who reads your comments will see it.
I have no idea wat you taking about
When have I called myself a Mac or a PC in any of my comments
they are computers for gods sake !
how can MS and Fanboys not get that
how does calling oneself a Mac be considered as MS marketing?
I personally think it should be the government's responsibility to keep all of that data if they really want it that badly. I think its an unnecessary burden on what is quite often a small business who didn't realize the headache they were getting themselves into when they went after that contract.
Yeah, that's a good point. The consumer models certainly don't qualify as anything milspec. They might have some sort of ruggedized case for it though.
When a soldier needs a new bullet for his weapon and he's on the front line does it matter how much it cost to get the round in his chamber?
Anyway it was $436 for that hammer:
http://harpers.org/archive/1984/10/0025438
Ya know, like the cost of preventing those aircrafts that were hijacked on 9/11
"k guys lets do some training, remember never put ur finger by the touch until ur ready to fire, ready , aim , fire"
I never knew that Afghanistan and Iraq was a wifi hotspot. Ipod touch does not have anywhere internet, it needs wifi. Your working for Cnet Technology, but you do not know anything about a well-known product's functions.
Gods, comments like these **** me off. Serisouly, that was back in the 70s and 80s and the aquisition process has chaned so these things don't happen anymore (unless the contract has been done in the 80s and still goes on now, LOGCAP)
And $435 hammers werent even commercial items, they were specially designed hammers for special purposes. Toilet seats on the other hand.... well stainless steel is expensive.
- by Sleep79 April 22, 2009 9:26 AM PDT
- Good thing there was a link to the original Newsweek article. All that stuff about taking photos and getting local intel and controlling/communicating with drones is "in development".
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