The U.S. Army Is Ditching Android For iOS

The U.S. Army is all ready to ditch Android and switch over to iPhones, basis their performance assessment.

Apple has, over the years, built up an ecosystem that wears the honourable badges of credibility and security. What better way to showcase the robustness of your device than the Army of a country switching to using your device!

The U.S. Army has reportedly ditched Android, which they had been using heavily until now, alongside Blackberry, for Apple’s iPhone 6s.

What’s The News About?

U.S. Army Special Operations Command announced mid-July that they are embarking on the process of “dumping its Android tactical smartphone” and instead adopting Apple’s iPhone 6s across the board for their tactical teams.

The United States Army Special Operations Command (USASOC), a branch charged with overseeing the various special operations forces of the U.S. Army, has decided to switch from using Android phones and instead include the iPhone 6s in its tactical assault kits.

This, of course, displays the faith that the U.S. Army has in the device’s abilities to perform the tasks with accuracy in the harsh field conditions and also shows that Apple might be becoming the company of choice for their Tactical Assault Kit.

What Is A Tactical Assault Kit?

A Tactical Assault Kit is a modified version of a regular, commercially-available device, for example the Samsung Galaxy Note (which is reportedly being used by another division of the Army currently).

The modifications enable the device to be connected to a networked Harris AN/PRC 152A radio, and run custom made military applications, enabling them to stay connected during active operations.

What Is Expected Of A Device Used By The Army?

A smart device used by the Army is generally held in a pouch near the chest of the soldier. It is expected to run a connection with the radio as well as a live video feed and more often than not, expected to run a live map of where the troop members are every minute of an operation.

The device includes apps (proprietary apps built for the defense teams) enabling soldiers to work out an accurate shot or like running an app to help with high-altitude jumps, detect radiation, along with accessing, processing and reporting live information from the battlefield along with other applications enabling communication.

For instance, back in 2010, the U.S. Army gave the soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq iPads that had language-learning apps installed on them to help with Iraqi Arabic, Kurdish, Dari, and Pashto.

The Pentagon has reportedly been using iOS devices since 2013, a shift from their undisputedreliability on Blackberry and Android devices.

Why The Switchover?

The switchover reportedly comes after the U.S. Army had experienced severe limitations with their ‘Android’ Tactical Assault Unit as it was found “slow, riddled with glitches and prone to freezing or hanging”.

The case, in particular where the Android device limitations came to be highlight was when the Special Operations division tried to run an army-made app with a live video feed from a drone, Instant Eye (their unmanned aerial vehicle) on the one side, and its route on the other.

They found that the feed would not refresh quickly, or timely for that matter, and the device would have to be restarted on a regular basis, as reported by an unnamed source, Military.com’s defense and acquisition journal.

The other device that the Special Operations division reportedly tried was the Apple iPhone 6s. This was found “smoother” and “faster” and the graphics were “clear”.

In situations where time is of extreme value, the switch does seem viable and works in favor of Apple.

Accessories (especially the phone covers and cases) and add-on manufactures have long used the “passed the army stress test” to sway their perspective customers into relying on the inherent robust construct of their purchases.

Apple would also benefit from the U.S. Army using their devices to promote the robust construct to overcome the ‘Bendgate’ scandal their erstwhile device had to tolerate.

There has been no official word about the switchover from the U.S. Army on the matter yet, though.

To have an organization like the U.S. Army move over from Android to iOS is certainly going to be a little disappointing for Google — the Android parent — but if reliability was actually an issue then everyone would be glad that the switchover was made, as in a combat situation soldier’s lives depend on the “smart” technology that accompanies them.

For Apple, this certainly means an opportunity to showcase their device capabilities, especially in the light that they have their iPhone 7 all set to launch in the coming September.

Originally published at Chip-Monks.