By Patrick Manning: Published May 12, 2012 FoxNews.com
<a href="http://s1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj559/365Wildfire/?action=view&current=5-Droid.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj559/365Wildfire/5-Droid.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
White Sands, N.M. – Android-powered smartphones will help soldiers of the future discover better trails, locate colleagues
and build stronger defense -- capability that just doesn’t exist today. They'll be a permanent fixture in the United States Army,
officials said.
FoxNews.com traveled to White Sands Missile Range in south central New Mexico, where soldiers are testing the Motorola ATRIX
and the General Dynamics made Motorola GD300, as well other smartphones, radios and handhelds in a massive war game. In
military vehicles, combat leaders used Motorola Xoom tablets to get a unique new look at soldiers’ locations.
Brigade commander Col. Daniel Pinnell said the smartphones will allow him to lead a stronger defense team.
A brigade, based out of Fort Bliss, Tex., is testing the devices over the next several weeks in war-like exercises in the sweltering
heat, deserts and mountains of the immense White Sands range, including practice battles and counter-insurgency operations in
mock-Afghan villages.
The commands are given hundreds of miles away from Fort Campbell, Ky. -- equivalent to the distance soliders would range from
base during operations abroad. On the field, they aren’t looking for bars from AT&T or Virgin Mobile. The phones, known to the
Army as end-user devices, are connected by USB to a radio system that carries voice and data on a secured network.
The gadgets are far from what you'd find in a store, however much they may look the same. They work on military software called
Nett Warrior developed by the Army, meaning when a soldier turns on the phone, he won't see apps or anything like a Google Maps.
Instead, the Army developed its own. The smartphones allow the men and women on the ground to get better visuals of their
surroundings. If they run into harms way, they can send texts to other soldiers, or photos of enemies to intelligence. The Android’s
batteries weigh only a quarter of a pound and last up to six hours, and a soldier can carry five of them in his pocket.
The desert, mountains and weather -- which includes sandstorms, rain, and sweltering heat -- put these soldiers in an environment
very close to what they will experience in Afghanistan. It's ideal for this evaluation.
<a href="http://s1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj559/365Wildfire/?action=view&current=5-Droid.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1267.photobucket.com/albums/jj559/365Wildfire/5-Droid.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>
White Sands, N.M. – Android-powered smartphones will help soldiers of the future discover better trails, locate colleagues
and build stronger defense -- capability that just doesn’t exist today. They'll be a permanent fixture in the United States Army,
officials said.
FoxNews.com traveled to White Sands Missile Range in south central New Mexico, where soldiers are testing the Motorola ATRIX
and the General Dynamics made Motorola GD300, as well other smartphones, radios and handhelds in a massive war game. In
military vehicles, combat leaders used Motorola Xoom tablets to get a unique new look at soldiers’ locations.
Brigade commander Col. Daniel Pinnell said the smartphones will allow him to lead a stronger defense team.
A brigade, based out of Fort Bliss, Tex., is testing the devices over the next several weeks in war-like exercises in the sweltering
heat, deserts and mountains of the immense White Sands range, including practice battles and counter-insurgency operations in
mock-Afghan villages.
The commands are given hundreds of miles away from Fort Campbell, Ky. -- equivalent to the distance soliders would range from
base during operations abroad. On the field, they aren’t looking for bars from AT&T or Virgin Mobile. The phones, known to the
Army as end-user devices, are connected by USB to a radio system that carries voice and data on a secured network.
The gadgets are far from what you'd find in a store, however much they may look the same. They work on military software called
Nett Warrior developed by the Army, meaning when a soldier turns on the phone, he won't see apps or anything like a Google Maps.
Instead, the Army developed its own. The smartphones allow the men and women on the ground to get better visuals of their
surroundings. If they run into harms way, they can send texts to other soldiers, or photos of enemies to intelligence. The Android’s
batteries weigh only a quarter of a pound and last up to six hours, and a soldier can carry five of them in his pocket.
The desert, mountains and weather -- which includes sandstorms, rain, and sweltering heat -- put these soldiers in an environment
very close to what they will experience in Afghanistan. It's ideal for this evaluation.
