The Pentagon has officially approved both BlackBerry 10 and Samsung Galaxy handsets for Department of Defense use, however, Apple’s iOS devices are still waiting approval.
The Pentagon on Thursday cleared BlackBerry 10 and Samsung Knox-compatible devices for use on DoD networks, Reuters reported, while Apple’s iPhones and iPads are expected to see approval later in May. Expanding the range of devices available beyond the DoD’s previous BlackBerry standard will allow units within the department to tailor their technology orders to fit their own needs.
“We are pleased to add BlackBerry 1- and the Samsung Knox version of Android to our family of mobile devices supporting the Department of Defense,” Lt. Col. Damien Pickart told Reuters. “We look forward to additional vendors also participating in this process.”
While it wasn’t surprising that the DoD had opened it’s networks up to new devices, what was surprising is that the BlackBerry 10 devices were approved ahead of Apple’s iOS devices. Most reports said iOS was much further along the approval path than BlackBerry 10.
While Apple devices have already been in use in some areas of the government, Pentagon approval would allow their use in more secure areas. Clearance for the devices should allow devices running iOS6 to be used, while iOS 5 devices may require hardware modifications to achieve security clearance.
