Apple's
iPod Touch is the latest piece of kit for members of the US
military that is proving to be a valuable tool in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
Soldiers need little training with the relatively low-cost
consumer device, which can run useful applications in operational
areas, according to
Newsweek.
The iPod Touch enables soldiers to connect with other soldiers
as well as intelligence resources such as aerial images for
reconnaissance and translation software.
Soldiers can use iPod Touch apps to translate spoken and written
Arabic, Kurdish and two Afghan languages, add translated phases to
maps and images, and show video messages to villagers.
Another app enables solders to take a photo of a street sign and
then get information on local areas such as water supplies and
sympathisers.
New applications are constantly being added to the iPod Touch
arsenal, such as a
secure web browsing tool that prevents users from visiting
websites that may contain malware.