Ten-Hut! Pentagon May Be Looking For A Few Good Apple & Samsung Devices

A new report has emerged suggesting that the U.S. Department of Defense is looking to grant a pair of new security approvals for mobile devices. One of these is set to go to Samsung's Galaxy smartphone line, while the other is set to go to Apple's iPhones and iPads with the newest operating system. The security approvals, meanwhile, will clear the way for the Pentagon to start using a lot more in the way of Apple and Samsung hardware, as well as allowing other government agencies to follow suit.

The new security approvals represent a payoff of a whole lot of time and effort invested on the parts of both Apple and Samsung to get in on U.S. defense agencies' lists. Given that the defense apparatuses of most any country are also the most security-conscious, it's not surprising that it would take a lot of work to get in on the lists of approved devices. The defense agencies market is still somewhat small, however, and mostly dominated by BlackBerry devices, so even should Apple and Samsung make it in as expected, it won't mean big sales for any maker right away.

However, getting on the Pentagon's short list isn't exactly a coup for the sake of sales to the Pentagon itself. Getting on the Pentagon's short list allows makers like Apple and Samsung to make a case to slightly less security-conscious users, like banks and law firms. It makes for an incredible tag line in use for sales pitches: "If it's good enough for the Pentagon, it's got to be good enough for you?" This is an especially important thrust for Samsung, who has been previously seen courting government business as a way to augment its sales; and gain government officials as customers is often a way to get some corporate contracts as well.

Samsung, according to the last report, was spotted hosting a government advisory board meeting in London, including dinner at Gordon Ramsay's Maze restaurant, in a bid to get more Samsung devices in the upper echelons of government operations throughout the Western world. Among those in attendance, according to reports, were elements of the U.S. National Security Agency. Samsung had quite a bit to present to these figures as well, assuring them that the Galaxy S 4, the next version of Samsung's popular line of smartphones, would be appropriately ruggedized and include both waterproofing and dust proofing. These two points provide at least some insight as to why the next Samsung Galaxy device is said to be called the "active."

Given that the Defense Department has over three million employees to its credit, it's clear to see why device makers would want a shot at that particular brass ring. Though all employees aren't necessarily issued mobile devices, even if only 10 percent are, it's still a pretty substantial sale for somebody. Moreover, there's an issue of credibility. When one government's defense department is ready to buy from a vendor, it gives that vendor a little extra push in dealing with other governments, as well as with private enterprises as mentioned previously.

There are plenty of reasons to at least be available for the Defense Department to buy, and from the look of things, there will be quite a few more choices in the market than previously were available in the very near future.