Key quotes:

"To date, the Army has invested about $4.2 million in the development of military apps and the study of smartphone technology.

"The devices themselves will also have to take a beating. On that score, however, Mr. McCarthy said the durability of commercial smartphones had been a "pleasant surprise," with hundreds of phones surviving handling by soldiers. 'In the last year, we've only had one that was damaged, and it was dropped on a carpeted floor and broke into three pieces," he said. "The major who did it has gotten infinite grief from his peers.'"