Public Display of Addiction

General Dynamics' Sectéra® Edge™ PDA - which sounds like a noxious weed - may be what President Obama gets to replace his relatively insecure crackberry. Guardian:

Barack Obama could become the first sitting US president to use email, after reports suggested he may be in line for a new spy-proof smartphone.
The 44th president of the United States, who was sworn into office yesterday, is famous for his love of his BlackBerry – even suggesting that somebody would have to "pry it from his hands" before he would give it up.
[...]
Only a limited number of devices are sanctioned for top secret government use – among them the Sectera Edge by Virginia-based General Dynamics. The handset is a heavy-duty highly secure mobile and has been certified by the National Security Agency and costs $3,350 (£2400).

General Dynamics:
The Sectéra® Edge™ smartphone converges secure wireless voice and data by combining the functionality of a wireless phone and PDA — all in one easy-to-use handheld device. Developed for the National Security Agency’s Secure Mobile Environment Portable Electronic Device (SME PED) program, the Sectéra Edge is certified to protect wireless voice communications classified Top Secret and below as well as access e-mail and websites classified Secret and below. The Sectéra Edge is the only SME PED that switches between an integrated classified and unclassified PDA with a single key press.

So you can order air strikes on Pakistan on voice - then push the button - and catch up with the missus with an email. That's got to be handy.

You see why Bush never had one it would have been air strikes on Laura and vacation discussions with Centcom in the first hilarious hour.

Might be some shipping problems for the average punter however:

Sectéra® Type 1 Products
Type 1 is a term for processes managed by the National Security Agency (NSA) that provide approved U.S. Government users with cryptographic products and systems that are suitable for the protection of classified information. U.S. Government and U.S. Government contractors must ship to a valid COMSEC account address.

It has been noted as somewhat ironic that Obama's orders for openness were not posted on the White House website. Only two on at the moment and none mentioning his memo:

The Freedom of Information Act should be administered with a clear presumption: In the face of doubt, openness prevails. The Government should not keep information confidential merely because public officials might be embarrassed by disclosure, because errors and failures might be revealed, or because of speculative or abstract fears... All agencies should adopt a presumption in favor of disclosure, in order to renew their commitment to the principles embodied in FOIA, and to usher in a new era of open government. The presumption of disclosure should be applied to all decisions involving FOIA.