It’s official: Boeing has taken the wraps off of Black, its secure Android smartphone with a built-in self-destruct function. And it looks a lot like 2012 is calling.

But looks can be a bit deceiving, and the Black’s feature set is deeper than your average Android handset thanks to a mix-and-match modular design. Just don’t try to mess with the modules on your own, end-user—this phone's tamper-resistance features will cause it to self-destruct (though probably not in a Mission Impossible sort of way).

The basics of the Black might seem fairly pedestrian. It has a dual-core 1.2 GHz Cortex A9 CPU, a 4.3-inch HD screen, and a 1590 mAh battery, putting it a bit behind current Android offerings. But none of those phones come with dual cellular network support, onboard hardware-based storage encryption, or options like a satellite communications “trusted module.”



Black is based on a proprietary security architecture that Boeing calls "PureSecure." Like Samsung’s Knox platform, it has a “trusted boot” mode that can detect and thwart any attempt to root the device—or disable it if it can’t. In addition to onboard media encryption for internal storage, the phone can be configured to inhibit certain functions based on location or the network it is connected to in order to prevent data loss. It might also be used to disable the device’s camera in secure facilities.

The “inhibit” features come into play with Black’s dual mobile network support. The phone has slots for two SIM cards—ostensibly, one for commercial networks and one for private government networks. The phone can switch personalities between the two and lock down data and features on the phone that are restricted to government networks when connected to a commercial provider.

In addition to its internal storage (the size of which wasn’t specified in Boeing’s product sheet), the Black also supports SD memory cards. And while previous reports said the Black had an HDMI interface, it actually has a PDMI (Portable Digital Media Interface) port. That's a port used by the Samsung Galaxy Tab and Dell Streak, providing a two-lane DisplayPort connection, HDMI remote functionality, and USB 3.0 connectivity in addition to a way to charge the device. There's also a straight USB port and Boeing’s proprietary “modular expansion port” for the connection of secure, mission-specific add-ons. “The expansion port can be used for integrating additional sensors or technology enhancements like satellite connectivity or expanding power capacity, plus other customizations,” according to Boeing’s product sheet.

It’s not clear yet which level of classification the Black is going to be cleared for within the Defense Department or other government agencies. Ars asked Boeing about the device’s Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) compliance status and where the Black’s assessment by the National Security Agency stands, but no response arrived before publication. The phone is clearly not intended for the average government employee. And ironically, it will probably not be used by many Boeing employees either. The company remains internally standardized on BlackBerry.