Sailors will soon be receiving e-readers they can take on the ship pre-loaded with books, but lack the ability to load movies or games.
The Navy eReader Device, called NeRD, will not have Wifi connectivity, ports or card readers in order to keep them from being hacked. What it will have is 300 books to include popular titles such as "A Game of Thrones" and "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo," according to the Wall Street Journal. It will not be loaded solely with professional reading.
The Navy General Library Program is working with Findaway Worldis to develop the NeRDs. The Navy plans to buy 365 NeRDs at first and then more later.
Navy leaders don't allow e-readers on submarines because of the cyber security risk. But hauling paperbacks on board for long sea tours takes up too much room. Thus, the NeRDs.
No word yet on what ships will receive the NeRDs first.
