Boeing to make Android phones by end of 2012.

Boeing, the major aircraft and defence equipment manufacturer, who're best known for their 747 jumbo jets and 777s are now taking a diversion to design and build a product that’s far from being a plane. The company has officially announced that they are going to work on an Android phone and are expected to launch it by the end of the year. The phone isn’t going to be mass produced and designed to compete against other mainstream phones in the market, such as the iPhone or BlackBerry devices. This news was brought to light by the National Defense Magazine. The product has been under development for a while now and the phone is said to use Boeing own hardware and custom software.

The reason for Boeing’s move is to offer a more affordable solution for secure devices that existing companies charge anywhere between $15,000 to $20,000 for. Brian Palma, VP, Security & Information Services said that he believed that was a demand of such a device for security and intelligence agencies around the world. Previously, devices that were used at work were far superior than the ones at home but now Boeing feels that consumer-end devices found in most homes are way more powerful, than those used in companies. Users prefer to use apps on their smartphones, but at the same time, want the same level of security they would normally find in their workplaces.

President of Boeing’s Network and Space Systems even showed off a device stating that they weren’t going back from this device. He even talked of a slimmer, improved device with more performance and features. There’s no information so far, detailing the kind of hardware being used for the phone or even an approximate price. When asked, Boeing refused to disclose any partners involved in the production of the device, too. Having made it clear that the product isn’t made for the masses, but for a niche market, prices can be expected to be much higher than those of existing high-end Android smartphones.