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Sure, in the past we’ve got a hearty chuckle out of initiatives that involved Redfly terminals and Clippy variants, but the question remains: how can we get cutting-edge tech into the hands of soldiers faster? We’ve recently come across some RFIs for DARPA projects aimed at developing apps and an App Store for Android and the iPhone OS, with two in particular — Mobile Apps for the Military (DARPA-SN-10-27), and Transformative Apps (DARPA-BAA-10-41) — catching our eye. The agency is calling for apps for battlefield, humanitarian, and disaster recovery missions, including command and control, mission planning, surveillance, reconnaissance, and language translation. Of course, if you start taking commercial smartphones out to the field there’s the small matter of network coverage — if you thought that getting a reliable connection in midtown Manhattan was an issue, what about downtown Kabul? Looks like DARPA also has plans for a military that brings its own towers with them, light-weight mobile base stations that could create a “secure mobile tactical network … compatible with commercial smartphones.” What do you think? Looking to help your country out, make a bit of money, or maybe a little of both? Check the links below to start your lucrative career as a military contractor. And tell ‘em Engadget sent you.

[Thanks, Sriram]

It looks like T-Mobile’s webConnect Rocket USB modem will be released right on schedule, even if you currently have to be in Philadelphia to enjoy those HSPA+ speeds (then again, if you’re in Philadelphia you probably deserve a break). Accordingly, folks jumping on that March 14 release date can expect to pay $99 with a two-year contract that entitles you to monthly charges of $50 for 5GB or $20 for 200MB — with a $0.20 / megabyte overage charge. Fun! Additionally, the kids at Mobile Burn got their hands on a unit for a review and were generally quite impressed with consistent download speeds ranging from 1780Kbps to 2797Kbps “on a couple of [DSLreports.com] East Coast servers.” Hell, after moving to a location with “prime, perfect signal (-51dbm)” things picked up considerably, with, on average, 6480Kbps downloads and 2160Kbps uploads. Not bad, eh? Hit the source link to get into the nitty gritty. PR after the break.

Enthusiasts have had plenty to cheer about with the convergence of electronics and bicycling over the years, from bikes that pedal themselves to the various devices and apps that assist them with their training. And for those of us who just want to get from one place to another? Google Maps has added bicycling directions to its walking, car, and public transport options — with travel times calculated to include things like the number of hills and fatigue over time. But that ain’t all! The company has also partnered with Rails-to-Trails to provide information on bike trails in more than 150 cities. According to Google, thousands of miles of trails in the US have already been added to the map, with more to come. For the time being, however, only those planning trips in their home or office need apply: while available on the web, those using a Google Maps smartphone app are being excluded for the time being. So much for “mobile first,” guys. Video after the break.

Beginning today, customers at Best Buy’s Magnolia stores can pick up that Panasonic full HD 3D Home Entertainment System the kids in Japan have been going crazy over for the last month or so. Consisting of a 50-inch Viera VT20 HDTV, a BDT300 Blu-ray Disc Player, and but one pair of Panasonic 3D Active Shutter glasses, the total price is $2900 — but if you plan on having company over you’ll need to pick up additional pairs of 3D eyewear for $150 each. As you well know, Panny is due to start sponsoring free 3D programming to DirecTV HD customers starting in June, so if you’re not set up with the service you might as well add that to your shopping list. PC Magazine braved the stampede to check out the scene in Manhattan, so hit the source link to see the pics. As for us, we’re going back to watching Snowboard Academy on VHS, as we do every time one of its stars has fallen. PR after the break.

If you’ve seen G-Tec’s thought control cap being used to control a Second Life avatar, play a game of Pong, or make music in an orchestral setting, you probably wondered when the thing would become available for less frivolous pursuits (to help the disabled communicate, for starters). Well, it looks like that day is close at hand: With the brand name Intendix, the €9000 (about $12,250) brain-computer interface gives you everything you need to send text messages with brain activity alone via EEG cap. According to the company, most people achieve five to ten characters per minute the first time they use the thing, with some folks eventually typing as fast as 1 character per second. In addition to text messages, the system can also be used to trigger an alarm, send email, or send commands to external devices. There’s no word on a shipping date yet, but we did thoughtfully provide that Second Life demo for you after the break.