Helmet recorder

The view from a recorder.

Helmet recorders are standard field issue equipment for many UNSC Marines in the field.

When in combat with any other enemy, moreover the Covenant, they are instructed to turn these recorders on to get as much information on the Covenant as possible, such as behaviour and tactics. Because such data is scarce, this is an invaluable tactical resource to the ONI and the UNSC forces, who often retrieve this data and then debrief the wearer about the audio and video data they recorded. They store their information in the processed Recorder Chips. The Master Chief got his first glimpse of the flood while watching a recording he found in Pvt. Jenkins helmet.

Trivia

• Apparently, Covenant Ossoonas are equipped with similar helmet-mounted recording units.
• Master Chief had something similar to a helmet recorder in the book, The Fall of Reach. Instead it was a fiber-optic cable with a camera. He used it to record an Engineer taking apart a car.

References

The Fall of Reach page 183. The Flood page 28.