“I’ll be back.”
The Terminator series showed an evolution of combat robots stretching over 25 years.
T-70A
A specialty of Cyberdyne systems, the Terminator 70 Automated was built as the first Cyberdyne robotic soldier. (This model does not appear in the canon of the film lore but is a key element of the Universal Studios Terminator show).
T-1
Built under US Department of Defense contract, the T-1 was designed and constructed as a robotic solider that could be employed in nuclear, biological, and chemical combat zones without risking human troops. Armed with gatalin guns, the T-1 was designed to act as an anti-personnel robot.
T-600
Described as a series of “rubber-skinned” and easily spotted as fakes, the T-600s were the machines first attempt to slip into human formations and wipe out mankind’s resistance within their own garrisons.
T-800 Model 101
Shown as the first mass-produced combat model, the T-800 is a combat chassis built to be the troop compliment of the machine army. The endoskeleton was adapted and covered with living tissue to duplicate a living human being. The final result was so effective that human fighters had to train dogs to spot the infiltrators. In this role, the T-800s became effective assassin units.
In their basic form, the T-800s were used to police regions of human survivors. Originally, they were used to organize and collect survivors to be categorized and then employed for tasks requiring human effort. As the machines became more sophisticated, the humans lost their last value and the T-800s were tasked with fully eliminating mankind.
The Model 101 designation was never explained in the final films. A deleted scene from T2 revealed the Terminator’s actual series and model number in a bootup screen. Director James Cameron also explained the sequencing in several interviews throughout the 1990s.
T-1000
Employing an entirely new technology, the T-1000 more perfectly copied human form. Based entirely on an interlocked cellular structure formed in liquid metal, the T-1000 is able to duplicate forms it can touch as long as they are of equal mass. Although it can’t duplicate complex machines, it can quickly adapt its form to act as a doppleganger to fool intended targets. The T-1000 is a strict assassin unit.
T-X
The T-X, called the “Terminatrix”, integrates the technology of the T-1000 and T-800 and integrates it with high grade information exchange and control mechanisms. It has the ability to quickly reprogram sophisticated computer systems and can control multiple machines simultaneously. Its remote access to a myriad of systems makes it a dangerous weapon as it can bring forth combat support equipment to aid in any battle.
HK – Seeker
A prominent weapon of the machines is the flying search and destroy device, the Hunter-Killer – Seeker. This hovering system occasionally provides air cover for moving machine ground forces. It also operates independently, identifying pockets of human resistance and quickly bringing firepower on the target.
This mockup model was sold popularly after the release of T2 and represents the HK – Seeker shown in T1 and T2.
The CG version of the HK – Seeker shown in T3 is sleeker and demonstrated altered flying patterns, hovering more than the previous HKs.
HK – Tank
Heavily armored and lumbering through radioactive ruins, the Hunter-Killer – Tank brings rapid fire laser weapons to provide direct fire support to heavily defended regions.
HK – Walker
Developed as a conceptual idea for the 2029 war shown in the beginning of T2, the HK – Walker was never brought to film.
HK – Raptor
Also a concept from T2, the Raptor was to be a slightly larger than man-sized walker used for scouting and investigation missions.
– written by the Two-Brained Cylon