Pip-Boy

The RobCo Pip-Boy (PIP stands for Personal Information Processor) is an electronic device manufactured by RobCo Industries, using ultra-modern super-deluxe resolution graphics, which coupled with its capability to store large amounts of information and transfer data to and from holodisks and from data tubes make it the obvious choice for the wandering explorer, the out-on-his-own newbie or the all-around survivalist expert.

The Pip-Boys were standard equipment issued to all Vault-Tec Vaults. Some Vaults received newer models of the device, while others got older versions.

The character who shows in images which illustrate all of the characteristics of the SPECIAL character system (Perks, Traits, Stats etc.) is often incorrectly called Pipboy (even in Fallout Tactics). His real name is Vault Boy.

Pip-Boy 2000
It displays information in bright green on its black 5" x 3" screen. It can record sound and video footage for later playback. It uses a simple but elegant form of sonar and satellite tracking (where available, which is far from everywhere in the post-apocalyptic world) to map out areas where its user travels. Though input is slow, a user can also hand-enter and edit text messages on their Pip Boy 2000s. The original Pip Boy 2000 was a hand-held device, though some very cumbersome models were made to be worn on the arm. These models were unofficially called Pip Boy 2000 Plus. The pip boy is locked on by a biometric lock.

Pip-Boy 3000
The 3000 model has a built-in radio and Geiger Counter. According to Stanley in Fallout 3, there are several series of Pip-Boy 3000s, each a bit different. The 3000 is designed with some form of bio-lock which makes it so that the user cannot remove it. Since every Pip-Boy is recycled, one could assume that the previous user's left arm must be chopped off to remove their device (before meeting their post-mortum incineration). The Pipboy button (Computer: Tab, PS3: O, Xbox 360: B) can be held down to toggle a light that illuminates the area around the user, allowing them to see better in the dark.

Pipboy lighting ordinarily keeps its state (on or off) except for one case: Going from inside to outside, in which case it always turns off (even in the deep of night). It will otherwise keep its state when going from:
 * Outside to outside (e.g., entering/exiting Megaton through the gates, or any fast travelling)
 * Interior zones to other inside zones
 * Outside to inside

Your compass shows you a number of things:
 * Any green markers (vertical lines) above the compass line mean friendlies or neutrals; any red bars mean enemies.
 * Any filled triangles below the compass line mean found/marked World Map locations; unfilled triangles are potential World-Map markers that have not yet been discovered.
 * A solid vertical marker below your compass line is your current Quest objective; an unfilled vertical marker is your personal objective (chosen by right-clicking on the map).

Pipboys apparently have uses besides those in the game, because they are mandatory pieces of equipment for every single active member of Vault 101's community. In Fallout 3, any armor worn by the Player character will have the left sleeve cut off, in order to accommodate the Pip-Boy. A note of interest. The Pip Boy is very similar in appearance to the real-life computer interface used by the so-called Dr. Cyborg, a British research professor who has pioneered the human computer implant studies.

Lil' Pip 3000
A miniature version of the 3000 series exists, called the Lil' Pip 3000.

Appearances
The main characters in Fallout, Fallout 2, Fallout 3 and Fallout Tactics are all equipped with PIPBoys.

Van Buren characters such as the Prisoner, Symm, other Tibbets prisoners and Dr. Presper's party (Coleridge, Briggs, Davidson and Pierce) were also planned to be equipped with PIPboys.