Torchwood earpiece
Torchwood earpieces were earpiece communication devices used by employees of the Torchwood Institute. Yvonne Hartman described them as "standard comms devices". (TV: Army of Ghosts)
Designs of the earpiece varied between Torchwood branches. Torchwood One used one design which were typically used by all personnel, while Torchwood Three had several different earpieces which were often used interchangeably. (TV: Army of Ghosts, Everything Changes et al)
History
Torchwood One
All Torchwood One personnel working at the Torchwood Tower in London used communication earpieces. These were worn by technicians, scientists and soldiers based at the tower and all featured the same design with the Torchwood logo. (TV: Army of Ghosts, Doomsday)
When the Cybermen of Pete's World began to cross over into the Doctor's universe in 2007, these earpieces were modified by the Cybermen in a way which allowed control over the wearer. Three Torchwood One employees, Adeola Oshodi, Gareth Evans, and Matt Crane, were converted into Cyber-agents through this process. The three employees would reemerge from their conversion with two modified earpieces which were operating in a manner similar to the Cybus EarPods from Pete's World. The Cybermen did this in order to infiltrate the Torchwood branch and open the Void to allow the other five million Cybermen to cross over into this Earth.
Upon the Tenth Doctor's realisation that the three employees were Cyber-agents, he deactivated their earpieces with his sonic screwdriver. This caused them to drop to their deaths, with the Doctor explaining that they were already dead as a result of the conversion. Yvonne Hartman, confused at how the earpieces could control them, removed one from Adeola which showed that they had been connected to her brain by Cyber-filament. (TV: Army of Ghosts)
Torchwood Three
Torchwood Three personnel used communication earpieces as early as 1999. Jack Harkness used a silver earpiece with a microphone that emitted a blue light, which he would continue to use up to 2008. (TV: Fragments)
In 2007, an alternative earpiece was used by Torchwood Three personnel. These earpieces were coloured black and were larger in design than that of Jack Harkness's earpiece, with the name "Torchwood" inscribed on them. Unlike the earpieces of Torchwood One, these earpieces were primarily worn in field operations. (TV: Day One) Jack Harkness used this earpiece, but had returned to using the silver design later that year while the rest of Torchwood Three used the larger black design. (TV: Cyberwoman et al) Most of these earpieces were worn in the right ear, although Suzie Costello used one designed for her left. (TV: Everything Changes)
By 2008, a new earpiece was used. These earpieces were much smaller and not visible to others when in use. (TV: Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang) Standard tubular earpieces were also used. (TV: To the Last Man) On missions, the earpiece communicators were sometimes stored inside the Torchwood SUV. On one occasion, when the SUV was stolen, the team lost access to them along with most of their gear. (TV: Countrycide)
