: (I still don't understand why they needed to redesign a classic ship for
: something like two quick shots in one cinematic. Why does the Assualt
: Rifle and Bansee get to retain their designs almost exactly, but
: everything else must be altered for seemingly the sake of altering it?
: Grumble, grumble, grumble.)

I grumble with ya. The new ones deployed by the Infinity are Strident-class (also the one on Daybreak map), but they are similar yet distinct from the redesigned Dawn. Despite the significant size difference, the side wings, missile hatches, and a few other details are different between them. The Dawn is still Charon-class. If it makes it better in your head, the Charon still looks as it did in Halo 3 and the ones seen in Spartan Ops are a new class of frigate. :) That's how I see it.