Computer Hardware & Input/Output Devices

INPUT/OUTPUT DEVICES & COMPUTER HARDWARE

What is Computer Hardware?

Hardware, in the computer world, refers to the physical components that make up a computer system.

There are many different kinds of hardware that can be installed inside, and connected to the outside, of a computer.

List of Computer Hardware

Here are some common individual computer hardware components that you'll often find inside a modern computer. In a desktop computer, these parts are found inside the case.

• Central Processing Unit (CPU)
• Motherboar
• Random Access Memory (RAM)
• Video Card
• Hard Disk (HDD)
• Solid State Drive (SSD)
• Optical Drive
• Card Reader

Here are some common hardware that you might find connected to the outside of a computer

• Monitor 
• Keyboard 
• Mouse
• Speaker 
• Printer

Here are some less common computer hardware, either because these pieces are now usually integrated into other devices or because they've been replaced with newer technology

:

• Sound Card 
• Network Interface Card (NIC) 
• Expansion Card (Firewire
• USB, Thunderbolt, etc. 
• Hard Drive 
• Controller Card 
• Analog Modem 
• Scanner 
• Floppy
• Webcam 
• Microphone
• Tape Drive 
• Zip Drive

What is a CPU?

The Central Processing Unit (CPU) is responsible for interpreting and executing most of the commands from the computer's hardware and software. 

The CPU could be considered the "brains" of the computer.

A modern CPU is usually small and square with many short, rounded, metallic connectors on its underside. Some older CPU have pins instead metallic connectors.

What is a Motherboard?

The motherboard serves to connect all of the parts of a computer together. The hard drives, optical drives, video card, sound card and other ports and expansion cards all connect to the motherboard directly or via cables.

The motherboard is the piece of computer hardware that can be thought of as the "back bone" of the PC.

What is RAM?

Random Access Memory (RAM) is the "working memory" in a computer.

Additional RAM allows a computer to work with more information at the same time which can have a dramatic effect on total system performance.

What is a Video Card?

The video card is an expansion card that allows the computer to send graphical information to a video display device such as a monitor, TV, or projector.

What is a Hard Disk Drive?

The hard disk drive is the main, and usually largest, data storage hardware device in a computer.

The operating system, software titles and most other files are stored in the hard disk drive.

What is an Optical Disc Drive?

Optical drives retrieve and/or store data on optical discs like CDs, DVDs, and BDs (Blu-ray discs) which hold much more information than classic portable media options like the floppy disk.

What is a Monitor?

The monitor is the piece of computer hardware that displays the video and graphics information generated by the computer through the video card.

Monitors are very similar to televisions but usually display information at a much higher resolution.

What is a Keyboard?

The keyboard is the piece of computer hardware used to input text, characters and other commands into a computer or similar device.

What is a Mouse?

The mouse is an input device designed to manipulate objects on the computer screen. The mouse is also known as 'Pointer'.

What is a Sound Card?

The sound card is an expansion card that allows the computer to send audio information to an audio device like speakers or a pair of headphones.

What is a Floppy Drive?

The floppy drive is a piece of computer hardware that reads data from, and writes data to, a small disk.

The most common type of floppy drive is the 3.5" drive, followed by the 5.25" drive, among other sizes.