Various Kinds of Hardware and Their Functions

This article will discuss various types of hardware and their functions.

Various types of hardware are also known as hardware.

Hardware is a physical component that is used to execute commands on a computer.

Various Kinds of Hardware and Their Functions

In other words, hardware is a computer component that can be seen, touched, and touched.

Curious what kinds of hardware and their functions? Check out the review below.

Hardware

As mentioned above, hardware is a computer component that can be seen, touched, and touched.

In general, hardware is divided into 4:

Input device
output device
Data processing device
Enhancements or accessories

The input device is responsible for entering data into the computer which will later be processed by the processing device.

After the data is processed in the processing device, the computer will display or generate the data through the output device.

There are also additional devices or accessories that are useful to support computer performance.

Various Kinds of Hardware and Their Complete Functions

1. Motherboards

It is a circuit board that houses other computer components such as the hard drive, RAM and processor.

The motherboard in Indonesian is known as the main board.

This hardware is shortened to mobo by computer enthusiasts and consists of several types of components, including:

Power connector
Memory slots
Processor slots
North bridge controller

The motherboard has the shape of an electronic circuit that is used as a place for data traffic.

With this motherboard or main board, all components in the computer can be connected to each other and work together in synergy so that it runs smoothly.

2. Processor

The processor is also known as the Central Processing Unit (CPU) which is the control center and data processing on a computer.

The processor has an important role, namely managing program commands and activities on the computer.

Therefore, the processor is also known as the brain of the computer.

The processor has the function of processing incoming data so that it can produce output according to the command.

The processor is placed on the motherboard or main board.

Here are some important parts in the processor including:

Arithmatics Logical Unit (ALU)

Function to carry out arithmetic calculations according to program commands.

Control Units

Serves to control all forms of commands on the computer.

Memory Units

Serves as a place to store data or commands on the computer.

3. RAM

Random Access Memory (RAM) is data processing hardware that functions to store all instructions from the processor.

Storage of instructions or data in RAM is only temporary.

This means that instructions or data stored in RAM will be lost and emptied again when the computer is turned off.

But if your computer is in hibernation mode, the instructions or data will not be lost, you can still continue the instructions that you previously postponed.

With the addition of RAM in the computer allows you as a user to read and write data simultaneously.

In addition, RAM capacity greatly affects the computer's ability to execute user instructions.

4. Hard drive

Hard Disk Drive (HDD) is a computer hardware that functions as a secondary storage medium.

This type of hardware is shaped like a disc in which it can magnetically store data.

In contrast to RAM which stores data or instructions temporarily, the hard drive will store data such as documents, pictures, music, and so on permanently.

The data will not just disappear when the computer is turned off as happens to data stored in RAM.

There are three types of hard drives on the market including:

Serial Advanced Technology Attachment (SATA)
Advanced Technology Attachments (ATA)
Integrated Drive Electronics (IDE)

The most striking difference from the three types mentioned above is the disk rotation speed which affects the speed of the hard disk in accessing data.

While in its implementation the three types of hard drives have different port models.

You need to know and pay attention to the right port model according to the hard drive model you are using.

5. SSDs

Solid State Drive (SSD) is the newest type of storage media to replace hard drives that use memory chips.

The memory chips are interconnected to store data.

SSDs are considered more sophisticated and more up-to-date than hard drives because they have higher speed and readability.

You could say that an SSD has a storage function like a hard disk, but in construction it looks more like a USB Flash Drive.

SSD prices on the market are still relatively expensive when compared to hard disk prices.

The price of a 250 GB SSD is equivalent to the price of a 1 TB capacity hard drive, but this is comparable to the capabilities offered by an SSD.

6. PC Cooler/Heatsink

The next type of hardware is PC Cooler which plays an important role in controlling the heat temperature inside the computer.

This hardware is installed just above the processor as well as cooling the processor temperature to keep it stable.

In installing PC Cooler, you need a special paste or gel so that it sticks perfectly with the processor.

At the top of the PC Cooler is equipped with a small fan to help the cooling process faster.

To optimize the PC Cooler's performance, these types of hardware are made from a special aluminum material because it is considered to have a higher level of conductivity.

7. VGA card

VGA card or video graphic adapter is hardware that is responsible for processing graphic displays so that they appear on the monitor screen.

This hardware has its own processor called GPU or Graphical Processing Unit.

Having a GPU card is very helpful, especially if you are a gamer or designer to further support the graphics performance on your computer.

There are several types of VGA cards that are usually used in accordance with the main board slot (motherboard).

ISA VGA card

The shape is longer than other types and is used on older versions of motherboards with small capacities.

This VGA card was used on computers before the Pentium series.

PCI EXPRESS VGA card

This VGA card is divided into two types, namely PCI Express 1x and PCI Express 16x.

PCI Express 1x has bandwidth with a maximum speed of 250 mb/s.

Meanwhile, PCI Express 16x has a maximum bandwidth of 4,000 mb/s.

AGP VGA card

This card has a fairly large capacity compared to its predecessor, the PCI VGA card.

PCI VGA Card

This one is the latest version of the ISA VGA card.

This card was used in early releases such as old Pentium 2 to Pentium 5 computers.

8. Monitors

The next types of hardware are monitors which are useful hardware displays the results of data processing in the form.

Each brand and type of monitor has a different size and resolution.

The types of monitors are usually:

Cathode Ray Tube (CRT)
Liquid Crystal Display (LCD)

But now the CRT type or what we know as tube monitors is no longer used because they are considered to take up too much space and waste energy.

In determining the quality of monitor fruit you usually need to pay attention to the following things:

brightness level
Contrast
Resolution
Response time

The higher the number of pixels displayed on the monitor screen, the higher the resolution it has.

Meanwhile, the response time is related to how fast the monitor is to turn on and off the screen pixels.

Pixel pitch is a measure of the distance between monitor pixels in mm.

A monitor can be said to have sufficient pixel density if the pixel spacing is less than 0.28 mm.

9. Power supplies

Various kinds of hardware on this one have a role that is quite important in one unified computer component.

Power supply is hardware that acts as a supplier of power to other computer components.

The computer components in question include processors, motherboards, and VGA cards.

You could say the power supply is the heart of the computer because if there is no power supply, it is impossible for a computer to turn on.

This piece of hardware is rarely seen because of its position inside the casing.

The Power Supply Unit (PSU) affects the overall performance and durability of the computer.

If the power supply is not working properly, the computer may become unstable or even damaged.

For this reason, it is recommended that you use a new power supply and one that suits your needs because the types of electronic components usually have a limited usage time.

If you intend to buy a used power supply, it could only have a short life time.

10. Sound Card

A sound card is a hardware device that functions to process sound or audio data on a computer.

At first, this type of hardware was only a complementary component, but along with its development, the sound card has become a mandatory device or hardware device to support computer performance.

There are at least three kinds of sound cards based on the installation model on the market: