20 Must-Know Parts of a Computer: Names, Functions & Diagrams.

Computer Parts and Their Functions

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Monitor

The monitor is one of the main parts of the computer system and is also called a Virtual Display
Unit. It is made of glass, circuitry, an adjustment button, power supplies, and more.

The video card is inside the monitor, which displays the images, video, and text. The adjustment
button on the monitor adjusts the brightness.

In the early days, the monitor had a CRT (Cathode ray tube) display, which was very heavy and
bulky. Nowadays, light and thin display monitors are available and are known as flat panel
displays.

Apart from these, LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) and LED (Light Emitting Diode) displays are the
most common display in the market.

Keyboard

The keyboard is the primary input device that gives different inputs to the computer. So we can
communicate and interact with the computer.

The keyboard looks and works the same as a traditional typewriter, but the main difference is that
the keyboard has some extra keys and looks different.

Generally, there are two types of keyboards in the market. The mechanical and membrane type
can be wired or may be wireless. A typical keyboard consists of a set of keys which are
alphabetical, numerical, special, number, and arrow keys.

With these keys, we give instructions to the computer to populate the data or give instructions to
do specific tasks.

The material of the keys and keyboard body is plastic. On each key specific letters and or words
are written to know their use and function.

Mouse

A mouse is another input device that directly interacts with a computer system. A mouse is a
pointing device and uses the “Point to click “approach.

The main function of the mouse is to move the pointer on the screen and select/open the folder in
the computer by buttons. A typical mouse has three buttons, left, right, and middle scroll buttons.

Some new generation mouse have more than 3 buttons, which has a unique function.

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Generally, the mouse divides into 2 types which are the mechanical and optical mouse. The
mechanical mouse uses ball and scroll technology to move the cursor, while the optical mouse
uses laser technology to move the cursor.

Webcam

The webcam is yet another external part of the computer. The primary function of the webcam is
to capture images and videos and send them to the computer in digital format.

This webcam is not like a digital camera because a webcam is needed to connect to a computer to
perform this action.

Speakers

Speakers are optional parts of the computer. These speakers are connected to a computer via USB
to get output in the audio format while watching movies or hearing to songs.

This speaker is attached to the sound card, which converts electromagnetic waves into audio
waves. This speaker also has an amplifier that adjusts the volume of sound.

As it is not an integral part of the computer, we can use different speakers per the manufacturer
and requirement.

Nowadays, computers and laptops are coming into the market with inbuilt speakers.

Microphone/Mike

The microphone is another external part of the computer. The primary function of the microphone
is to give voice input to the computer system. This microphone comes in various sizes and shapes.

We can also connect to the computer when we need to insert audio into the presentation or
broadcasting and voice conferencing.

Headphone

The headphone is the device from which we hear the sound. When we are talking on the call,
through the mike, we convey our message to the other person, but with headphones, we listen to
the other person.

It is an output device of the computer. As per the requirement, we can adjust the sound intensity.
It helps to make our online conversation easy and effective.

In the market, there are various companies making headphones. Each has a different design and
features.

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Printer

The printer is an output device connected to a computer system to print data on paper. It takes
electronic data from the computer and takes an exact copy of that document in monochrome (Black
and white) or colored format.

The printer may be wired or wireless.

Scanner

The scanner is the device to scan physical documents such as pdf or images and reads each
character on the paper using optical technology. After scanning and reading, it sends all the data
to a computer system for further manipulation.

The scanner is just the opposite of the printer. It is an input device of the computer and converts
physical documents into a digital format like JPEG, PDF, etc.

Photo scanners, Flatbed scanners, and handheld scanners are typical examples of scanners.

Pen drive/USB Flash Drive

Pen drive is a portable data-storing device that can carry wherever we want. It is small in
dimension, and we can place it in our pockets. We connect it to the USB port of the motherboard
to access the data. Without any additional power source, we can access the Pen drive through the
USB port.

We can take backups of the essential data and any other data in Pen drive. It helps to transfer the
data from one computer to the other by simply inserting the Pen drive.

There are various sizes of Pen drive available in the market, which starts from 2GB onward. Adata,
HP, SanDisk, and Sony are the best manufacturer of it.

UPS

UPS is Uninterruptable Power Supply. It is a hardware device that gives power backup to our
computer system when the primary electricity source does not supply the power.

UPS consists of a battery inside its cover, which keeps our system running for a shorter period to
protect a data loss.

The main advantage of UPS is that we get enough time to save our data and correctly switch the
system. When electricity cuts suddenly without UPS, there are chances to lose the data.

Power Cord

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The power cord is the primary cable to provide power to the computer. One end of the power cord
is connected to the UPS, and another to the computer case. Other cables connect the printer,
scanner, and monitor to the computer.

Central Processing Unit (CPU)

The complete form of the CPU is the Control Processing Unit, which is the brain of the computer.
CPU consist of the Arithmetic Logic Unit (ALU) and Control Unit (CU), which perform and
control arithmetic and logical function.

All the data given by the input devices is performed inside the processor to get the desired result.

The modern computer comes with a Multi-core processor (Multiple CPU is a Single Chip), which
helps to increase the processing power. It also helps to do multitasking operations in the computer
system.

Hard Drive

A hard disk is a non-volatile data storage device that stores various kinds of data, retrieves it per
need, and maintains the data even after it turns off.

HDD is one example of a hard disk that is available in laptops, mobiles, and other electronics to
store the software program, operation systems, and other files using the magnetic disk.

These hard drives connect with the motherboard through parallel or series ATA or Small Computer
System interfaces.

Motherboard

A motherboard is a circuit board that is integrated into the computer case. It helps to provide
connectivity and communication between the CPU, RAM, and other computer hardware.

A motherboard is also called a mainboard. It consists of parts such as RAM, ROM, CPU, sound
card, video card, input/output ports, network card, and storage devices.

Sound Card

In most cases, a sound chip is installed on the motherboard to generate sound output. For better
sound output, it is necessary to have a great and high-quality sound card.

A sound card is nothing but an expansion card on the motherboard of the computer system via a
USB port or PCI slot.

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The sound card also requires a proper driver and software installed on the computer system to
control and produce high-quality sound through headphones, speakers, and a mic.

Network Card.

Network Interface Card is the hardware component that connects the computer to the computer
networks. Its other names are network adapter, LAN, network interface, and controller.

It uses LAN to communicate for the local network, but for the large-scale network, it uses Internet
Protocol for communication. NIC uses a transceiver to transfer parallel data into serial data.

Each card has its unique name and number, like the MAC number, which differs as per the
manufacturer.

RAM.

RAM is the Random Access Memory, the short-term memory of the computer. It stores the
processor data temporarily and is fast to access rather than the hard drive and other storage devices.
The data of RAM get erased when we turn off the device.

The selection of the computer, laptop, and mobile mostly depends on the RAM capacity. It is
necessary for efficient performance and not getting your device to lag.

Graphics Processing Unit (GPU).

Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) is an electronic circuit for displaying high-quality images and
graphics. It is done by simply performing the arithmetic calculation.

As we know, the Graphics Processing Unit helps in the processing of 2D data as well as the
decoding of 3D data such as videos and animation. The Graphics Processing Unit is called a
Graphics Card or Video or Display Card.

As higher the memory of the Graphics Processing Unit, the higher the visual effect on a computer
screen. This high-quality graphics card is widely used by professional gamers.

Fan.

The fan is the internal part of the computer system. Its primary function is to provide air circulation
to the inner part of the computer and reduce overheating.

Overheating causes physical damage to the component. Proper cooling of the part increases the
life span of computer parts. BIOS controls the speed of the fan.

There is a variety of fans present in a system, like CPU fans, GPU fans, and power supply fans.

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