www.byjusexamprep.

com

1
www.byjusexamprep.com

Input & Output Devices

Input Devices

Input Devices are the units for making link between user and computer. The input devices translate the
information into the form understandable by the computer. Due to ICT revolution we are day by day
encountering different variety of input devices around us. These new generation of input devices are
being created with the sole objective of making interaction between human an machine flawless.

● Keyboard: The most frequent and well-liked input method for entering data into computers is
the keyboard.
● Mouse: The most common pointing and cursor-control device is the mouse, which has a small
palm-sized box with a round ball at its base that detects mouse movement and delivers the
appropriate signals to the CPU when the mouse buttons are pressed.
● Trackpad: A touchpad, also referred to as a trackpad, is a typical alternative to a computer
mouse. It simply consists of a customised surface that can track a user's finger movement and
use that data to guide a pointer and manage a computer.
● Joy Stick: On a monitor screen, the joy stick is used to move the pointer position. It is
primarily utilised when playing video games and performing Computer-Aided Design (CAD).
● Light Pen: Used to choose an item from a menu that is being presented or to make drawings
on the computer screen.
● Track Ball: Often used in place of a mouse in notebook or laptop computers. This ball is
partially implanted, and the pointer can be moved by dragging fingers across the ball.
● Scanner: Using a scanner, printed material can be scanned and converted into a file format for
usage on a personal computer.
● Graphic Tablet: A graphic tablet, also referred to as a digitizer, is an input tool used to turn
hand-drawn artwork into computer pictures. It transforms analogue data into digital data. On a
unique flat surface, the user creates drawings with a stylus as if they were doing so on paper.
On the computer screen, the drawing appears and can be printed, altered, or saved.
● Microphone: A microphone is a sound-input device that records audio for later digital
archiving.
● Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR): The usage of MICR input devices is common
in banks due to the volume of cheques that must be processed daily.

2
www.byjusexamprep.com

● Optical Character Recognition (OCR): Using OCR, text may be extracted from scanned
images.
● Digital Camera: As they can separately record both still images and moving pictures, digital
cameras also function as input devices. These image and video files can be moved to a
computer later.
● Webcams: Input devices like webcams are required for tasks like videoconferencing. Digital
cameras and webcams are dissimilar in two respects. First of all, they are dependent on a
computer to function, and secondly, they lack internal memory. Webcams can take pictures
and films, but they are typically used to stream live video or for video chats.
● Barcode reader: A barcode reader is a device that scans or reads barcodes that are printed on
packaged goods. For usage at checkout, barcode scanners are typically purchased by
enterprises.
● Gamepad: Another type of input device is the wired or wireless gaming remote used for
Xbox, Playstation, and other platforms.
● MIDI keyboard: A MIDI keyboard, also known as a controller keyboard, is typically an
electronic piano-style keyboard with additional buttons, wheels, and sliders. It is used to send
MIDI signals or commands to other musical instruments or computers that are connected and
following the same MIDI protocol using USB or a MIDI 5-pin cable.
● Pen Input: Pen input describes how Windows enables you to use a pen to communicate with a
computer directly. A pen can be used to point, make gestures, enter rudimentary text, and
record free-form ideas in digital ink.
● Electronic Whiteboard: An electronic whiteboard is a piece of hardware that resembles the
whiteboards used in offices and classrooms. All information that is written on it is transmitted
to a computer or computers. They also enable real-time communication with digital objects
displayed on screens.
● Optical Mark recognition (OMR): OMR is a technique that electronically extracts desired
data from marked fields on printed forms, like checkboxes and fill-in fields. OMR technology
reads predetermined points on a printed form by scanning it, and it records where marks are put
on the form.
● Punch Card Reader: Punch card readers are computer input devices used to read data from
punched cards as well as computer programmes in source or executable form.
● Biometric Scanner: biometric input device that analyses a person's distinctive bodily
characteristics. Using a person's fingerprint to enter data into a computer is the most popular
biometric application. More advanced gadgets enter a description of a person's iris using a
camera (the coloured part of the eye).

3
www.byjusexamprep.com

Output Devices
Output devices translate the computer's output into the form understandable by users.

● Monitors: A computer's primary output device is a monitor, often known as a Visual Display
Unit (VDU). Pixels, which are very small dots arranged in a rectangular pattern, are used to
create images. The amount of pixels affects how crisp the image is. For monitors, there are two
different types of viewing screens.
● Cathode-Ray Tube (CRT): The pixels that make up a CRT display are tiny
pieces of the image. The resolution or image clarity of an image improves with
decreasing pixel size.
● Flat- Panel Display: In comparison to CRTs, flat-panel displays are a class of
visual devices that require less space, weight, and power.
● Printers: A printer is an output machine that prints data on paper.
● Impact Printers: The characters are printed using impact printers by striking
them against a ribbon before the ribbon is placed against the paper.
● Non-Impact Printers: Non-impact printers don't use ribbon to print the
characters. These printers are also known as page printers since they print an
entire page at once. Example - Inkjet and laser printers.

● Plotters: For creating a tangible copy of a digitally developed design, plotters are typically
utilised with engineering applications. Moreover, graphic designers, architects, construction
engineers, etc. frequently employ plotters.
● Projector: Projectors are output devices that allow businesses, educational institutions, and
religious institutions to simultaneously display information to huge groups of people. They are
also employed for presentations at lectures or meetings.

4
www.byjusexamprep.com

● Computer Output Microfilm (COM): COM machines were used to make film images of
each page from print-image output from the computer, whether it was online, on tape, or on a
disc.
● Speakers: Each and every type of speaker is regarded as an output device since it produces
sound.
● Head Phone/Earphone: lthough we regularly use headphones and earphones, they differ from
speakers in that they are designed for individual usage.
● Microfiche: A microfiche is a miniature card composed of clear film that is used to store
printed information. A microfiche reader machine's lens magnifies the card, making it easier to
read.
● Video Card: Video cards are hardware components that enable the display of visual output to
the user on a monitor. This hardware aids in information return from the user to the computer,
fostering interaction.
● CD and DVD media: The standard output devices for computers are CD and DVD media.
These output devices' advantage is their capacity for long-term data storage. As CD and DVD
hardware devices are readable, users can share information by writing data there.
● Actuator: An actuator is an output device that generates actual movements in a system that is
controlled by a computer. Moreover, a motor known as an actuator is frequently employed in
robotics businesses and construction firms that handle metal and gear movements.
● Braille Reader: Blind persons can read text with the aid of a braille reader. The computer sent
Braille-formatted text to the device. As a result, the text is readable

Both Input–Output Devices

● Touch Screen: A touch screen is a gadget that may be used for both input and output. You use
your finger to touch the option you have selected (input) after viewing the options accessible to you
on the screen (output).
● Modems: Modulation and demodulation are two words that are used to form the word "modem."
As a result of sending and receiving data across telephone lines, it functions as an input and output
device.
● Network cards: Network cards are a type of device used for computer-to-computer
communication. It receives the input from one and sends the output to the other.
● Audio Cards / Sound Card: A computer's internal expansion card known as an audio card or
sound card allows for the input and output of audio signals under the direction of computer
programmes.
● Headsets: Because they have a microphone and speakers, they can conduct input and output tasks
concurrently. Both the speaker and the microphone are input devices.
● Facsimile (FAX): It has a scanner for document scanning and a printer for document printing.