Hardware

Computer hardware is the collection of physical parts of a computer system. This includes the computer
case, monitor, keyboard, and mouse. It also includes all the parts inside the computer case, such as the
hard disk drive, motherboard, video card, and many others. Computer hardware is what you can
physically touch.

Computer hardware includes the physical, tangible parts or components of a computer, such as
the cabinet, central processing unit, monitor, keyboard, computer data storage, graphics card, sound
card, speakers and motherboard.[1] By contrast, software is instructions that can be stored and run by
hardware. Hardware is so-termed because it is "hard" or rigid with respect to changes or modifications;
whereas software is "soft" because it is easy to update or change. Intermediate between software and
hardware is "firmware", which is software that is strongly coupled to the particular hardware of a
computer system and thus the most difficult to change but also among the most stable with respect to
consistency of interface. The progression from levels of "hardness" to "softness" in computer
systems parallels a progression of layers of abstraction in computing.

Hardware is typically directed by the software to execute any command or instruction. A combination of
hardware and software forms a usable computing system, although other systems exist with only
hardware components.

Storage

Alternatively referred to as digital storage, storage, storage media, or storage medium, a storage
device is any hardware capable of holding information either temporarily or permanently. The picture
shows an example of a Drobo, an external secondary storage device.

There are two types of storage devices used with computers: a primary storage device, such as RAM,
and a secondary storage device, such as a hard drive. Secondary storage can be removable, internal,
or external.

CPU

The central processing unit is the computer component that's responsible for interpreting and executing
most of the commands from the computer's other hardware and software.

All sorts of devices use a CPU, including desktop, laptop, and tablet computers, smartphones — even
your flat-screen television set.

Intel and AMD are the two most popular CPU manufacturers for desktops, laptops, and servers, while
Apple, NVIDIA, and Qualcomm are big smartphone and tablet CPU makers.

You may see many different names used to describe the CPU, including processor, computer processor,
microprocessor, central processor, and "the brains of the computer."