HARDWARE COMPONENTS

ACTIVITY 1
 1.HOW TO CHOOSE A MOTHERBOARD AND THINGS TO
KNOW BEFORE YOU BUY A MOTHERBOARD?

• YOUR CPU AND MOTHERBOARD MUST BE COMPATIBLE

• *YOUR MOTHERBOARD MUST FIT INSIDE THE CASE YOU ARE
CHOOSING
• *MAKE SURE YOUR MOTHERBOARD HAS ENOUGH
PORTS/SLOTS FOR YOUR NEEDS
2.WHAT ARE THE BEST BRANDS OF
MOTHERBOARD?

• GIGABYTE

• ASUS

• ASROCK

• MSI (MICROSTAR)

• BIOSTAR
3. WHY HAVING MORE PORTS AND SLOTS
ARE IMPORTANT IN A MOTHERBOARD?

• GIVE THE USER THE ABILITY TO ADD NEW DEVICES TO

THE COMPUTER.
• ALLOW THE HARDWARE OF A COMPUTER TO EXPAND.
4.WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT MOTHERBOARD COMPATIBILITY
WITH RAM?

• RAM COMPATIBILITY ALWAYS RELATES  YOUR

MOTHERBOARD.YOU NEED TO LOOK FOR
MOTHERBOARD’S SPECIFICATION TO KNOW FOR
CERTAIN IF THE RAM WILL FIT.THE FIRST THING
YOU NEED IS YOUR MOTHERBOARD
GENERATION.DDR WITH A NUMBER SUCH AS DDR3
(DOUBEL DATA RATE VERSION 3), IS OFTEN THE
GENERATION ON RAM AND MOTHERBOARDS.THE
RAM THAT CAN BE USED BY YOUR MOTHERBOARD
WILL BE SPECIFIED, MOST LIKELY DDR4 OR DDR3.
• SINCE MOTHERBOARDS ARE NOT BACKWARD
COMPATIBLE, YOU MUST MAKE SURE THE RAM
GENERATION MATCHES THAT OF YOUR
MOTHERBOARD.THIS INDICATES THAT DDR3 RAM
IS REQUIRED ON DDR3 MOTHERBOARDS; ANY
OTHER RAM WON’T WORK.
5.WHAT DO WE NEED TO KNOW
ABOUT MOTHERBOARD CHIPSET? • CHIPSET DETERMINES HOW MANY
HIGH-SPEED COMPONENTS OR USB
DEVICES YOUR BEST
MOTHERBOARD CAN SUPPORT.IT
IS USUALLY COMPRISED OF ONE
TO FOUR CHIPS AND FEATURE
CONTROLLERS FOR COMMONLY
USED PERIPHERALS, LIKE THE
KEYBOARD, MOUSE OR MONITOR.
• WHEN PURCHASING A CPU, KEEP
IN MIND THAT DIFFERENT
CHIPSETS SUPPORT VARIOUS CPUS,
AND THAT YOUR PROCESSOR WILL
ONLY FUNCTION WITH
MOTHERBOARDS THAT USE THAT
PARTICULAR CHIPSET.
6. WHAT TO KNOW MORE ABOUT CPU SOCKETS?
CPU SOCKET IS ONE OF THE
MOST IMPORTANT PARTS OF
ALMOST EVERY MOTHERBOARD.
IT’S A BRIDGE BETWEEN THE
CPU AND THE REST OF THE
SYSTEM AND TODAY. THE CPU IS
PROVIDED WITH THE
NECESSARY POWER AND
CHANNELS FOR
COMMUNICATION WITH THE
REST OF THE SYSTEM.
ADDITIONALLY, A CPU SOCKET
HAS A LOCKING FEATURE THAT
SECURES THE CPU AND
PROTECTS IT FROM MOVING
AND POTENTIALLY HARMING
THE BOARD OR ITSELF.
7. KNOW MORE ABOUT AMD VS INTEL, WHO’S THE CHAMP?
• BRIEF INTRODUCTION TO THE
BOTH PROCESSORS 
• THE BRAND "INTEL" ACRONYM
FOR "INTEGRATED
ELECTRONICS" FOUNDED IN
1968 TECHNOLOGY COMPANY
BASED IN CALIFORNIA, SILICON
VALLEY. 
• MEANWHILE THE
"AMD" ACRONYM FOR
"ADVANCED MICRO
DEVICES" FOUNDED IN 1969 A
SEMICONDUCTOR COMPANY
BASED ALSO IN CALIFORNIA,
SILICON VALLEY.
8. NEED TO KNOW BIOS AND UEFI BIOS
INTRODUCTION FOR BIOS AND UEFI BIOS
• "BIOS" STANDS FOR  BASIC INPUT/OUTPUT
SYSTEM” A TYPE OF FIRMWARE STORED ON A
CHIP ON YOUR MOTHERBOARD. WHEN YOU
START YOUR COMPUTER, THE COMPUTERS
BOOTS THE BIOS, WHICH CONFIGURES YOUR
HARDWARE BEFORE HANDING OFF TO A
BOOT DEVICE (USUALLY YOUR HARD
DRIVE).
• UEFI STANDS FOR “UNIFIED EXTENSIBLE
FIRMWARE INTERFACE”. IT’S THE
SUCCESSOR TO THE TRADITIONAL BIOS. UEFI
OFFERS SUPPORT FOR BOOT VOLUMES OVER
2 TB IN SIZE, SUPPORT FOR MORE THAN
FOUR PARTITIONS ON A DRIVE, FASTER
BOOTING, AND ENABLES MORE MODERN
FEATURES
9. WHAT ARE FORM FACTORS? 

• THE FORM FACTOR OF THE CPU DESCRIBES ITS GENERAL SHAPE, WHAT SORTS OF SOCKETS AND SLOTS
USED AND HOW HEAT SINK IS ARRANGED, AND ITS PHYSICAL ORGANIZATION.
• IN MOTHERBOARDS IT PERTAINS TO THE SIZE AND SHAPE OF THE BOARD .
• WITH VARY SYSTEM CASES, IT DESCRIBES CERTAIN SPECIFIC FEATURES AND WHAT
KIND OF MOTHERBOARD FITS INSIDE.
• THE FOLLOWING ARE COMMON FORM FACTORS FOR MOTHERBOARDS:
I. ATX (ADVANCE TECHNOLOGY EXTENDED) - (12" X 9.6") (305MM X 244MM)
II. MICRO ATX ( MATX) - (9.6" X 9.6") (244MM X 244MM)
III. FLEX ATX – 9.0" X 7.5" (229MM X 191MM)
IV. MINI ITX – (6.7" X 6.7") (170MM X 170MM)   
10. WHAT ARE THE NEW TRENDS IN MICROPROCESSOR,
WHICH IS MUCH BETTER TO USE AND THE BRANDS

• INTEL CORE I9-12900K. THE VERY BEST PROCESSOR

AVAILABLE RIGHT NOW 
   OR
• INTEL CORE I5-12600K THE BEST VALUE FOR MONEY
11. WHAT ARE THE NEW TRENDS IN CHOOSING A
SYSTEM UNIT OR SO CALLED THE TOWER CASE?
THERE ARE 5 THINGS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
CHOOSING A TOWER CASE
• 1. AIRFLOW
• ALTHOUGH SOME CASES MIGHT LOOK GREAT FROM FIRST GLANCE, THEY
MIGHT BE A BAD IDEA FOR THOSE WHO WANT TO RUN POWERFUL
HARDWARE. GREAT AIRFLOW IS ESSENTIAL TO ANY PC, ESPECIALLY
GAMING PCS THAT WILL OFTEN BE PUSHING THEIR HARDWARE TO THE
LIMITS. LIMITED AIRFLOW LEADS TO OVERHEATING, WHICH IN TURN
CAUSES THERMAL THROTTLING. 
2. COOLING SYSTEMS
IF YOU PLAN TO USE LIQUID AIO COOLERS OR INSTALL CUSTOM LIQUID COOLING THROUGH YOUR CPU
AND GPU, YOUR CASE MUST HAVE THE NECESSARY OPENINGS TO MAKE THEM EASIER AND CLEANER
TO INSTALL. MOREOVER, NOT ALL CASES CAN ACCOMMODATE LIQUID COOLING RADIATORS OF ALL
SIZES. IF YOU’VE ALREADY BOUGHT YOUR COOLING SYSTEM, IT'D BE WISE TO CHECK WHAT
RADIATORS YOUR CASE CAN SUPPORT. EVERY CABINET'S TECHNICAL SPECS PAGE WILL LIST THE
RADIATOR SIZE THAT IS SUPPORTED BY IT. HERE'S AN EXAMPLE: 
3. GRAPHICS CARD LENGTH
ALTHOUGH THIS IS BECOMING LESS OF AN ISSUE NOWADAYS WITH GRAPHICS CARDS
BECOMING SHORTER AND CASES ACCOMMODATING MORE CLEARANCE FOR THEM, IT IS
STILL A POSSIBILITY THAT YOUR GRAPHICS CARD IS TOO LONG TO FIT INTO THE CASE
YOU BOUGHT.   
4. CABLE MANAGEMENT
AGAIN, THIS IS BECOMING MORE OF A STANDARD FEATURE. A CASE THAT HAS
EXCELLENT CABLE MANAGEMENT FEATURES MAKES YOUR BUILD NEATER AND MUCH
EASIER TO MANAGE. NOT ONLY WILL YOUR INTERNALS LOOK GORGEOUS AND CLEAN
BUT IT'LL ALSO ENHANCE YOUR INSTALLATION AND MODIFICATION EXPERIENCE EVEN
LATER ON. 
5. PSU SHROUDS
LOOSE CABLES STICKING OUT FROM YOUR PSU HAVE PROBABLY FRUSTRATED EVERY
SINGLE PERSON WHO HAS ASSEMBLED A PC THEMSELVES. PSU SHROUDS IN CASES HELP
HIDE LOOSE CABLES AS WELL AS THE PSU INSIDE A NEAT ENCLOSURE. THIS IS A MUST-
HAVE IF YOU WANT A CERTAIN NEATNESS AND A CLEAN BUILD, ESPECIALLY IF YOU'RE
PLANNING TO USE NON-MODULAR PSUS. 
12. DIFFERENT SPECIFICATIONS AND BRANDS OF HARD
DISK, MEMORY, VIDEO CARD, RAM AND OTHER
PERIPHERALS NEEDED TO THE ASSEMBLY OF A
COMPUTER?

• FOR HARDISK THE BEST BRAND IS THE 

WESTERN DIGITAL BLUE IS ACTUALLY ON THE
LOW END OF THE FIRM’S INTERNAL HARD DRIVE
OFFERING – IT’S OUTSTRIPPED IN TERMS OF SPEED
AND CAPACITY BY THE BLACK HARD DRIVES,
WHICH WE’LL GET TO SHORTLY. HOWEVER, JUST
LIKE THE SEAGATE BARRACUDA, THE WESTERN
DIGITAL BLUE IS MORE THAN ENOUGH FOR MOST
USERS, AND PROVIDES GREAT VALUE, TOO. 
• FOR THE MEMORY CORSAIR IS ONE OF THE MOST
TRUSTED NAMES WHEN IT COMES TO THE BEST
RAM ON THE MARKET. ITS VENGEANCE SERIES,
ESPECIALLY, HAS SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE
WITH ITS LED DDR4 OFFERINGS.
 FOR VIDEO CARD IS THE RTX 3080
DELIVERS THE BEST PERFORMANCE
PER DOLLAR FOR A HIGH-END GAMING
PC. FOR A LITTLE WHILE LONGER AT
LEAST. AND WE'RE ONLY TALKING
ABOUT THE 10GB ONE. AT ITS ORIGINAL
MSRP. 

AND FOR RAM THE G.SKILL

TRIDENT Z5 RGB DDR5-6000 C36 IS
ONE OF THE FASTEST DDR5
MEMORY KITS THAT MONEY CAN
BUY. IT ALSO HAS THE BEST
TIMINGS THAT YOU CAN FIND ON A
DDR5-6000 MEMORY KIT. 
13. WHICH TO BUY A BRANDED COMPUTER
OR A CLONE COMPUTER?
• THE DELL XPS 8940 SPECIAL EDITION ISN'T A SUPER-BUDGET
OFFERING, BUT IT OFFERS EXCELLENT VALUE FOR THE
PERFORMANCE IT'S CAPABLE OF. NATURALLY, THERE'S THE
POTENTIAL TO UPGRADE YOUR COMPONENTS LATER ON, BUT THIS IS
A DESKTOP PC THAT'S DESIGNED TO BE FUTURE-PROOF SO DON'T
WORRY IF YOU'RE NOT CONFIDENT ABOUT THE IDEA OF TINKERING
WITH THE INTERNALS OF YOUR COMPUTER.