OUTPUT DEVICES
DEFINITION
COMPUTER OUTPUT DEVICES RECEIVE IN FORMATION FROM THE
COMPUTER AND CARRY DATA THAT HAS BEEN PROCESSED BY THE
COMPUTER TO THE USER .
OUTPUT DEVICES PROVIDE DATA IN DIFFERENT FORMS, SOME OF
WHICH INCLUDE AUDIO, VISUAL, AND HARD COPY MEDIA. THE
DEVICES ARE USUALLY USED FOR DISPLAY, PROJECTION, OR FOR
PHYSICAL REPRODUCTION . MONITORS AND PRINTERS ARE TWO OF
THE MOST COMMONLY-KNOWN OUTPUT DEVICES USED WITH A
COMPUTER.
TYPES OF OUTPUT DEVICES
• HARD COPY OUTPUT
• SOFT COPY OUTPUT
HARD COPY OUTPUT
These type of output are in print form on the paper or some material
that can be touched and carried for being shown to other. Unlike soft
copy output, these type of output does not need continuous supply of
power. The commonly used hard copy output devices are printer and
plotter.
PLOTTERS
Plotters are used to print graphical output on paper. It interprets computer commands and makes
line drawings on paper using multicolored automated pens. It is capable of producing graphs,
drawings, charts, maps etc. Plotter is a slow output devices and is expensive.
PRINTER
A printer is a device that prints documents and images onto paper or other materials. It is
capable of producing graphs, drawings, charts, maps etc. It is usually to standard-size, 8.5" by
11" sheets of paper. There are two categories of printer. They are Impact and Non-Impact printer.
A. Impact printers:
The impact printer creates immediate contact between the ink ribbons and paper. They can be
noisy yet are very popular. Impact printers have mechanical components that allow printing.
Examples include Daisy-wheel printers, line printers, and Dot-matrix printers.
TYPES OF PRINTER
Impact printers:
An impact printer is a printing device typically used in conjunction with a computer that allows the relatively rapid and
repeatable printing of visual materials. The impact printer creates immediate contact between the ink ribbons and paper.
They can be noisy yet are very popular. Impact printers have mechanical components that allow printing. Examples
include Daisy-wheel printers, line printers, and Dot-matrix printers.
Non-Impact printer:
Non-impact printers are a type of printer which do not depend on direct physical contact with the paper to
produce output. Unlike impact printers, they don’t need a print head or print hammer striking against a print
medium to produce output. Non-impact printers create pictures, characters, and figures without any
uninterrupted contact between the printing device and the paper. Laser printers, Inkjet printers and Thermal printers are
some examples of Non-Impact printers.
SOFT COPY HARDWARE
The soft copy is a digital form of files and documents which can be saved or
stored in internal or external memory storage almost permanently. These soft
copies can be transferred or shared from one computer to another via Google
drives, email, or just by copying to pen drives, CDs, DVDs, or hard disk drives.
The soft copy is in digital format, which is not physically present, just like hard
copy output, i.e., papers, newspapers, magazines, etc.
MONITOR
A computer monitor is an output device that displays information in pictorial or
textual form. A discrete monitor comprises a visual display, support electronics,
power supply, housing, electrical connectors, and external user controls.
There are three type of monitor, they are:
LCD Monitor
CRT Monitor
LED Monitor
CRT MONITOR
CRT means “Cathode Ray Tube”. Its main part is the Cathode Ray tube which is called the “Generally Picture
tube”. CRT monitors are much heavier in size as compared to LCD and LED monitors. Due to being heavy, they
have much trouble while moving and transporting from one place to another. Also, they need more space for
installation.
LCD MONITOR
LCD is known as ‘Liquid Crystal Display’ made of liquid crystals. It is the most used monitor worldwide, as it
requires less space, consumes less electricity, and produces relatively less heat than an old CRT monitor. LCD
monitors are thinner and much lighter in size and weight than CRT monitors. Due to this, it competes with LED
and OLED in the market.
LED MONITOR
LED’s full form is ‘Light Emitting Diode’ is the latest innovation in the market today’s market competing with
LCDs and Plasma Monitors. These types of monitors are slightly curved or flat panel displays that use light-
emitting diodes for backlighting on the screen instead of cold cathode fluorescent (CCFL) for back-lighting.
Speaker
Speakers are one of the most common output devices used with computer system. An expansion board that enables a
computer to manipulate output sound. Sound cards enable the computer to output sound through speakers connected
to the board. The purpose of speaker is to produce audio output that can be heard by listener. Nowadays speakers are
integrated in devices such as laptops, mobile, PDA which produce low quality sound. Speakers typically come in
pairs, which allow them to produce stereo sound form two separate audio channels. Some include four to seven (sub-
woofer) which creates realistic sound.
Projector
A projector is an output device that can take images generated by a computer or Blu-ray player and reproduce them
onto a screen, wall or other surface. Typically, the surface projected onto is large, flat, and lightly colored. For
example, you could use a projector to show a presentation on a large screen so that everyone in the room can see it.
Projectors can produce either still (slides) or moving images (videos).The first carousel slide projector was patented
on May 11, 1965 by a man named David Hansen. The digital projector we know today was created by Gene Dolgoff
in 1984, although he came up with the concept for it in 1968.
