Computer Ports Discussion Computer Technology & Repair Model

2 types of ports: Serial and Parallel Both are bi-directional Serial ports send information one bit at a time down a single wire. A two-way street. Serial ports were made for devices that don’t require much data to be processed quickly like mice and keyboards. Parallel ports send information several bits at once down multiple wires. A multi-lane highway. Parallel ports were made for devices that require data to be processed much quicker, like printers.

PS/2 Ports 6-pin mini-din connector Only used for mice and keyboards. Color coded purple for keyboard and green for mouse

LAN Port (RJ 45) Resembles a telephone connection Used for network connections Can be 10, 100, or 1000 megabits per second (Mbps)

USB – Universal Serial Bus Port 3 standards: 1.1 (obsolete), 2.0, and 3.0 1.1 transferred at 12Mbps 2.0 transfers at max 480Mbps 3.0 transfers at max 4.8Gbps USB devices are hot-swappable (do not have to turn off or restart the computer) USB devices can be daisy chained (up to 127 devices connected via USB hubs)

Firewire – IE 1394a & b Used mainly for digital video devices 2 standards: Firewire 1394a Firewire 1394b Firewire 1394a transfers at 400Mbps Firewire 1394b transfers at 800Mbps Firewire devices are hot-swappable (do not have to turn off or restart the computer) Firewire devices do not necessarily need a computer to connect to each other.

Video Connection Ports VGA - Older LCD monitor connection port – 15 pin connector SVGA – Also an older LCD monitor connection port – 15 pin connector S-Video (Separate Video)– small round port for connecting to a television monitor HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) – Similar to DVI in process and will carry audio signal also

Auxiliary/Audio Ports Line-In: For sound to enter the computer from an external source. Color lt. blue Line-out: Where sound is output to headphones or speakers. Color lt. green Mic-in: Microphone port. Color pink -----------On Some Units----------- Center/Subwoofer: An added center channel. Color orange. Surround Left/Right : For surround sound. Color black Surround Back Left/Right: For surround sound. Color silver Co-axial Digital Out.