INNOVATIVE WORLD

SCHOOL

INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY(ICT)

DIGITAL DEVICES
TYPES OF DIGITAL DEVICES
 DIGITAL DEVICES
• What is digital devices?
• Digital devices are piece of hardware that use computers or microcontrollers.

• They were found everywhere in our digital world.

• They enhance and support how we live our lives every day.

• They can connect and work together to give us the data we need, when and where we
need it.

• Digital devices are always developing.

• This changes the way in which they are used by individuals, organisations and local,
national and global societies.
 DIGITAL DEVICES

• Types of digital devices:

• There are many types of digital devices.

• They range from very powerful mainframe computers, used by large organisations for
complex processing tasks such as statistical analysis and bulk data processing, to
microprocessors used to control washing machines, televisions and other household
appliances.
 Mainframe Computers
• A mainframe computer is a large computer, often used by large
businesses, in government offices, or by universities.
 Mainframe Computers
• Mainframe computers are typically:
• Powerful - they can process vast amounts of data, very quickly.

• Large - they are often kept in special, air-conditioned rooms.

• Multi-user - they allow several users (sometimes hundreds) to use the computer at the same
time, connected via remote terminals (screens and keyboards)
• The circuit-boards of these computers were attached to large, metal racks or frames. This gave
them the nickname 'mainframe' computers.
• Some of the most powerful mainframe computers can process so much data in such a short
time, that they are referred to as 'supercomputers‘.
 Personal Computer(PC)
• The early 1980s saw a revolution in computing.

• The creation of computers that were small enough to fit on a desk, and cheap enough
that everyone could have their own, personal computer, instead of having to share
access to a mainframe.

• These computers came to be known as desktop computers, or personal computers

(PCs). A typical PC contained the same basic components as a mainframe computer
(CPU, RAM, storage, etc.) but at a fraction of the size and cost.
Personal Computer(PC)- Desktop
 Personal Computer(PC)

Early PCs were quite unlike the PCs that we all use today:
• Displays were black and white, and only displayed text (no graphics)

• No hard-drives (way too expensive)

• Just a few 100 kB of RAM (not MB or GB!)

• Slow - a typical speed would be 5MHz (not GHz!)

• No mouse (no pointer to move!)

• Light brown case (for some reason every early PC was brown!)

• Because PCs were so much smaller than mainframe computers, they were called
'microcomputers' for a while
 Personal Computer(PC)- Laptop

• A 'laptop' computer is a light, compact and portable PC.

• Laptops contain a rechargeable battery so that they can be used even when not
plugged in to a main power supply.
• They also have a built-in LCD monitor.
• To make them as portable as possible, most laptops try to avoid any sort of cable
or wire.
• Instead of a mouse, a track pad is used.
• Instead of a wired connection to a network or printer, 'wireless' radio
connections are used.
Personal Computer(PC)- Laptop
 Personal Computer(PC)- Palmtop

• A palmtop computer is similar to a laptop computer, but smaller.

• It's small enough to fit in the palm of your hand (hence the name!). Palmtops are usually not very
powerful since fast CPUs require a large battery and get hot - both problems are in a small device.

• A typical palmtop have a very small keyboard - too small to type on normally. Instead the user types using
both thumbs.

• Also, there is no room for a track pad, so a touch screen or tiny joystick is used instead.

• Palmtops are extremely portable, but the small keyboard and screen make the devices tiring to use for
long periods.

• Palmtops are often called ultra-mobile PCs (UMPC).

Personal Computer(PC)- Palmtop
 Personal Computer(PC)- Personal Digital
Assistant(PDA)
• A PDA is similar to a palmtop computer, except it is even more compact, and typically has no
keyboard, uses a touch screen for all data input.

• Since the screen is so small, many PDAs have a small stylus (plastic stick) that is used to press
things on the screen.

• Most PDAs use some sort of handwriting-recognition system to allow the user to write on the
screen, and have their writing converted into text.

• PDAs tend to be used a 'digital diaries' allowing users to take their e-mail, documents,
appointments, etc. with them wherever they go.
Personal Computer(PC)- Personal Digital
Assistant(PDA)
 Single-Board Computers
• Single-Board Computers (SBCs)  is a complete computer built on a single circuit board,
with microprocessor(s), memory, input/output(I/O) and other features required for a functional
computer. 
• Single-board computers are commonly made as demonstration or development systems, for
educational systems, or for use as embedded computer controllers.
• Many types of home computers or portable computers integrate all their functions onto a
single printed circuit board.
• Unlike a desktop personal computer, single board computers often do not rely on expansion
slots for peripheral functions or expansion.
• Single board computers have been built using a wide range of microprocessors.
 Single-Board Computers

The Raspberry Pi is a low-cost single-board computer

used to teach computer science.
 Mobile Phones
• A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, or hand phone, sometimes shortened to
simply mobile, cell or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over
a radio frequency link while the user is moving within a telephone service area.

• The radio frequency link establishes a connection to the switching systems of a mobile phone
operator, which provides access to the public switched telephone network (PSTN).

• Mobile phones use a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card to connect to a mobile phone network.

• Modern mobile telephone services uses a cellular network architecture and, therefore, mobile
telephones are called cellular telephones or cell phones.
 Mobile Phones

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 Specialist Phones

• Some mobile phones have specialist features to provide users with

functions that meet particular user needs.
• Emergency Button – that is linked to a list of emergency contacts.

• Talking Phone – for blind and partially sighted people.

• Fewer and larger buttons

• Connections for hearing aids.

Specialist Phones

The Alto 2 “Talking Phone”

 Smart Phones
• A smartphone is a portable device that combines mobile telephone and computing functions into
one unit.

• They are distinguished from feature phones by their stronger hardware capabilities and
extensive mobile operating systems, which facilitate wider software, internet (including web
browsing over mobile broadband), and multimedia functionality (including music, video, cameras,
and gaming), alongside core phone functions such as voice calls and text messaging.

• Smartphones typically contain a number of metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS), integrated

circuit (IC) chips, include various sensors that can be leveraged by pre-included and third-party
software and support wireless communications protocols (such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or satellite
navigation).
Smart Phones
 Tablets

• A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating
system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package.

• Tablets, being computers, do what other personal computers do, but lack some input/output (I/O) abilities that
others have.

• Modern tablets largely resemble modern smartphones, the only differences being that tablets are relatively larger
than smartphones, with screens 7 inches (18 cm) or larger, measured diagonally, and may not support access to

a cellular network.

• The touchscreen display is operated by gestures executed by finger or digital pen (stylus), instead of

the mouse, touchpad, and keyboard of larger computers.
Tablets