We earn commission when you buy through affiliate links.
This does not influence our reviews or recommendations.Learn more.
Look at your CPU or laptop and count how many ports there are.
Now, count how many ports you are familiar with and use?
Chances are, most people wont know the purpose of any port other than the USB or HDMI.
Ports are the sole communication medium between our computers and external devices.
To understand your system, it’s crucial that you understand all its outlets.
Yes, its still cool to know about computers.
Lets get into it!
Whats a Computer Port?
Its essentially the interface (point of communication) between an external gear and the PCs motherboard.
When these two are linked, a connection and communication is established.
Computers have several different ports for different inputs and outputs.
The one which we are familiar with the most is the Serial Port.
It connects with external devices like a mouse and keyboard.
Its not necessary that your gear may have all the ports that are in existence out there.
They have now been replaced by USB.
Lets discuss all the common types of computer ports in existence or have existed at some point in time.
The more you know, the better.
Serial Port
A serial port is one of the most commonly found ports in nearly all computers.
Serial ports are of two types the DB25 and the DB9.
DB25 comes with 25 pins (its in the name), while DB9 comes with 9 pins.
The port is mostly used to connectprinters and scannersto the computer.
It comes with 25 pins.
USB flaunts a faster data transfer speed with a smaller connection.
Its a 15-pin socket and was later integrated with the sound cards.
You wont find this port in modern devices, as USB superseded it.
The connector transmits video signals to a computer via a peripheral rig.
When HDMI was not in the trend, they used VGA.
This connector empowered color display screens, but the display quality was not as good.
This port is still available in selected PC models, projectors, HD TVs, and video cards.
S-Video
S-video connectors allow you to send and receive standard-definition video signals between 480 and 576 pixels.
The brightness and the color information are carried to the output using two separate wires.
HDMI
HDMI is still a household name because most modern computers and TVs have an HDMI port.
It is used most commonly when setting up two monitors or connecting to another external display.
It comes with 19 pins.
If you want to cast video to an output, it would most definitely have an HDMI port.
DVI ports are used in PC monitors, projectors, and some televisions.
Its also better than VGA because the picture quality of DVI is much better.
The port connects your laptop or PC with a router or a modem using the ethernet protocol.
It usually comes with 8 pins and connects the ethernet cables with a serial data modem.
RJ45 and RJ11 are communication ports with similar looks (though the number of pins is different).
The former is used for ethernet connection, and the latter is used solely for telephone connections.
Using the USB port, digital data can be transferred seamlessly and quickly over USB cables.
Moreover, they also transfer electric power via the cables to the devices that need it.
USB drives are also commonly used to share files from one computer to another without a web connection.
All these devices support different USB types.
USBs can be classified based on two categories: their physical design and their speed.
Except for the latest iPhone models that have no headphone jack in them.
Instead, the same port is used for charging and headphones.
The port also connects the AUX to stream the phone music on your cars stereo.
Stereo Line
The motherboard of a PC flaunts several audio ports with different functions and compatibility criteria.
However, now, due to Bluetooth headsets, you’re able to go wireless!
The three main parts of the motherboard audio ports are the line-in, line-out, and microphone.
The line-in is used to connect MP3 players and CD players and is blue in color.
Line-out port is green in color and used to connect amplifiers and stereo speakers.
The microphone in one, with a pink color, is used to connect the microphone.
The three ports are mostly always 3.5mm (1/8) mini-jacks.
The C/Sub port (orange color) connects the center/subwoofer speaker.
The other two are the side port and the rear port.
A common audio port I should mention is the S/PDIF port (Sony/Philips Digital Interface).
It connects to external audio devices like DVD players, Blu-ray players, CDs, or home theatre systems.
While USB pretty much has the same job, there are some key differences between the two.
To begin with, FireWire can handle more data than USB for audio and visual data.
2.0 USB, for instance, can transfer data at a rate of 480 Mbps.
Meanwhile, 800 FireWire can handle 800 Mbps.
Though 2.0 USB can handle 127 devices, 800 FireWire can only handle up to 63 devices.
For USB to communicate with another rig, a computer is needed for the data pipe.
A FireWire connection can be established directly between two devices without the computer being a mediator.
It is the shortened version of IEC 60320.
It flaunts a speed 3 times faster than its competitors.
It transmits the audio and video signals simultaneously and independently, depending on your needs.
Its still widely used since DisplayPort supports high-resolution images with a fair number of connector pins.
The data transfer rate is also up to 17.28 Gbps, making it a fast option.
The PC card is used to add peripheral capability and additional hardware to a PC or a laptop.
This post pretty much included every port that it’s crucial that you know about.
Next, learn about all thecomputer generationsin detail to further brush up your knowledge.
