Types

DC power supply
A DC power supply is one that supplies a constant DC voltage to its load. Depending on its
design, a DC power supply may be powered from a DC source or from an AC source such as
the power mains.
AC-to-DC supply
Schematic of basic AC-to-DC power supply, showing (from L-R) transformer, full-wave bridge
rectifier, filter capacitor and resistor load
Some DC power supplies use AC mains electricity as an energy source. Such power supplies
will sometimes employ a transformer to convert the input voltage to a higher or lower AC
voltage. A rectifier is used to convert the transformer output voltage to a varying DC voltage,
which in turn is passed through an electronic filter to convert it to an unregulated DC voltage.
The filter removes most, but not all of the AC voltage variations; the remaining AC voltage is
known as ripple. The electric load's tolerance of ripple dictates the minimum amount of filtering
that must be provided by a power supply. In some applications, high ripple is tolerated and
therefore no filtering is required. For example, in some battery charging applications it is
possible to implement a mains-powered DC power supply with nothing more than a transformer
and a single rectifier diode, with a resistor in series with the output to limit charging current.
Linear regulator
The function of a linear voltage regulator is to convert a varying DC voltage to a constant, often
specific, lower DC voltage. In addition, they often provide a current limiting function to protect
the power supply and load from overcurrent (excessive, potentially destructive current).
A constant output voltage is required in many power supply applications, but the voltage
provided by many energy sources will vary with changes in load impedance. Furthermore, when
an unregulated DC power supply is the energy source, its output voltage will also vary with
changing input voltage. To circumvent this, some power supplies use a linear voltage regulator
to maintain the output voltage at a steady value, independent of fluctuations in input voltage and
load impedance. Linear regulators can also reduce the magnitude of ripple and noise present
appearing on the output voltage.
AC power supplies
An AC power supply typically takes the voltage from a wall outlet (mains supply) and lowers it to
the desired voltage. Some filtering may take place as well.
In modern use, AC power supplies can be divided into single phase and three phase systems.
"The primary difference between single phase and three phase AC power is the constancy of
delivery." [1] AC power Supplies can also be used to change the frequency as well as the

voltage, they are often used by manufacturers to check the suitability of their products for use in
other countries. 230V 50 Hz or 115 60 Hz or even 400 Hz for avionics testing.
Switched-mode power supply
Main article: Switched-mode power supply
In a switched-mode power supply (SMPS), the AC mains input is directly rectified and then
filtered to obtain a DC voltage. The resulting DC voltage is then switched on and off at a high
frequency by electronic switching circuitry, thus producing an AC current that will pass through a
high-frequency transformer or inductor. Switching occurs at a very high frequency (typically
10 kHz 1 MHz), thereby enabling the use of transformers and filter capacitors that are much
smaller, lighter, and less expensive than those found in linear power supplies operating at mains
frequency. After the inductor or transformer secondary, the high frequency AC is rectified and
filtered to produce the DC output voltage. If the SMPS uses an adequately insulated highfrequency transformer, the output will be electrically isolated from the mains; this feature is often
essential for safety.
Switched-mode power supplies are usually regulated, and to keep the output voltage constant,
the power supply employs a feedback controller that monitors current drawn by the load. The
switching duty cycle increases as power output requirements increase.
SMPSs often include safety features such as current limiting or a crowbar circuit to help protect
the device and the user from harm.[2] In the event that an abnormal high-current power draw is
detected, the switched-mode supply can assume this is a direct short and will shut itself down
before damage is done. PC power supplies often provide a power good signal to the
motherboard; the absence of this signal prevents operation when abnormal supply voltages are
present.
Some SMPSs have an absolute limit on their minimum current output.[3] They are only able to
output above a certain power level and cannot function below that point. In a no-load condition
the frequency of the power slicing circuit increases to great speed, causing the isolated
transformer to act as a Tesla coil, causing damage due to the resulting very high voltage power
spikes. Switched-mode supplies with protection circuits may briefly turn on but then shut down
when no load has been detected. A very small low-power dummy load such as a ceramic power
resistor or 10-watt light bulb can be attached to the supply to allow it to run with no primary load
attached.
The switch-mode power supplies used in computers have historically had low power factors and
have also been significant sources of line interference (due to induced power line harmonics
and transients). In simple switch-mode power supplies, the input stage may distort the line
voltage waveform, which can adversely affect other loads (and result in poor power quality for
other utility customers), and cause unnecessary heating in wires and distribution equipment.
Furthermore, customers incur higher electric bills when operating lower power factor loads. To
circumvent these problems, some computer switch-mode power supplies perform power factor
correction, and may employ input filters or additional switching stages to reduce line
interference.
Programmable power supply

Programmable power supplies

A programmable power supply is one that allows remote control of its operation through an
analog input or digital interface such as RS232 or GPIB. Controlled properties may include
voltage, current, and in the case of AC output power supplies, frequency. They are used in a
wide variety of applications, including automated equipment testing, crystal growth monitoring,
semiconductor fabrication, and x-ray generators.
Programmable power supplies typically employ an integral microcomputer to control and
monitor power supply operation. Power supplies equipped with a computer interface may use
proprietary communication protocols or standard protocols and device control languages such
as SCPI.
Uninterruptible power supply
Main article: Uninterruptible power supply
An uninterruptible power supply (UPS) takes its power from two or more sources
simultaneously. It is usually powered directly from the AC mains, while simultaneously charging
a storage battery. Should there be a dropout or failure of the mains, the battery instantly takes
over so that the load never experiences an interruption. In a computer installation, this gives the
operators time to shut down the system in an orderly way. Other UPS schemes may use an
internal combustion engine or turbine to continuously supply power to a system in parallel with
power coming from the AC. The engine-driven generators would normally be idling, but could
come to full power in a matter of a few seconds in order to keep vital equipment running without
interruption. Such a scheme might be found in hospitals or telephone central offices.
High voltage power supply
A 30 kV high voltage power supply with Federal Standard connector, used in electron
microscopes
A high voltage power supply is one that outputs hundreds or thousands of volts. A special
output connector is used that prevents arcing, insulation breakdown and accidental human
contact. Federal Standard connectors are typically used for applications above 20 kV, though
other types of connectors (e.g., SHV connector) may be used at lower voltages. Some high
voltage power supplies provide an analog input that can be used to control the output voltage.
High voltage power supplies are commonly used to accelerate and manipulate electron and ion
beams in equipment such as x-ray generators, electron microscopes, and focused ion beam
columns, and in a variety of other applications, including electrophoresis and electrostatics.
High voltage power supplies typically apply the bulk of their input energy to a power inverter,
which in turn drives a voltage multiplier or a high turns ratio, high voltage transformer, or both
(usually a transformer followed by a multiplier) to produce high voltage. The high voltage is
passed out of the power supply through the special connector, and is also applied to a voltage
divider that converts it to a low voltage metering signal compatible with low voltage circuitry. The
metering signal is used by a closed-loop controller that regulates the high voltage by controlling
inverter input power, and it may also be conveyed out of the power supply to allow external
circuitry to monitor the high voltage output.

Specification
The suitability of a particular power supply for an application is determined by various attributes
of the power supply, which are typically listed in the power supply's specification. Commonly
specified attributes for a power supply include:

Input voltage type (AC or DC) and range

Efficiency of power conversion

The amount of voltage and current it can supply to its load

How stable its output voltage or current is under varying line and load conditions

How long it can supply energy without refueling or recharging (applies to power supplies
that employ portable energy sources)

Operating and storage temperature ranges

Power supply applications

Power supplies are a fundamental component of many electronic devices and therefore used in
a diverse range of applications. This list is a small sample of the many applications of power
supplies.
Computer power supply
Main article: Power supply unit (computer)
A modern computer power supply is a switch-mode power supply that converts AC power from
the mains supply, to several DC voltages. Switch-mode supplies replaced linear supplies due to
cost, weight, and size improvement. The diverse collection of output voltages also have widely
varying current draw requirements.
Electric Vehicle power supply
Electric vehicles are those which rely on energy created through electricity generation. A power
supply unit is part of the necessary design to convert high voltage vehicle battery power.[4]
Welding power supply
Main article: Welding power supply
Arc welding uses electricity to melt the surfaces of the metals in order to join them together
through coalescence. The electricity is provided by a welding power supply, and can either be
AC or DC. Arc welding typically requires high currents typically between 100 and 350 amperes.
Some types of welding can use as few as 10 amperes, while some applications of spot welding
employ currents as high as 60,000 amperes for an extremely short time. Older welding power
supplies consisted of transformers or engines driving generators. More recent supplies use
semiconductors and microprocessors reducing their size and weight.

Aircraft power supply

Both commercial and military avionic systems require either a DC-DC or AC/DC power supply to
convert energy into usable voltage.
AC adapter
Switch-mode mobile phone charger
Main article: AC adapter
An AC adapter is a power supply built into an AC mains power plug. AC adapters are also
known by various other names such as "plug pack" or "plug-in adapter", or by slang terms such
as "wall wart". AC adapters typically have a single AC or DC output that is conveyed over a
hardwired cable to a connector, but some adapters have multiple outputs that may be conveyed
over one or more cables. "Universal" AC adapters have interchangeable input connectors to
accommodate different AC mains voltages.
Adapters with AC outputs may consist only of a passive transformer (plus a few diodes in DCoutput adapters), or they may employ switch-mode circuitry. AC adapters consume power (and
produce electric and magnetic fields) even when not connected to a load; for this reason they
are sometimes known as "electricity vampires", and may be plugged into power strips to allow
them to be conveniently turned on and off.
Kinds of Computer Motherboards
XT Motherboards:
XT Stands for eXtended Technology. These are all old model motherboard. In this
motherboards, we find old model processor socket LIF (Low Insertion Force) sockets,
ram slots Dimms and ISA (Industry Standards Architecture) slots, 12pin Power
Connector and no ports. They have slot type processors, Dimms memory modules, ISA
slots for add-on card, and no ports. There are connectors and add-on cards for ports.
Eg: Pentium-I, Pentium-MMX, Pentium -II and Pentium-II Processors.

AT Motherboards:
AT stands for Advanced Technology. Advanced Technology Motherboards have PGA
(Pin Grid Array) Socket, SD Ram slots, 20pin power connector PCI slots and ISA slots.
we find the above components on AT motherboards.
Eg: Pentium-III Processors

Baby AT Motherboards:
Baby AT Motherboards have the combination of XT and AT. They have both slot type
processor sockets and PGA processor sockets, SD Ram slots and DDR Ram slots, PCI
slots and ISA slots, 12 Pin power connector and 20Pin power connector and Ports.

Eg: Pentium-III and Pentium-IV

ATX Motherboards:
ATX stands for Advanced Technology eXtended. latest motherboards all are called as
ATX motherboards. designed by ATX form factor. In this motherboards, we find MPGA
Processor Sockets, DDR Ram slots, PCI slots, AGP slots, Primary and secondary IDE
interfaces, SATA connectors, 20pin and 24 pin ATX power connector and Ports.
Eg: Pentium-IV, Dual Core, Core 2 Duo, Quad Core, i3, i5 and i7 Processors.

Types of Hard Disk Drives

ATA Disk Drives
There are two kinds of ATA disks:

Parallel (Ultra) ATA disks: These are found in Power Mac G4 computers.

Serial ATA disks: These come with Power Mac G5 computers.

ATA disks do not offer as high a level of performance as LVD or Ultra160 SCSI disks. If you plan
to use Ultra ATA disks, make sure that:

The sustained transfer speed is 8 MB/sec. or faster

The average seek time is below 9 ms

The spindle speed is at least 5400 rpm, although 7200 rpm is better

Parallel (Ultra) ATA Disks

Many editors use parallel ATA (PATA) disks (also called Ultra DMA, Ultra EIDE, and ATA33/66/100/133) with DV equipment. Parallel ATA disks are disks that you install internally.
Because imported DV material has a fixed data rate of approximately 3.6 MB/sec., highperformance parallel ATA disks typically can capture and output these streams without difficulty.
The numbers following the ATA designation indicate the maximum data transfer rate possible for
the ATA interface, not the disk drive itself. For example, an ATA-100 interface can theoretically
handle 100 MB/sec., but most disk drives do not spin fast enough to reach this limit.
Parallel ATA disks use 40- or 80-pin-wide ribbon cables to transfer multiple bits of data
simultaneously (in parallel), they have a cable length limit of 18 inches, and they require five
volts of power. Depending on your computer, there may be one or more parallel ATA (or IDE)
controller chips on the motherboard. Each parallel ATA channel on a computer motherboard
supports two channels, so you can connect two disk drives. However, when both disk drives are
connected, they must share the data bandwidth of the connection, so the data rate can
potentially be reduced.

Serial ATA Disks

Serial ATA (SATA) disks are newer than parallel ATA disk drives. The disk drive mechanisms
may be similar, but the interface is significantly different. The serial ATA interface has the
following characteristics:

Serial data transfer (one bit at a time)

150 MB/sec. theoretical data throughput limit

7-pin data connection, with cable limit of 1 meter

Operates with 250 mV

Only one disk drive allowed per serial ATA controller chip on a computer motherboard, so
disk drives do not have to share data bandwidth

FireWire Disk Drives

Although not recommended for all systems, FireWire disk drives can be effectively used to
capture and edit projects using low data rate video clips, such as those captured using the DV
codec. However, most FireWire disk drives lack the performance of internal Ultra ATA disk drives
or of internal or external SCSI disk drives. For example, a FireWire disk drive may not be able to
support real-time playback with as many simultaneous audio and video tracks as an internal
Ultra ATA disk drive can. This can also affect the number of simultaneous real-time effects that
can be played back.
Keep the following points about FireWire drives in mind:

FireWire disk drives are not recommended for capturing high data rate material such as
uncompressed SD or HD video.

Certain DV camcorders cannot be connected to a computer while a FireWire disk drive

is connected simultaneously. In many cases, you can improve performance by installing
a separate FireWire PCI Express card to connect your FireWire drive.

You may be able to improve performance by reducing the real-time video playback data
rate and the number of real-time audio tracks in the General tab of the User Preferences
window.

You should never disconnect a FireWire disk drive prior to unmounting it from the
desktop.

SCSI Disk Drives

Small Computer System Interface (SCSI) disk drives used to be among the fastest drives
available, although newer computers may no longer provide SCSI ports. Although no longer
highly popular, SCSI technology has been implemented in various ways over the years, with

each successive generation achieving better performance. Two fast SCSI standards for video
capture and playback are:

Ultra2 LVD (Low Voltage Differential) SCSI: Ultra2 LVD SCSI disk drives offer fast
enough performance to capture and output video at high data rates when a single disk is
formatted as a single volume (as opposed to formatting several disks together as a disk
array).

Ultra320 and Ultra160 SCSI: These are faster than Ultra2 LVD SCSI disks.

SCSI disks can be installed internally or connected externally. Many users prefer external SCSI
disk drives because theyre easier to move and they stay cooler. If your computer didnt come
with a preinstalled Ultra2 LVD, Ultra160, or Ultra320 SCSI disk drive, you need to install a SCSI
card in a PCI Express slot so you can connect a SCSI disk drive externally.
A SCSI card allows you to connect up to 15 SCSI disk drives in a daisy chain, with each disk
drive connected to the one before it and the last terminated. (Some SCSI cards support more
than one channel; multiple-channel cards support 15 SCSI disks per channel.) Use high-quality,
shielded cables to prevent data errors. These cables should be as short as possible (3 feet or
less); longer cables can cause problems. You must use an active terminator on the last disk for
reliable performance.
All devices on a SCSI chain run at the speed of the slowest device. To achieve a high level of
performance, connect only Ultra2 or faster SCSI disk drives to your SCSI interface card.
Otherwise, you may impede performance and get dropped frames during capture or playback.
Note: Many kinds of SCSI devices are slower than Ultra2 devices, including scanners and
removable storage media. You should not connect such devices to your high-performance SCSI
interface.
Using a RAID or Disk Array
You can improve the transfer speed of individual disks by configuring multiple disk drives in a
disk array. In a Redundant Array of Independent Disks (RAID), multiple SCSI, ATA, or FireWire
disk drives are grouped together via hardware or software and treated as a single data storage
unit. This allows you to record data to multiple drives in parallel, increasing access time
significantly. You can also partition the array into multiple volumes.
Creating a disk array is necessary only if high performance is required to capture and play back
your video at the required data rate without dropping frames.
If you require rock-solid data integrity, consider purchasing a RAID. Many RAIDs record the
same data on more than one disk, so that if a drive fails, the same data can still be retrieved
from another disk. There are many RAID variations available, but one that offers high
performance for both digital video capture and data redundancy is RAID level 3. Because they
use specialized hardware, RAID level 3 systems can be more expensive, but they should be
considered whenever the safety of your media is more important than the cost of your disks.
When you create or purchase a disk array, there are two important considerations:

Compatibility: Make sure the software you use to create the array is compatible with
Final Cut Pro. For more information, go to the Final Cut Pro website at
http://www.apple.com/finalcutstudio/finalcutpro.

Ventilation: If youre creating an array yourself with an off-the-shelf drive enclosure,

make sure to allow for good ventilation. Disk arrays store information on several disks
simultaneously. If one of your disk drives fails, information on all the disks is lost. One of
the most common reasons a disk drive breaks down is overheating, so make sure that
your disks stay cool.

Important: Check the manufacturers specifications before buying disks to make sure the disks
offer the level of performance you need.
Fibre Channel Drive Arrays and RAIDs
Fibre Channel is a hard disk drive interface technology designed primarily for high-speed data
throughput for high-capacity storage systems, usually set up as a disk array or RAID. Fibre
Channel disk drive systems typically have performance rivaling or exceeding that of highperformance SCSI disk arrays.
One of the most common ways of connecting a computer to a Fibre Channel disk drive system
for video capture and output is called a point-to-point connection. A single computer, equipped
with a Fibre Channel PCI Express card, is connected to a single Fibre Channel disk drive array.
Unlike SCSI systems, Fibre Channel cables can be run extremely long distances, up to
30 meters using copper cables and 6 miles (10 kilometers) using optical cables.
Expansion Cards
Expansion cards are inserted into an expansion slot on the computers motherboard and create
an electronic link between the two with edge connectors so data can be communicated across.
They became popular soon after they were first introduced and remain popular to this day due
to the opportunities they offer users to fully customise their computing experience.
Sound card
Also known as an audio card, this type of expansion card deals with everything to do with
sounds and audio signals within the computer that are under the control of programs on the
computer. This can include allowing applications on the computer to play music, programs
which edit videos or audio, presentation software, games equipment and any other type of
program which plays audio. The ability to play sound is often integrated into the motherboard of
the computer, however this is not necessarily the best way to achieve high-quality sound. Sound
expansion cards convert digital sound data into analog format, which is then relayed to an
external device capable of playing sound such as headphones or a speaker. Sound cards also
need to be capable of processing multiple sounds at the same time, splitting them up into audio
channels. This allows different sound configurations to be produced, such as surround sound
and stereo sound. Modern sound cards providing advanced sound mixing such as this are
sometimes referred to as Hardware Audio Accelerators and can provide features such as
positional audio and 3D sound.

Video card
A video card is more often called a graphics card or display card, and is responsible for
generating images to a visual display such as a computer monitor or laptop screen. Although all
motherboards have some degree of integrated graphics, a dedicated video card allows for
higher quality graphics and better speeds. Video cards can offer such functions as the rendering
of high-quality 3D and 2D graphics, the ability to connect to a TV and the ability to display
graphics across multiple display screens.
A dedicated video card comes with its own RAM and cooling system, decreasing the reliance on
the motherboard and allowing more processing power to be sectioned off solely for the display
and processing of graphics. This can also help the computer as a whole to run faster and more
efficiently as less system RAM power is being taken up by high demand graphics programs.
Network card
Often called a Network Interface Card or LAN Adapter, a network card is an expansion card
which allows a computer to connect to a computer network such as a Local Area Network or
Wide Area Network. This type of expansion card was most popular in early models of
computers, in more modern machines almost all computers have a network interface built
directly into the motherboard.
This is because it is cheaper and more convenient to use the Ethernet standard connection,
which is easy to install as a chip straight from the motherboard and does not necessarily require
a separate expansion card any more. For this reason, separate network cards are all but
obsolete in newer computers other than in exceptional circumstances where a different type of
network connection is required.
Serial and Parallel cards
Serial and Parallel expansion cards are used to provide additional connection ports to a
computer, specifically to provide either parallel or serial port connections. A parallel port is only
able to transmit data one way to a secondary device, commonly a printer or similar, using a dual
data transmission system .
This type of one-way transmission was also used for older external storage devices. Serial ports
are able to process data in a two-way direction, and are often slightly slower than parallel ports
due to the more accurate transmission of data they send. Both serial ports and parallel ports
have been mostly superseded by the faster and more efficient USB port in modern computers.
USB card
A USB expansion card is used to provide additional connection ports to a computer by
connecting the card to the motherboard. USB is short for Universal Serial Bus, and is the most
common type of port found in modern computers. Peripherals such as printers, keyboards,
printers, removable flash drives and mice can be attached to the computer.

USB cards are necessary if a computer does not already have this capability, or to add
additional ports for more use of external devices at once. USB connections are faster at
transmitting data and quickly became a general industry standard for cross-platform
communication.
Firewire card
A firewire card is used to provide computers with an IEEE 1394 interface connection, also
known as a firewire. The term was coined by Apple in the early 1990s, and the ports themselves
have been included on most apple computers since the year 2000. Recently Apple has begun
replacing this port with the Thunderbolt interface on all modern Mac computers. The port itself is
very similar to a USB connection, although USB is much more popular across a range of crossplatform devices and the two are not interchangeable.
Storage card
A storage card, often also called a flash memory card or simply a memory card that is
connected to a computer in order to provide users with extra space to store their data on. This
can include data such as music, pictures, text or video and is transferable to other devices such
as digital cameras and mobile phones. These cards vary in both physical size and data capacity,
and are constantly being developed and upgraded. Some of the most common on the market
today include the Secure Digital (SD) Card, the Mini/Micro SD Card, a
Data secured on storage cards is very stable and not in much danger of being lost or damaged
outside of any actual physical damage to the card itself. Cards are much smaller physically than
they were even as recently as 10 years ago, and some such as the Compact Flash card have
been made almost obsolete by the introduction of more stable non-volatile memory devices.
Storage cards also have an advantage over hard disk drives as they are very portable, allow
immediate access when booted up and do not require cooling. There is a huge market among
users for small, light-weight and low power storage devices with increasingly large amounts of
data storage capacities.
Modem card
A modem card allows a computer to send an analog carrier signal carrying digital information,
and decodes the reverse of this signal in return to reproduce the original digital data. The most
common way of doing this in the past was by using electrical signals transmitted over telephone
lines, although more modern systems such as satellite, WiFi, mobile phones and mobile
broadband modems also use this type of communication. Wireless modems can be embedded
inside of a device or be external to it, and can be locked to only receive certain types of
frequency signals, for example only those from one particular network provider.
Modern broadband modems are not limited to using telephone line, with newer types using
satellite, television cables and power lines to transmit data signals. These are much more
advanced than the older dial-up style of modem, with much faster transmission of data and a

hugely expanded range of channels available for use simultaneously. Modems are usually
classified by how much data they are able to transfer in a set amount of time, generally bits per
second (bps) or bytes per second (B/s), and this data can be used to compare modems when
buying or choosing between them.
Wireless/cellular card
A wireless card is used to provide a computer with the capability of connecting to a radio-based
computer network rather that one which is connected using wires. These can come preinstalled
inside of a computer or laptop or be external, come separately, although almost all modern
devices come with this already included inside of the computer. The most common use of this
card is to allow a device to connect to WiFi, using a wireless router or access point. The WiFi
point receives data through wires and transmits it using radio waves, for a wireless card inside
of a device to pick up and decode, as well as receiving the signals in the opposite direction.
The signals transmitted are on a different frequency to other radio wave transmissions, such as
those used by radios and mobile phones, and are able to handle much more data than these
other types. Wireless cards can also move around onto different frequency channels if one
becomes too full with users, helping to make sure the transmission of data is always fast and
efficient. Wireless cards can come in several different types, including PCI, mini PCI and PCIe,
different ones of which are more suitable for different devices. Some USB devices also exist
which are capable of acting as a wireless card and allowing a device to connect to WiFi or
Bluetooth networks.
TV tuner card
A Television Tuner card is a card which is inserted into a computer to allow a device to receive
television signals that would not otherwise be suited to picking them up. Cards are usually either
PCI, mini PCI or PCIe, or sometimes as an external USB device. Most cards have an inbuilt
processor to free up space from the systems CPU and ease the pressure on the computer.
Cards can be either analog or digital depending on which type of television the user wishes to
view, and many hybrid tuners exist which are able to switch between the two types. High-end
tuner cards often include a special chip to encode and decode the data being transmitted,
however smaller and cheaper cards are less likely to have this capability due to the high power
it takes to run them.
Many TV tuner cards also include a form of flash memory which allows them to store several
different types of decoding software, meaning the tuner card can be used in many different
countries and with different video formats without reformatting the system to recognize the new
data.
Video capture card

A video capture card is used to allow a computer to convert an analog video signal into a digital
video data form. Many TV tuner cards double up as video capture cards, allowing the user to
record TV transmissions as they are being broadcast and viewed.
The inclusion of a dedicated video card is important in a system as the circuitry required to
convert analog video to digital video is quite specialised and high-performance. Data must be
digitised and modified to account for colour differences and encoded to a completely different
format, as well as separating the different aspects of composite video if this is captured.
Kinds of Ports
PS/2
PS/2 connector is developed by IBM for connecting mouse and keyboard. It was introduced with
IBMs Personal Systems/2 series of computers and hence the name PS/2 connector. PS/2
connectors are color coded as purple for keyboard and green for mouse.
Serial Port
Even though the communication in PS/2 and USB is serial, technically, the term Serial Port is
used to refer the interface that is compliant to RS-232 standard. There are two types of serial
ports that are commonly found on a computer: DB-25 and DE-9.
DB-25
DB-25 is a variant of D-sub connector and is the original port for RS-232 serial communication.
They were developed as the main port for serial connections using RS-232 protocol but most of
the applications did not require all the pins.
Hence, DE-9 was developed for RS-232 based serial communication while DB-25 was rarely
used as a serial port and often used as a parallel printer port as a replacement of the Centronics
Parallel 36 pin connector.
DE-9 or RS-232 or COM Port
DE-9 is the main port for RS-232 serial communication. It is a D-sub connector with E shell and
is often miscalled as DB-9. A DE-9 port is also called as a COM port and allows full duplex serial
communication between the computer and its peripheral.
Some of the applications of DE-9 port are serial interface with mouse, keyboard, modem,
uninterruptible power supplies (UPS) and other external RS-232 compatible devices.
Parallel Port or Centronics 36 Pin Port

Parallel port is an interface between computer and peripheral devices like printers with parallel
communication. The Centronics port is a 36 pin port that was developed as an interface for
printers and scanners and hence a parallel port is also called as a Centronics port.
Before the wide use of USB ports, parallel ports are very common in printers. The Centronics
port was later replaced by DB-25 port with parallel interface.
Audio Ports
Audio ports are used to connect speakers or other audio output devices with the computer. The
audio signals can be either analogue or digital and depending on that the port and its
corresponding connector differ.
Surround Sound Connectors or 3.5 mm TRS Connector
It is the most commonly found audio port that can be used to connect stereo headphones or
surround sound channels. A 6 connector system is included on majority of computers for audio
out as well as a microphone connection.
The 6 connectors are color coded as Blue, Lime, Pink, Orange, Black and Grey. These 6
connectors can be used for a surround sound configuration of up to 8 channels.
S/PDIF / TOSLINK
The Sony/Phillips Digital Interface Format (S/PDIF) is an audio interconnect used in home
media. It supports digital audio and can be transmitted using a coaxial RCA Audio cable or an
optical fiber TOSLINK connector.
Most computers home entertainment systems are equipped with S/PDIF over TOSLINK.
TOSLINK (Toshiba Link) is most frequently used digital audio port that can support 7.1 channel
surround sound with just one cable. In the following image, the port on the right is an S/PDIF
port.
Video Ports
VGA Port
VGA port is found in many computers, projectors, video cards and High Definition TVs. It is a Dsub connector consisting of 15 pins in 3 rows. The connector is called as DE-15.
VGA port is the main interface between computers and older CRT monitors. Even the modern
LCD and LED monitors support VGA ports but the picture quality is reduced. VGA carries
analogue video signals up to a resolution of 648X480.
Digital Video Interface (DVI)

DVI is a high speed digital interface between a display controller like a computer and a display
device like a monitor. It was developed with an aim of transmitting lossless digital video signals
and replace the analogue VGA technology.
There are three types of DVI connectors based on the signals it can carry: DVI-I, DVI-D and
DVI-A. DVI-I is a DVI port with integrated analogue and digital signals. DVI-D supports only
digital signals and DVI-A supports only analogue signals.
The digital signals can be either single link or dual link where a single link supports a digital
signal up to 1920X1080 resolution and a dual link supports a digital signal up to 2560X1600
resolution. The following image compares the structures of DVI-I, DVI-D and DVI-A types along
with the pinouts.
Mini-DVI
Mini-DVI port is developed by Apple as an alternative to Mini-VGA port and is physically similar
to one. It is smaller than a regular DVI port.
It is a 32 pin port and is capable of transmitting DVI, composite, S-Video and VGA signals with
respective adapters. The following image shows a Mini-DVI port and its compatible cable.
Display Port
Display Port is a digital display interface with optional multiple channel audio and other forms of
data. Display Port is developed with an aim of replacing VGA and DVI ports as the main
interface between a computer and monitor.
RCA Connector
RCA Connector can carry composite video and stereo audio signals over three cables.
Composite video transmits analogue video signals and the connector is as yellow colored RCA
connector.
The video signals are transmitted over a single channel along with the line and frame
synchronization pulses at a maximum resolution of 576i (standard resolution).
The red and white connectors are used for stereo audio signals (red for right channel and white
for left channel).
Component Video
Component Video is an interface where the video signals are split into more than two channels
and the quality of the video signal is better that Composite video.

Like composite video, component video transmits only video signals and two separate
connectors must be used for stereo audio. Component video port can transmit both analogue
and digital video signals.
The ports of the commonly found Component video uses 3 connectors and are color coded as
Green, Blue and Red.
S-Video
S-Video or Separate Video connector is used for transmitting only video signals. The picture
quality is better than that of Composite video but has a lesser resolution than Component video.
The S-Video port is generally black in color and is present on all TVs and most computers. SVideo port looks like a PS/2 port but consists of only 4 pins.
HDMI
HDMI is an abbreviation of High Definition Media Interface. HDMI is a digital interface to
connect High Definition and Ultra High Definition devices like Computer monitors, HDTVs, BluRay players, gaming consoles, High Definition Cameras etc.
USB
Universal Serial Bus (USB) replaced serial ports, parallel ports, PS/2 connectors, game ports
and power chargers for portable devices.
USB port can be used to transfer data, act as an interface for peripherals and even act as power
supply for devices connected to it. There are three kinds of USB ports: Type A, Type B or mini
USB and Micro USB.
USB Type A
USB Type-A port is a 4 pin connector. There are different versions of Type A USB ports: USB
1.1, USB 2.0 and USB 3.0. USB 3.0 is the common standard and supports a data rate of
400MBps.
USB 3.1 is also released and supports a data rate up to 10Gbps. The USB 2.0 is Black color
coded and USB 3.0 is Blue. The following image shows USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 ports.