Types of Digital Devices

1. Mainframe Computers – Large Organization, Complex Processing, Statistical Analysis, Bulk

Data Processing
2. Microprocessors – control appliances , washing machines, TVs

PERSONAL COMPUTERS

1. Desktops – more space for components than laptops, upgrade option, peripheral devices to
be connected (monitor, Keyboard, mouse, printer)

2. Laptops – Portable, Keyboard, screen, trackpad

3. Single-Board Computers (SBCs) – Embedded computing (Education), Physical computing

(Projects), costs very little
MOBILE PHONES – SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) to connect to network

1. Specialist Phones – example emergency button, meets accessibility needs (“talking phone”
for blind or partially sighted people)

2. SmartPhones
 small computers with wi-fi and mobile connectivity
 camera, media players, handheld game consoles
 More advanced Operating System
 Applications can be downloaded
 Virtual keyboard
 Shorter battery life

TABLETS

 Bigger than smartphones

 Touch Screen, Apps, Wi-Fi
 Few has SIM card

CAMERAS and CAMCORDERS

 Use light sensors to capture images formed by light passing through the device’s lens.
 Cameras – still images
 Camcorders – moving images
 Digital cameras – both
  Quality of the image captured
o Quality of the lens – allows light to travel through without any defects
o Good Image processor – compensate poor lighting conditions
o Resolution – Greater number of pixels

HOME ENTERTAINMENT SYSTEMS

1. Televisions
 Display Still and Moving Images
 Screen resolution – number of pixels – quality
 HD (High Definition) – more number of pixels
 Resolution – horizontal pixels x vertical pixels
 1280 x 720 = 720p
 Ultra High Definition (UHD) – 4K or 8K

2. Sound Systems
 Produce loud and rich sound using high-quality speakers and amplifiers
 Can play music from CD or local storage
 Can be connected to smartphones, media players, tablets using USB or Bluetooth
 Can be connected to WI-FI
 3. Personal Video Recorders (PVR)
 Records Broadcasted content

4. Blu-Ray and DVD Players

 Connect to TVs to play films and other content
 Blu-Ray plays DVD disks, but DVD will not play Blu-ray disks
 Blu-Ray stores Ultra HD movies

GAME CONSOLES

 To play video games on a TV.

 Games are provided on disks/can be downloaded
 Use Controllers (often wireless) to control characters/vehicles/objects in the game.
 Some use motion sensors to control game with body gestures
 Some use virtual reality controllers – realistic gaming experience – replicated by avatar in
virtual world

MEDIA PLAYERS

 Provide Video and Audio content to TV

 Content can be streamed directly from internet or local storage
 Controlled using remote or smartphone app.

NAVIGATION AIDS

 Calculates best route between two or more locations

 Provides updates to the route if not followed accurately
 Used in cars, vans, ships
 Audio alert, visual prompts
 Use information from GPS satellites to determine exact location of the device on Earth.
 Use orientation sensors.
 Does not need internet connectivity to work, but needs when updating data.
HOME AUTOMATION DEVICES AND SMART ASSISTANTS

 Use to create smart homes

 Digital devices which sense and control functions in home
 Temperature, lighting

MULTIFUNCTIONAL DEVICES AND CONVERGENCE

 Smartphone – can perform range of different functions

 Convergence – Blurs distinction between different types of devices

FEATURES OF DIGITAL DEVICES

 Portability (Easy to carry and move around, related to size and weight)
 Performance –
o performs tasks quickly
o Speed at which it can carry out instructions from its software.
o Faster RAM – instructions loaded into processor more quickly
 Connectivity
o Devices can share data to each other using wired or wireless connectivity.
o To update software, take backup or play media
 Storage –
o Files and program are stored in storage.
 User Interface
o Command Line Interface (CLI) –
 user enters text instructions
 computer provide results as text
 requires little memory
 Commands have to be type precisely

o Menu-Driven Interface –
 Displays list of options as menu
 Selecting one will trigger a command or display another menu
  Easier to use
 Used in ATMs, TV

o Graphical User Interface –

 Controlled by pointer on the screen
 Uses a screen made up of windows, icons and menus
 Icons – Small images represent an application
 Easiest interface, but takes more memory
o Voice Interface –
 Allows user to give spoken commands to a device.
 Voice recognition software matches spoken words against a library of words
 Disadvantage – sometimes cannot find match or returns incorrect match
o Gesture Interface –
 Hands-free operation
 User can control device by swiping their finger across the screen or pinching
zoom in/out

MEDIA SUPPORT

o SD, MicroSD flash memory, DVD

ENERGY CONSUMPTION

 Lower energy consumption in mobile devices – Longer battery life

EXPANSION CAPABILITY

 Smartphones and tablets have expansion slots to use flash memory cards

SECURITY FEATURES

 Software Security
o Password or PIN (Personal Identification Number
o Setting locks
o After N number of incorrect attempts – system can wipe data
o Use of longer and complex password
 o Pattern PIN
o Biometric scanners
 Physical Security
o Many devices use security slots which can have locks attached to secure them to
furniture.

TYPES OF PERIPHERAL DEVICES – Devices connected to a computer

 Input
o Keyboards
 Combination of key presses – shortcuts
o Pointing Devices
 Pointer is used to select displayed objects
 Mouse : Uses optical sensor to recognize movement
 Tracker Ball : Rolled to move pointer. No buttons
 Track Pad : The surface senses finger movements, touches and
presses
 Joystick : Used in games controllers to move sprites
 Graphics Tablet : flat pad with Stylus – to draw or write

o Scanner (OCR and OMR)

 Use light sensors to record physical documents as images
 Optical Character Recognition (OCR) – read characters
 Optical Mark Recognition (OMR) – detect marks on a document – Multiple
choice tests
o Barcode Scanner
 Barcode – pattern of lines and gaps, represent numbers which are used to
identify the item
 Two types – linear and matrix
 Scanner detects width of lines and gaps
 Used in parcels
 Matrix – QR codes – hold much more information, can be scanned from any
angle
o Webcam
 Low quality camcorders
 Built-in microphone
 Used as security cameras
o Microphone
 To capture sound
 Uses Diaphragm – moves when air hits it
 This produces analogue electrical signal
 Converted to digital signal
 Used for Voice recognition, VOIP calls
o Touch Screen
 Used in smartphones, tablets, laptops, desktops
 Resistive
 User presses resistive screen
 Pressure causes two layers underneath the screen to touch and
make connection
 More durable
 Harder to read because more layers reflect more light
 Can recognize one touch at a time
 Capacitive
 User touches the screen, small amount of charge flows away from
their finger
 Change in electrical charge – to calculate precise screen location

o Biometric Scanner
 Fingerprint Recognition – Scanner reads patterns of arches, loops
and whorls
 Facial Recognition – Scanner identifies structure of human face
 Voice Recognition
 Iris Recognition – This is 120 times more detailed than fingerprint

o Card Readers – reads data stored on a card

 Data can be used to unlock doors, make payments
  Magnetic Strip – Least secure method
 Programmable Strip – Data can be read only if correct PIN is entered
o Radio Frequency Identification (RFID)
 Short range wireless communication method
 Tags are cheap and small
 Used in cards, keyfobs and smartphones
o Near Field Communication (NFC)
 Branch of RFID
o Sensors
 Input data about physical environment
 Automatically input data without human action
 Output is processed by computer
 Used for Smarthomes

 Output


o Monitor
 Allows user to see output
 Screen size
 Resolution
 Energy efficiency measures
o Printer
 Dot Matrix
 Impact printers
  Print is made by hitting the paper through ribbon of ink
 Very noisy
 Paper has more carbon copy layers – can make several copies of
same document


 Inkjet Printers
 Use cartridges of different coloured ink
 Tiny dots of ink sprayed onto paper
 Laser Printers
 Rotating cylinder/drum holds electric charge
 Laser discharges certain points on the drum and draw an image
 Electrically charged toner is attracted to those points on the drum
and is heated onto paper that is passed over the drum

o
 3D Printer
 Create real-life versions of digital models.
 Layers of heated material is added from bottom of the model all the
way to the top.
 3D-models take long time to create.
 Used to create complex items
 Example – aeroplane parts, artificial limbs, prototype model of cars
o Plotter
 Used by product designers, architects, engineers and cartographers.
 The plotter draws high-quality images created in Computer Aided Design
(CAD) software onto large sheets of paper.
 It does this by moving a pen across the paper to draw the lines and the pen
can be raised away from and lowered onto the sheet of the paper.
o Data Projector
 Used for home entertainment
 Features
 Light Bulbs
 Resolution
 Zoom Functionality
 Portability
 
o Speaker
 Output Sound


o Control Devices/Actuators – Components of a system that makes something happen
in the real physical world
 Often mechanical
 Values
 Pistons
 Heaters
 Coolers
 Motors
 Storage (Secondary Storage)
o Not RAM or ROM
o Non-Volatile – will not lose data when system’s power if turned off
o Used to store documents, applications, virtual memory

o Devices
 Internal / External
 HDD (Hard Disk Drive) – Hard disk media, change the magnetic charge of a
platter to either positive or negative
 SSD (Solid State Drive) or flash drives – Flash memory media
 Use different levels of electric charge, held in tiny individual cells to
represent 0 or 1
 Optical Disk Drive – Optical disk media
 Disk drive can read Blu-ray media
  Blu-ray media can also read DVD and CD media – Backwards
compatibility
 Use tiny bumps on the disk surface to represent 0 or 1
 Media
 Store data in binary form
o

 Flash Media
o More energy efficient – no moving parts
 Magnetic Tape
o Originally designed to record sound
SOFTWARE – Programs that run on a computer

SYSTEM SOFTWARE – Programs that are designed to maintain or operate the computer system

UTILITY SOFTWARE

o One form of system software

o Configuration and Maintenance tasks
o Backup – Utilities create a copy of files and programs
 Can be set to run automatically

 Defragmentation
o Data stored on hard disk – some systems spread it across the disk wherever there is free
space
 o Fragmented or stored out of order or out of sequence
o Data from same file – spread over multiple locations, sometimes on different disks
o Extra time for data retrieval
o Disk defragmentation utilities reorder the fragments of data so that they are stored as
close to each other as possible.
 Compression
o Reduce original size of file or set of files.
o Repeated patterns of data – first instance is stored, alongside how many times its
repeated
o Resulting file not readable by original application
o Compression utilities also have ability to decompress – can be read by the original
application again.
 Formatting
o Prepares storage media for its first use.
o If the disk is already used, formatting will make all of the data unreadable by normal
applications
o Disk formatting utilities provide option to choose the file system, file unit size and name
of the disk.

OPERATING SYSTEMS

 Control and manage computer hardware

 Single user Operating System

o General user
o Do not provide customization for different users
 Networking Operating System
o Send request to server when users log in with username and password
o Separates user accounts
o Provide access to network storage and shared resources such as printers
 Memory Management
o OS allocates required amount of RAM to one or more applications
o When app ddoes not require memory, it makes the space available for other apps.
o OS handles creation of virtual memory
 Resource Management
o System resources – processor, graphics card, external devices (printers)
o OS ensures that system resources are made available to applications when they
require
  Security
o OS gives users secure access to computer’s storage
o Through Usernames, passwords, biometric scanning or personal cards
o This is called authentication

 Print Spooling

APPLICATION SOFTWARE –

 Software applications allow users to produce a digital product such as presentation, image,
carry out specific tasks not related to the OS.
 Apps are downloaded from servers on the internet
 Office Productivity Software
o Application Suite – Carry out work-related tasks

 Word Processing
o Create documents
 Words
 Images
 Tables
 Hyperlinks
 Equations
 Simple drawings
 Shapes
 Charts
o Eg : Writer (LibreOffice)
o Good for creating
 Letters
  Reports
 Essays
 Books
o Some word processors allow people to work together
o Comments can be added
o Track changes to a document
o Can change font, provide different layout to position text and images on a page
o Spelling and grammar checking tools
 Desktop Publishing (DTP)
o Similar features of word processing software
o Main difference is allow to work with complicated page layouts
o Example : Adobe In Design
 Spreadsheet
o Applications to do calculations
o Formulae and functions to perform automatic calculations
o Example : Microsoft Excel
 Database
o Database Management Systems (DBMS) – use to enter, edit and search data
o Produce reports that dynamically display real-time changes to the data as it updates
o DBMS software features include
 Data entry forms – users can input data
 Query editors – to select all data that meets certain criteria
 Report builders – Can display data in a more readable format
o Example : Oracle MySQL
 Web Authoring
o To create web pages to include text and images
o Outputs are HTML pages that can be read by web browser such as Google Chrome,
Microsoft Edge, Mozilla Firefox
o Web browsers translate HTML into pages that people can see and read
o Web pages can be linked to create website
o WYSIWIG (What You See Is What You Get) applications allow users to create complex
websites with little or no experience of HTML coding

 Image Editing
o To create and change bitmap images
 Digital Photographs
 Vector graphics
 Drawings
  Logos
o Graphics Editors
 To create or edit vector graphics
 Example : Serif Affinity designer

o Photo Editors
 Edit and enhance digital photographs and images
 Example : GNU Image Manipulation Program (GIMP)

 Sound Editing
o Edit Audio files or join different audio files
o Example : Audacity

 Presentation Software
o Create engaging Multimedia content, including images, text, animation and video
o Contents can be placed on slides or pathways
o Example : Prezi
  Control Applications
o To make something happen in the physical environment
o To automate movement of control devices such as actuators, motors.
o Software takes input from one or more sensors, makes a decision based on the input
value and then outputs something as a result.
o Used in engineering, vehicles, building control, home automation systems.
 Project Management
o To help plan and track individual tasks in a project
o Dependent tasks are combined into a timeline
o Easy for Manager to see critical paths and milestones.

COMMUNICATION SOFTWARE –

 Provides remote access to systems

 Allows users to contact people using the internet
 Can be used to send files and messages as text, images, audio and video
 Web browsers
o Allow users to view web pages and websites on the internet
o Also allow users to access other systems that use the internet but not World wide
web, such as File transfer Protocol (FTP) servers.

 Email
o Can be sent and received by software installed on a computer.
o Client to email server
o Stores / Uses database of contacts
o User can access email through webmail software/web browser
o Labels to help organize emails

 Social Media
o Can be accessed through web browser/installed apps
 SMS
 o Short Messaging Service
o Apps on Mobile phones
o Users can send upto 160 chars per message
o No internet connection is required
 MMS
o Multimedia Messaging Service
o More than 160 chars per message
o Video, animations, images, audio
o No internet connection is required
 Instant Messaging
o Similar to MMS
o Need Internet connection
o Can see when other users are typing
o Prevent others from seeing typing
o Can include location data

SOFTWARE LICENSING–

 Free
o Gives the right to study, modify, copy or distribute
o User can decide how much to charge
o ‘Free’ – user’s freedom to charge
 Open-source
o Makes the source code available to users
o Can modify how the software works
o Distribute the modified or unmodified software
 Proprietary
o Marketed and distributed by its owner under a brand name
o Owner can decide the fee and whether or not the software to be distributed
o When no fee is required – freeware
o Usually does not make the source code available

SOFTWARE UPDATES–
MEMORY

 Can be accessed faster than secondary storage

 Memory is used store instructions
 Processor fetch quickly and executes instructions
 Three types
o Random Access Memory (RAM)
o Read Only Memory (ROM)
o Flash Memory
 Random Access Memory (RAM)
o Software is loaded in RAM from computer’s secondary storage
o Processor fetch quickly and executes instructions
o RAM is volatile – cannot store data when it has no power
o Impact of the size of RAM on the user
 More RAM – more programs can run at the same time
 Not enough space in RAM – OS creates virtual memory in secondary storage
 Secondary storage – slower than RAM – decrease in system performance
 If SSD as secondary storage – data is swapped to and from SSD quickly and
frequently.
 Although SSDs are fast compared to hard disk drive, constant swapping reduces
performance
 When programs/files are closed, they are removed from RAM, so few move form
virtual memory to RAM – increases performance
 User can add more RAM to a system only upto the maximum supported by the
OS and the hardware
 Read Only Memory (ROM)
o Stores data permanently
o Non-volatile – data is not lost when power is turned off
o Used in single purpose computers
 Calculators, Digital Watches, Washing Machines
 General Purpose computers (Boot and Load OS from Secondary Storage)
o ROM – memory that cannot be changed after manufacture.
o Mask Programmed Read Only Memory
o PROM – Programmable Read Only Memory – Can be written only once
 o In general, computer systems cannot swap instructions in and out of ROM
o EPROM – Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory
 Can be erased by exposing it to strong UV light
o EEPROM – Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory
 Can be erased by applying a voltage to one of the pins on the ROM chip.
 Later developed into flash memory


o Flash Memory
 Type of EEPROM
 Non- volatile
 No moving parts
 Faster Access time
 Low power consumption
 Used in portable devices

PROCESSORS

 Made up of one or more CPUs – each referred to as Core

 Carry out software instructions
 Quad-core processor – 4 cores working during each processing cycle – 4 times as much work as a
single-core processor.
 Processor speed is measured in clock cycles per second
 Measured in hertz (Hz)/kHz, MHz, GHz
SPEED AND VOLUME OF DATA TRANSFER

 Bandwidth
o Speed of data transfer depends on the bandwidth of the connection.

o Impact on user experience

 Higher bandwidth – more data transfer every second
 Faster downloads and uploads
 Multiplayer gaming
 High definition video streaming
 Buffer – portion of video data is stored temporarily in an area of memory
 Video will start when there is enough data in the buffer
 More data is downloaded to fill the buffer when video is playing
 Streaming will pause if no data in the buffer
 To avoid this, data must be constantly loaded into the buffer at a rate
faster than it being emptied.
 Latency
 o Delay in time it takes to send data between devices
o It can be identified by ‘pinging’ a domain
o Pinging – sending a packet of data to a server and the packet of data is immediately
returned by the server to the originating device.
o Impact on User Experience
 High latency – game will lag
 Factors that affect speed and volume of data transfer
o Transfer Method
 Wireless methods – limited frequencies
 Copper cable – carry more frequencies – so more bandwidth
o Interference
 Electromagnetic signals interfere with wired and wireless signals
 Wireless routers, fridges, microwave ovens
 Cabled connections can be shielded from interference by having wires
wrapped in a thin layer of metal.
o Blockages
 Walls and furniture reduce the strength of wireless signals
o Distance
 The strength of a wired or wireless signal is reduced as the distance it has to
travel increases.

DEVICE-TO-DEVICE COMMUNICATION

 Devices can connect to each other using wired or wireless methods.

NETWORK COMMUNICATION

 When two or more computers are connected, a network is created.

 LAN – Local Area Network
o Connects digital devices that are in small geographical area – Building or group of
buildings
 WAN – Wide Area Network
o Large geographical area
 o Buildings owned by national and international businesses, law enforcement
agencies, health and education organizations, government departments
o Few organizations – own satellite connectivity – for global WANs
o Use connectivity provided by third-party telecommunications company
o Internet – largest example of WAN
 PAN – Personal Area Network
o Group of connected devices all near an individual user
o Smartwatch to smartphone
o Smartphone to laptop
 TETHERING

THE WAYS IN WHICH DIGITAL DEVICES COMMUNICATE

 Satellite Communication
o Transmit to and receive data from digital devices
o Digital devices use antenna to receive radio signals from satellites
o Cannot by affected by power shortage
o Drawback – do not pass through solid objects
o Will not work in tall buildings/ tunnels
o Signals affected by atmospheric weather conditions
o GPS
 Navigation aids make use of GPS to calculate the exact location of a device.
 Signals are sent from 24 satellites orbiting the earth
 Only 4 satellites are required to determine the location.
 At any one time the device will be in proximity of approximately 12 of these
satellites
o Television
 Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB) – internationally accepted method of
broadcasting digital television
 DVB-S – Satellite – example of DVB
 Video signal from broadcaster – transmitted using a large antenna on Earth
to one or more satellites – then broadcast the signal back down to earth.
 Satellite television viewer – antenna installed – receives signal – sends to set-
top box
 Set-top box decodes – converts – sends to television
 DVB-S2 , DVB-S2X – new digital standards
 o Telephone
 Satellite communication is also used to allow people in remote areas to
place voice calls using satellite telephones.
o Military
 Used in many countries for Global Command and Control System
 Broadcast Communication
o Analogue Television and Radio
 Transmitters broadcast television and radio signals
 Received by viewer’s antenna.
 Antenna sends signal through a wire to the television or radio receiver
 Converts it into images and audio
o Digital television
 DVB-T (Digital Video Broadcasting – Terrestrial)
 Transmitters are based on earth
 DVB-T2 – newer standard
o Digital Radio
 DAB – Digital Audio Broadcasting
 Broadcast in the same way as DVB
 Provides more radio stations
 Can also carry text data
 DAB receivers can display
 Text – time, name of the station, details of music etc
 Wired Communication
o Devices use wired cables to communicate

o USB – very common connection type

o Ethernet – allows user to connect to wired networks
 Wireless Communication
o WI-FI
 Used in home and office networks
 Uses IEEE 802.11 specification of standards for wireless communication.
 o Bluetooth
 Type of wireless connectivity
 Short distances
 Need to be paired with each other before they communicate
 Used to transfer small files between devices
 Used to connect devices such as smartphones, laptops to portable speakers,
headphones, earphones, keyboards, mice

o 3G and 4G
 Referred to as mobile broadband
 To provide internet access to mobile phones and tablets when Wi-fi is not
available
 G – ‘Generation’

o Infra-red (IR)
 Signals cannot carry much data
 Only short range
 Transmitters must have clear line of sight to receivers
 Affected by sunlight
 Used in remote-control devices
o Near-field Communication (NFC)
 Used close proximity RFID chips
 Used in smartphones, payment cards, travel cards

BENEFITS AND DRAWBACKS OF WIRED vs WIRELESS

BROADBAND, MOBILE BROADBAND AND CELLULAR NETWORKS

 Broadband
o Faster access to internet through ISP
o Use fibre optic cable or copper cable
 Mobile Broadband
o Provides high-speed wireless connectivity using 3G or 4G