Both laptops and desktops have many different ports that are connection points between the device and its peripherals. Let's see how many and what computer ports there are.
Some of the most common peripherals are the mouse, keyboard, display units, printer, speaker, flash drives, and many more. The main function of a computer is to provide a connection point for the peripheral cable that allows data to flow between the two devices. Computer ports are also called communication ports, as they are responsible for communication between the computer and a peripheral device.
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Generally, the female end of the connection is referred to as a port and is usually found on the motherboard. Computer ports are categorized into two types based on the type or protocol used for communication, serial and parallel. A serial port is an interface through which peripherals can be connected, using a serial protocol that involves transmitting data one bit at a time over a single communication line.
The most common type of serial port is the D-Subminiature or D-sub connector which carries RS-232.
On the other hand, parallel port is an interface through which communication between a computer and its peripheral device is done in a parallel manner. In this, data is transferred in or out in parallel using more than one communication line or cable. A typical example of a parallel port is the printer port.
The following is a list of the types of ports available on computers and other devices.
PS/2 port: Developed by IBM for connecting a mouse and keyboard. It was first released with IBM's Personal Systems/2 series, hence its name. PS/2 connectors are color-coded, with purple for the keyboard and green for the mouse. Although the pinout of both PS/2 mouse and keyboard ports is the same, computers do not recognize them when they are plugged into the wrong port.
DB-25 port: It is a variant of D-sub and is the original port for RS-232 serial communication. It was developed as the primary port for serial connections using the RS-232 protocol, but was rarely used as a serial port and was often used as a parallel printer port.
DE-9 port: This is the second serial port developed for serial communication based on RS-232. It is a D-sub connector with an E-shell and is often called a DB-9. It is also called a COM port and allows full duplex serial communication between the computer and the peripheral.
Computer ports are interfaces between a computer and peripheral devices such as printers, using parallel communication. A parallel port, also called Centronic, is a 36-pin port that was developed as an interface for printers and scanners.
Computer ports_ Audio ports: Used to connect speakers or other audio output devices to the computer. Audio signals can be either analog or digital, and depending on the type, the port and corresponding connector differ.
The most common audio port can be used to connect stereo headphones or surround sound channels. It is a 6-pin connector system included on most computers for audio output as well as microphone connection. The 6 connectors are color-coded blue, green, pink, orange, black, and gray.
Sony/Phillips (S/PDIF) port: It is an audio interface used in home media. It supports digital audio and can be transmitted using an RCA coaxial audio cable or a TOSLINK fiber optic connector.
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TOSLINK (Toshiba Link) is most often used with a digital audio port that can support 7.1 channel surround sound with a single cable.
VGA port: Found on many computers, projectors, video cards, and high-definition televisions. It is a D-sub connector consisting of 15 pins in 3 rows. The VGA port is the primary interface between computers and older CRT monitors. With the increase in the use of digital video, VGA ports are being replaced by HDMI ports and display ports.
DVI port: It is a high-speed digital interface between a display controller such as a computer and a display device. It was developed to transmit lossless digital video signals and replace analog VGA technology.
There are three types of DVI connectors based on the signals they can carry: DVI-I, DVI-D , and DVI-A. DVI-I is a DVI port with both analog and digital signals integrated. DVI-D only supports digital signals, and DVI-A only supports analog signals.
Mini-DVI port: Developed by Apple as an alternative to the Mini-VGA port and is physically similar to it. It has 32 pins and is capable of transmitting DVI, S-Video, and VGA signals with corresponding adapters.
Micro-DVI port: As the name suggests, it is physically smaller than Mini-DVI and is only capable of transmitting digital signals.
DisplayPort: It was developed to replace VGA and DVI as the primary interface between a computer and a display. It has a 20-pin connector, which is much fewer than DVI, and offers better resolution. Apple introduced a miniature version of DisplayPort and called it Mini DisplayPort (mDP or Mini DP).
Component Video Port: It is an interface where video signals are divided into more than two channels and the video signal quality is better. The port can transmit both analog and digital video signals.
S-Video or Separate Video Port: Used to transmit video signals only. The image quality is better than Composite video, but has a lower resolution than Component video. The S-Video port is generally black in color and is found on all televisions and most computers and consists of only 4 pins.
HDMI an abbreviation for High Definition Media Interface. It is a digital interface for connecting high-definition and ultra-high-definition devices such as computer monitors, HDTVs, Blu-Ray players, game consoles, high-definition cameras, etc.
HDMI consists of 19 pins and can be used to carry uncompressed video and compressed or uncompressed audio signals.
With HDMI version 1.3, a new combination of HDMI port and connector is released called Mini HDMI. It is smaller than a regular HDMI port but also has 19 pins.
With HDMI version 1.4, Micro HDMI was also released, which also has 19 pins, but the pinout is different.
USB port: It can be used to transfer data, act as an interface for peripherals, and even act as a power supply for devices connected to it.
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There are three types of USB ports: Type-A, Type B or mini USB, and Micro USB. The USB Type-A port is a 4-pin connector, with different versions. USB Type – C is the latest specification of USB and has been created to replace types A and B and consists of 24 pins.
It has the ability to handle high current, used in the latest fast charging technology, where a smartphone's battery will reach full charge in much less time.
RJ – 45 Port: The interface used for computer networking and telecommunications is known as Registered Jack (RJ) and specifically the RJ – 45 port is used for wired Ethernet. It is modular and contains 8 pins.
Often, RJ-45 ports are equipped with two LEDs for indicating packet transmission and detection.
RJ-11 Port: It is another type of Registered Jack used as an interface for telephone, modem or ADSL connections. Although computers almost never have an RJ-11 port, it is the main interface in all telecommunications networks.
RJ-45 and RJ11 ports look similar, but RJ-11 is smaller and uses a 6-pin – 4-contact (6P – 4C) connection.
e-SATA port: It is an external Serial AT Attachment connector used as an interface for connecting external mass storage devices. They are hybrid ports capable of supporting both e-SATA and USB.
However, the e-SATAp is not officially recognized and should be used at the user's own risk.
