Hardware

Hardware refers to the physical components of a computer system or electronic device. This includes devices that you can physically touch, such as the central processing unit (CPU), memory (RAM), storage drives (HDD, SSD), motherboards, power supplies, graphics cards, and peripheral devices like keyboards, mice, and printers. Hardware contrasts with software, which consists of the programs and operating systems that run on the hardware to perform tasks. In computing, hardware is essential as it provides the necessary infrastructure for software to operate and perform functions. Hardware components can be categorized further into input devices, output devices, storage devices, and processing devices, each playing a distinct role in the functioning of a computer system.