Section 1 - Chapter 5: Output Devices

Question 1

What is an Output Device?

Answer 1

Output devices take data produced by the computer and turn it into a form that humans can understand. A different type of output device is an actuator, which might respond to an input signal.

Question 2

What are common output devices?

Answer 2

• Screens
• Printers
• Multimedia projectors
• Speakers
• Actuators

Question 3

Screens

Answer 3

There are various different screen technologies used for computers, phones and other devices.

Question 4

LCD monitors

Answer 4

Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) monitors contain groups of red, green, and blue diodes to form each pixel. The screen is typically backlit using LEDs.

Question 5

What are the advantages of lcd monitors?

Answer 5

• They reach their maximum brightness almost immediately.
• The image is sharper with more realistic and vivid colours.
• Better picture definition
• Screens can be much thinner in construction
• Reliable
• They consume very little power and therefore produce very little heat as well as reducing running costs.

Question 6

Organic LED (OLED) screens

Answer 6

These are brighter, thinner and litter than traditional LCD or LED screens. The screen is plastic rather than glass, so they are flexible. In the future they may be used to make inexpensive animated billboards.

Question 7

Advantages of OLED

Answer 7

• Flexible enough to print onto clothing
• Much thinner
• Longer battery life
• They produce truer colours through a much bigger viewing angle.

Question 8

Disadvantages of OLED

Answer 8

• Does not last long, tending to wear out around four times faster than LCDs.
• Sensitive to water, which is a potential problem in a phone.

Question 9

Laser Printers

Answer 9

Laser printers offer high-quality, high-speed printing. It uses powdered ink called toner.

Question 10

Inkjet Printers

Answer 10

Inkjet printers work by spraying minute dots of ink onto paper to create an image. They can produce excellent, photo-realistic images. They are cheaper than laser printers but much slower, and the ink cartridges have to be replaced quite frequently.

Question 11

Which is preferred, Inkjet or laser printers.

Answer 11

It is preferable to use a laser printer when a lot of text needs to be printed, and an inkjet printer to produce high quality photographic images.

Question 12

Dot Matrix printers

Answer 12

These are known as impact printers. The print head has a matrix of pins which strike the surface of the paper through an inked ribbon to form letters. These printers are useful when multi-part stationary is required, and they can operate in damp or dirty environments. However, they are noisy, slow and the print quality is poor.

Question 13

3D printers

Answer 13

Used to create car and airplane parts, medical equipment, prosthetic limbs. They are used for creating spare parts for obsolete equipment and to produce prototypes of new products.

Question 14

Multimedia projectors

Answer 14

Teacher can present text, graphics, audio, add images etc.

Question 15

Computer speakers

Answer 15

Outputs sound

Question 16

Actuators

Answer 16

Motors that are commonly used in mechanism in conjunction with sensors to control a mechanism. E.G. Turning a wheel or controlling devices in a “smart-home”.