1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,540 The back of most PCs is this huge festival of different ports and connectors, and we 2 00:00:05,540 --> 00:00:09,880 just realized we've never done an episode explaining what they all are. 3 00:00:09,880 --> 00:00:14,040 Which is honestly kind of wild, because some of these are pretty nostalgia inducing at 4 00:00:14,040 --> 00:00:18,180 this point. Now let's start out with these multicolored connectors. 5 00:00:18,180 --> 00:00:21,240 These are all for audio, so why are there so many? 6 00:00:21,240 --> 00:00:26,440 Well, a typical pair of PC speakers will plug in to that green port, with the pink one being 7 00:00:26,440 --> 00:00:31,520 for a microphone, and the blue one being a line in if you want to connect an input device 8 00:00:31,520 --> 00:00:34,560 that's not a microphone. Is that clear? 9 00:00:34,560 --> 00:00:38,680 No microphones. Some PCs will have three additional ports. 10 00:00:38,680 --> 00:00:43,480 One for a center speaker or subwoofer, one for side speakers, and one for rear speakers 11 00:00:43,480 --> 00:00:48,200 if you have a more traditional surround sound setup that doesn't use a digital connection. 12 00:00:48,200 --> 00:00:52,720 But if you do have something like an external AV receiver or an external DAC that bypasses 13 00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:56,760 your computer's built-in sound processing, you can connect those here. 14 00:00:56,760 --> 00:01:01,480 It's called a Toslink connector, and it uses an optical signal, hence why you can often 15 00:01:01,480 --> 00:01:05,680 see light shining out of it. Next, let's talk networking. 16 00:01:05,680 --> 00:01:10,880 This guy is an Ethernet port, which on most modern systems supports a connection of at 17 00:01:10,880 --> 00:01:16,680 least 1 gigabit per second. You'll typically use this port to connect to your router and get on the internet, and 18 00:01:16,680 --> 00:01:20,840 it's also usually the only port to have indicator lights on it. 19 00:01:20,840 --> 00:01:24,720 What those lights mean depends on the model, but it's fairly common for one light to 20 00:01:24,720 --> 00:01:30,160 indicate activity and another to indicate link speed. So check your manual for the juicy details. 21 00:01:30,160 --> 00:01:35,400 And these two screw-in connectors on some systems are for your Wi-Fi antennas. 22 00:01:35,400 --> 00:01:39,200 Some desktops and motherboards include these, so you don't have to depend on having a 23 00:01:39,200 --> 00:01:45,600 router or an Ethernet wall jack nearby. Just screw the antenna in, and you should be good to go, although you may need to install 24 00:01:45,600 --> 00:01:52,020 a driver afterwards. Let's move on and talk about an older port that's still somewhat common on modern systems. 25 00:01:52,020 --> 00:01:57,400 This guy is called a PS2 port, and was what most of us used to connect keyboards and mice 26 00:01:57,400 --> 00:02:04,520 before USB came along. Older systems often had a purple port for keyboards and a green port for mice, but modern 27 00:02:04,520 --> 00:02:09,240 systems that still feature PS2 often combine them into one port, where you can plug in 28 00:02:09,240 --> 00:02:15,120 either device. Now, there isn't too much reason to use PS2 these days on your home PC, but it can at 29 00:02:15,120 --> 00:02:22,760 least free up a USB port for other devices. USB has been around since the 90s, and was developed to be a many things in one kind 30 00:02:22,760 --> 00:02:25,800 of port. And it's largely succeeded at this. 31 00:02:25,800 --> 00:02:29,880 If you're plugging in something other than a monitor, analog audio equipment, or an 32 00:02:29,880 --> 00:02:33,900 Ethernet cable, there's a very good chance you're using USB. 33 00:02:33,900 --> 00:02:38,180 You can connect things like printers, webcams, keyboards, mice, streaming accessories, and 34 00:02:38,180 --> 00:02:44,200 even miniature Christmas trees over USB, but do keep in mind that all USB ports are 35 00:02:44,200 --> 00:02:51,320 not the same. A modern desktop PC might have USB ports that support various data transfer rates, different 36 00:02:51,320 --> 00:02:55,640 charging speeds, or other features like updating your computer's firmware without booting 37 00:02:55,640 --> 00:02:58,960 it up. These features will often be color coded. 38 00:02:58,960 --> 00:03:04,840 For example, USB 3 ports that support 5 gigabit per second speeds are often blue, but again, 39 00:03:04,840 --> 00:03:08,960 check your PC's or motherboard's manual to figure out exactly what's what, especially 40 00:03:08,960 --> 00:03:12,040 as there isn't always consistency between manufacturers. 41 00:03:12,040 --> 00:03:19,440 In some companies, even just make all their USB ports the same color for a signature look. 42 00:03:19,440 --> 00:03:25,480 PCs are also increasingly coming with these USB Type-C ports, allowing you to use newer 43 00:03:25,480 --> 00:03:30,440 USB-C cables. And on laptops, they're often used for charging as well. 44 00:03:30,440 --> 00:03:35,640 Some USB-C ports also support the Thunderbolt protocol, which enables specialized applications 45 00:03:35,640 --> 00:03:42,000 like connecting external graphics cards. Now let's wrap things up by talking about monitor connections. 46 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:46,000 Screen systems typically come with one or both of these ports. 47 00:03:46,000 --> 00:03:52,320 This one is simply called DisplayPort, and this other, more symmetrical one is HDMI, 48 00:03:52,320 --> 00:03:58,940 you know, just like you probably have on your TV. There are some small differences between the two ports, but for most typical use cases, 49 00:03:58,940 --> 00:04:05,800 you can just use whichever one your monitor supports. They also both carry audio signals, allowing you to use your monitors built in speakers 50 00:04:05,800 --> 00:04:09,160 or an external receiver if you so desire. 51 00:04:09,160 --> 00:04:12,960 And that's everything you'll usually find on the back of a modern PC. 52 00:04:12,960 --> 00:04:17,360 But if you want to know more about some of the ports that USB replaced not so long ago, 53 00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:22,160 and that you can actually still find on some modern systems, such as VGA and DVI, go check 54 00:04:22,160 --> 00:04:28,000 out this video next. Thanks for watching guys! Like the video if you liked it, dislike it if you disliked it, check out our other videos, 55 00:04:28,000 --> 00:04:31,520 comment below with video suggestions, and don't forget to subscribe and follow!