Input Devices

An input device is a peripheral used to provide data to a computer. Together with output devices, these peripherals make up the interface between the computer and the "outside world."

Standard Input Devices

• keyboard - you have a keyboard on your compute and know what it looks like and how it works. If you're curious about it Wikipedia has more information than you could possibly need as does howSTUFFworks.
• pointing device (mouse) - you also have a pointing device on your computer that you presumably know the ins and outs of. If you want to know more, Wikipedia and howSTUFFworks also have lots of info on this too.
• webcam - Wikipedia or howSTUFFworks
• microphone - the microphone plugs into the sound card - Wikipedia or howSTUFFworks
• game controller - Wikipedia or howSTUFFworks
• scanner - Wikipedia or howSTUFFworks

Esoteric Input Devices

• musical instrument (MIDI keyboard) - Wikipedia on MIDI keyboard and Widipedia on MIDI or howSTUFFworks
• medical imaging - Wikipedia
  • magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) - Wikipedia
  • ultrasononography - Wikipedia or howSTUFFworks
  • tomography - Wikipedia
• barcode reader - Wikipedia or howSTUFFworks
• 3D (and 6D) mouse - Wikipedia
• haptic devices - Wikipedia or howSTUFFworks

Further Info

Wikipedia article on general input devices
howSTUFFworks article on input devices