Hardware is the name we use to describe the physical components of a device; hardware is what you can touch, see, and interact with. The term "hardware" is most commonly associated with computer parts, but it can be extended to many other types of consumer electronics, such as laptops, gaming consoles, and smartphones.

Any part of a computer that you can physically touch is hardware. All hardware devices, whether internal or external, include chips on a circuit board to perform a function. All hardware also requires a way to interface with the rest of the computer, usually by connecting to a port, socket, or wireless radio.

Abbreviated as HW, hardware is best described as any physical component of a computer system containing a circuit board, ICs, or other electronics.

Hardware is a set of components that make up the material (physical) part of a computer, unlike software that refers to logical (intangible) components. However, the concept is usually understood more broadly and the use of it names all the physical elements of technology.

The word hardware in computing refers to the physical, tangible parts of a computer system, electrical, electronic, electromechanical, and mechanical components. Cables, cabinets or boxes, peripherals of all kinds, and any other physical element involved, make up the Hardware or material support.