What is a device, the difference between a device and a gadget. What is a device and how it differs from a gadget What are gadgets and what are they for

? What are gadgets? In the modern world, we often hear these concepts, sometimes we use them and not always in the correct form. Now everything will fall into place and we will figure out what devices and gadgets are.

How to properly device or device

Using English words in Russian colloquial speech, we often make mistakes in pronunciation, not to mention the spelling of words. The word "device" is no exception, it is pronounced and written differently device and device, how is it right?

In order to understand how to pronounce and write correctly, you need to check the transcription of the word device |dɪˈvaɪs| reads like a device. I think we figured it out, we can move on.

Devices what is it

On the Internet you can find different definitions and meanings of the word device, but they all agree on one thing.

device,-A; m. (n.) [English] device - device, device] is a device, a device that is used in many areas, designed to perform a private, special task. An independent device that does not require additional connections to other devices.

In English, this word is used much more widely than in Russian, but in our country it has historically developed that only such devices as computers, laptops, smartphones, household appliances and other smart machines belong to devices.

Gadget and device, most people are used to considering these words as synonyms, but alas, this is not entirely true. Indeed, both can be called a device that helps a person, but not every device is a gadget and not every gadget is a device. Let's take a look at the definition of a gadget.

Gadget(English) gadget - contraption, adaptation, device, bauble) - a small device created for auxiliary purposes, in order to facilitate a person's life. Gadgets include smart bracelets, fitness trackers, electronic patches, virtual reality glasses, players.

If the word gadget is used in the slang of programmers and Internet users, then gadgets can mean small applications (weather, informers, news announcements).

What's the difference between gadgets and devices

When to use the word gadget to a device or device, and when to use the word device. Let's look again at what a device is, but in simple words.

Device- an independent, multifunctional device powered by a battery or mains. The device does not require any auxiliary devices to operate.

gadget- an auxiliary device that performs one or more primitive functions, the operation of which may require additional devices.

The reason for raising this issue is largely due to the "crossfire" of some devices. How to call them devices or gadgets. These devices include:

Computers;
laptops;
tablets;
smartphones;
smart watch;

These and similar devices can lead a person to conflicting conclusions and make him misuse words.

How to determine what is a device and what is a gadget

What I will offer you now will help you not to get into awkward situations. As there is a rule in Russian “what to do or what to do”, so similar can be used in our case only a little differently.

If an electronic device performs one or two functions, it is a gadget; a multifunctional device is a device.

Ask a question:

“What can a computer, tablet, laptop do?” The list of answers can be very long. This is the first and main feature of the device.
"What can an electronic watch do?" If your clock shows the date and time, maybe even a compass or a stopwatch and they are modern, then this is a gadget. If they also have access to the Internet, have GPS, or tell you about your pulse and heart rate, then this already applies to devices.

Devices do not require other devices to work, we have already found out. But flash drives, USB gadgets, headphones cannot work independently, they need devices.

Conclusion. In conclusion, I would like to say that the concept of a gadget and a device is so intertwined and so mixed up in the minds of "indigo children" that I would not advise you to argue with anyone about what is a device or what is a gadget. Not everyone and not always can and should prove something. The main thing is that you know the difference! Moreover, the one who will argue, most likely, did not look for information on this matter, or his sources are not competent enough.

Question for reflection, how would you call this device a device or a gadget?)

The word "gadget" came to us from the English "gadget", translated as "device, device". Such a device can be seen in the figure on the left - a fan with a clock that connects to a laptop via a USB port.

Currently, gadgets include any digital devices, the size of which allows them to be connected to a personal computer, smartphone or put on the hand.

Gadgets are compact and designed to perform specific, highly specialized tasks. A distinctive feature of gadgets is that they are a novelty, that is, an unusual, creative solution to certain problems compared to existing standard technologies.

Often gadgets cannot work on their own, their main task is to expand the functionality of the devices to which they are connected. I want to note that calling gadgets all "advanced" technological devices, such as, for example, a tablet, an e-book or, will not be entirely correct.

After all, these devices may well work offline, without connecting to any other device. Therefore, on the one hand, they are gadgets, and on the other hand, they do not quite fall under the category of gadgets. Such is the confusion associated with the release of a large number of new gadgets and, especially, with the cosmic speed of their appearance.

More specifically, what is a gadget?

I must say right away that there is no catalog or list of devices that are gadgets. There are also no standards for gadgets. In general, gadget manufacturers are trying "with all their might", as they say, "who is in what much."

Here are some examples of gadgets:

ipod,
Mp3 player,
digital camera,
smartphone,
communicator,
a lot of useful, as well as useless, comic, "cool" devices connected to a computer via a USB port, and so on.

USB gadgets

These are small devices that connect via a USB port. I do not include such devices (which have already become familiar to many) as USB gadgets, such as a keyboard, mouse, printer, external hard drive, although they are all connected to a computer, usually via USB.

I will give examples of USB gadgets, which, alas, do not always perform their functionality in good faith:

mug with heater from USB,
USB ashtray,
USB mini-fridge (for example, to cool one can of drink),
USB vacuum cleaner for keyboard from crumbs and dust,
USB heated mouse pad,
USB heated foot mat,
heated USB slippers
USB backlight for keyboard,
USB mouse on finger
USB stand for laptop,
USB fan, etc.

iPod as an example of a gadget

I'll tell you a little more about such a gadget as the iPod - a small device for listening to music and audio files in good quality. The idea was to combine a hard drive with a processor in a compact form for listening to music.

To work with the iPod, iTunes is used, which is preliminarily installed on a computer from the official website for free. When connecting an iPod to a computer, this program allows you to synchronize music (more precisely, any audio files) on the computer and on the iPod. You can download new music files to your iPod, delete them, and do other necessary actions.

It is possible to charge via USB from a computer, then charging the iPod depends on the presence of a computer. Or you can use a stand-alone charger that charges your iPod through a regular 220V outlet.

iPod provides an opportunity not only to listen to music, audio books and audio casts, but also to use the organizer, listen to FM radio, watch video clips. True, I find it difficult to say what can be seen in a video clip on a tiny iPod screen, but if manufacturers have included this feature, it means that someone needs it.

What is a widget?

The formula computer = hard + software is known (or in Russian:). In accordance with this formula, or perhaps according to the Russian tradition, “we wanted the best, but it turned out as usual”, but for some reason on the Internet the word “gadget” is used not only in relation to hard (hardware), but also in relation to software (software).

That is, gadgets are also found in various software (there they are also called widgets) in the form of applications that facilitate the work of users. Widgets provide various kinds of information, for example:

weather forecast,
Exchange Rates,
time,
date and so on.

Widgets can also be:

alarm clock
calendar,
notebook,
show the current state of the computer, etc.

In general, widgets are everything that allows you to get the information you personally need in the shortest possible time without using a browser to search for this information on the Internet.

Widgets are sometimes called informers (Russian version), which more clearly reflects the essence of such small programs. Words borrowed from the English language (in this case, widgets) more accurately express this or that concept, but for "" they often serve as a barrier to the perception of information.

If I were asked again what a gadget and widget are and what they are for, then I would answer that a gadget is a small electronic device for adding variety and convenience to everyday life, and a widget is a small program for quick access to frequently used information. Although there is no consensus on the use of the new terms "gadget" and "widget" yet. In time, perhaps everything will fall into place.

Widgets can also include applications, small programs that perform highly specialized functions and expand the capabilities of the main program.

On this site (and millions of other sites), widgets are all the boxes in the sidebars of the body of text you're currently reading, such as the Site Search, Get Started, Featured Articles, Categories, and etc. Such windows-widgets on the site are convenient for users for quick access to useful information.

Windows Gadgets

Interestingly, Windows developers call mini-applications for quick access to the necessary information gadgets. And the domestic search engine Yandex calls similar applications in relation to its search engine widgets. Would you like to see for yourself? Then take a look at the official websites of Windows and Yandex using the links below.

Yandex Widget “Weather” on the Desktop

Yandex widgets

If you prefer the domestic Yandex search engine, then take a look at the Yandex widget catalog:

Yandex offers two types of widgets:

1) widgets for Yandex (the subject of widgets is extensive: Auto, Business, Home, Games, Culture, News, Education, Announcements, Jobs, Entertainment, Sports, Help, Technology, Tourism),

2) widgets for the Desktop (Search, Weather, Traffic, News, Clock).

Other meanings of the word "gadget"

The term "gadget" has other meanings as well. For example, the first atomic bomb was called a gadget. In literature, this word is most often found in spy movies (James Bond series). Cartoon lovers may remember Inspector Gadget, whose power lies in a set of gadgets.

Of interest is the information that at the beginning of the 20th century, sailors in the English fleet called gadgets all technical devices whose names they did not remember, did not know, etc. From the point of view of computer literacy, it turns out very convenient if you use the word “gadget” “in conversation” whenever you forgot (or don’t know) the name of a new technical device or the name of a new application. Not entirely competent, but maybe sometimes it's better than saying, "such a thing, the name of which I don't know (or don't remember)."

Without gadgets, life would not be so interesting. Mankind is constantly striving for something new and more perfect, for something that could make life easier for him, thereby moving forward new technologies.

For us to be interested, please take part in the voting. If there is no gadget in the voting list below, please write in the comments to the article, and I will add it to the existing list of gadgets.

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We tirelessly surround ourselves with them, follow the news and hear about them from everywhere. It is now impossible to do without them, store shelves are teeming with lines of cutting-edge devices, and development companies are churning out and improving inventions almost every day.

But have you ever wondered what a gadget is?
The etymology of the word is disputed. A gadget is a small device-machine endowed with certain functions, often new ones.

The origins of the word gadget date back to the 19th century. The etymological Oxford Dictionary treats gadget (gadget) as a sailor's slang term for a small mechanical device or part that is not enough for the full operation of the ship (1886). Translated from the French "gâchette" means trigger. There is also a widespread version that the word appeared at a time when a miniature of the statue was made in the workshop of Gaget, Gauthier & Cie, where the famous Statue of Liberty was made, which was named after the manufacturing company (1886-1887). Some sources claim that the concept comes, again, from the French "gagée" (detail of a shooting mechanism, a small tool or accessory).

During a discussion on the Plymouth brand in Devon (1916), it was proposed to include the word gadget in the list of provincialisms. Then a naval officer who was present at the meeting added that he often heard this word from his colleagues and acquaintances. The word was used as a designation for all small details: mirrors, levers, badges, talismans, speedometers. In addition, this term was appropriate to call any old things. It is surprising that in our time, a gadget means something innovative.
By the second half of the twentieth century, the connotation of the term gadget was established as a designation of compactness and mobility. In the 1965 essay "The Great Gizmo", the term "Gizmo" was used interchangeably with gadget throughout the text. Architecture and design critic Rainer Banham defines the term as a distinctive class of American product—a small, self-contained, high-performance device at a reasonable size-to-cost ratio. The device requires minimal owner skills to use.

What is a gadget today?
This is a new, often expensive accessory that makes your life easier. This is a tool that allows you to easily use the resources and extend the functionality of another device. Thus, the gadget itself can be absolutely useless until it is connected to the main, more complex and autonomous device.

A gadget is a technological addition to any product.
If we talk about the term in the context of software, its analogue is the concept of a widget: an application that expands the functionality (of a tablet, smartphone, computer) or provides highly specialized information. Suppose daily weather forecast, personal horoscope, world news and politics.

Examples of gadgets are modern sports trackers, smart bracelets, audio and video headsets, Bluetooth, electronic devices that work exclusively in integration, for example, with a smartphone.
Many people confuse the concept of a gadget with a device. However, the device is a self-sufficient device that can work even better thanks to the gadget.

Every day we receive a colossal amount of information, which is sometimes difficult to understand, and the number of newfangled words is catching up with panic. But you shouldn't be so worried. We can only say “thank you” to the current reality for keeping us from getting bored, throwing up more and more new topics for conversation, terms for study and gadgets for enjoyment.

Hello, dear readers of the blog site. In the circle where I communicate, the terms device and gadget are very often used, but at the same time, the speaker does not always realize that these concepts are somewhat different, and are not synonymous. Moreover, often what should be called a device is called a gadget and vice versa. In this small publication, I decided to dot the "i" so that no doubts arise.

The confusion is most likely due to the fact that these terms were borrowed from the English language and were used by many along with “wow” to emphasize their involvement in the world of technological progress and show their advancement in this matter. That's why I want to define what is a gadget and what is a device in their original understanding, as well as to determine the fine line of difference in these concepts.

What is a device?

The term "device" comes from the English word device and means some rather complex device, device or machine. Since we have recently been surrounded by such things (computers, laptops, smartphones, game consoles, etc.), it becomes clear why this term has become so widespread. It's easier to say the device than the full name of the device, which many do not even remember.

However, not every device falls under this definition. Is your wristwatch a device? And the alarm clock on the table? Probably not. They do not reach this high concept, because they lack manufacturability and fancyness (many functions). Here is a watch with a telephone function, with a radio and a built-in hard drive - this is a device.

It should also be more or less compact (well, at least like a computer or printer). A communications satellite is much more functional than anything we encounter, but somehow the language does not turn around to call it this word. But a modern mobile phone, music player, video recorder, camera, navigator, game console, pedometer, food processor and other technical gadgets containing at least one microcircuit are devices.

And most importantly, what, in my opinion, distinguishes device from the gadget - the first one should be a complete device, which needs only energy in the form of batteries or a connection to the network to work. Gadgets, by definition, are just an addition to something, but more on that below.

What is a gadget and how is it different from a device?

So, what is a gadget by definition? The history of this word comes from the English gadget, which means a device from the category of new products. Here's something hot, piping hot and right into the hands of users.

But gadget- this, unlike a device, is not a complete (independent and self-sufficient) device, but some technological addition to it (like for a tablet or laptop, or an external flash for a camera). Although many of us often consider a laptop as a gadget in the above example, and a modem made in the form of a USB flash drive as a device.

Other examples of gadgets are computer components that cannot work on their own, but serve as important parts of the main device. Those. gadgets cannot work independently and are designed to expand the functionality of the main device.

By the way, if we move from the world of hard to the world of software, then here we will also meet with the term gadget (widget), which will have a very similar interpretation - a small software application that provides some small additional functionality or some rather highly specialized information (for example, a weather or clock widget on the Windows desktop). In general, from the category of "a trifle, but nice."

So, sum up. The gadget has increased functionality in relation to the main device, but at the same time it has rather limited capabilities, because it cannot be used by itself, but serves only as an addition to the device. It is connected to the latter by some kind of connector or inserted entirely into the niche intended for it.

But we are so used to equating these two concepts in our everyday life that my publication is unlikely to change anything in the current balance of power, when device and gadget have merged into a single whole and are synonymous for 90 percent of Runet residents. It seems to me that nothing can change this, although for general development it still makes sense to know the true situation. IMHO.

Good luck to you! See you soon on the blog pages site