By Dan Keen – Updated Mar 24, 2022
When vacuum tubes ruled the electronics world, connecting components meant soldering each part directly to terminal strips or tube sockets. Today, printed circuit boards (PCBs) streamline the process, making assemblies cheaper and more reliable.
PCBs are thin substrates made from insulating material, coated on one or both sides with metal. Acid etching creates precise pathways for electrical signals, while surface‑mounted components are soldered onto the board.
The introduction of PCBs has been pivotal in shrinking and ruggedizing electronic circuits. Automated drilling and soldering allow components such as resistors and capacitors to be inserted through holes, ensuring high precision and repeatability.
Nearly every household appliance contains a PCB: from computers, printers, televisions, and stereos to musical instrument amplifiers, digital clocks, microwave ovens, telephone answering machines, and even cell phones.
The motherboard is the core PCB of a computer, hosting the CPU, chipset, and memory slots. Additional boards—such as RAM modules, power supplies, modems, and graphics cards—perform specialized tasks within the system.
Motorola’s Quasar TV line pioneered removable PCBs, allowing users to replace boards for quick in‑home repairs.
