Simple Recommendations about How to Write a Compare & Contrast Essay in Technology

Among the most popular types of college and university essays, the one that the majority of students enjoy working on is the comparing and contrasting essay. The paper is a multi-paragraph composition that writers use to explain how two or more items are different and similar. What helps students to easily deal with the essay is the fact that the paper can be associated with everyday activities. In other words, whether at college, home or work place, you will easily find opportunities to make comparisons that means describing similarities between the items. Basically, when you compare things, you tell your readers what they have in common. When it’s time for contrasting, you have to explain the ways in which the items are different.
Assuming you would like to purchase a new laptop, you would definitely analyze the similarities and differences between two or more brands of the devices. This is where selecting compelling comparing and contrasting essay topics about technology comes in.

Since we’re living in the world of continuous digital progress, it is hard to find someone who doesn’t have one or more devices, where it is at college, office or at home. In order to accomplish your compare and contrast essay in technology, it is highly important to come up with the attention-grabbing topic that your readers won’t find boring to read. This is where you have to exercise the highest degree of responsibility because you have to come up with superb topic ideas. Listed below are some of the most interesting ideas that you could use to a compare and contrast essay successfully.

They are as follows:

• Comparison of long distance travels vs. the versatility of video calls to see the loved ones;
• Comparison of remote controlled air conditioning units vs. the ones that are manually operated;
• Comparison of the present high definition flat screen digital television and the old analog television;
• Comparing the digital one-touch modern washing machines vs. the conventional spin washing machines;
• Comparison of handheld games vs. joystick-based ones;
• Comparison of the versatility of the USB storage vs. the use of the cabinets & folders;
• Comparison of the traditional methods of manual book-keeping vs. computerized book-keeping methods;
• Comparison of the versatility of touch screen and cellular phones vs. old ones.

These and many other topics for a compare and contrast essay in technology can be found on the portals like ScienceDaily, SciTechDaily, Nasa.gov and TechCrunch.com. Go ahead and pick a topic and do your research.

Highlight Important Similarities and Differences

Now it is time to point out the issues you are going to compare and contrast in your paper. If you work on the topic that sounds like ‘Comparison of Manual Typewriters vs. Laptop Computers’, do not just discuss the different backgrounds of the items. Ask yourself what is significant about that. Perhaps these two items come from different epochs but at some point each reached the similar level of popularity.

Professional writers recommend creating the Venn diagram or a chart that will help you to compare and contrast items in a more efficient and quicker manner. In order to create a Venn diagram, you have to draw some simple overlapping circles. Each item you’re considering should be provided with one circle. In the middle part where they overlap, you have to write down what the items have in common. Assign every area that does not overlap. There you can list each of the traits that make the items different. In case with the laptop computers vs. manual typewriter comparison, you can compare these two items on the basis of the following points of comparison: origin, the pace of development, price, usability, design and functions.

Write Your Thesis Statement

The thesis statement is the core of your compare and contrast essay in technology. The thing is that a good thesis statement can help you come up with a focused argument and provide your target audience with a real road map so he or she doesn’t get lost amidst your points and evidence.

Just like in any essay, you would like to replace some vague statements of your topic (for instance, ‘This essay will compare and contrast the versatility and speed of the traditional mail postal services and email’) with something more specific and detailed. For instance, the author might say something like ‘The traditional mail postal services and email have similar principles of work, but their speed and features set them apart’.

You have to be careful at this point. The thing is that this thesis is pretty specific; however, your college professor will expert you to provide a bit more analysis. If this situation, the obvious question is – So what? Why should people care that computer laptops and emails differ in this way? Besides, your readers might also wonder why you picked those two items to compare – why not washing machines or mobile phones? Again, considering the context the class provides will help you to make a stronger argument and answer the question like the one mentioned above. Here is a simple revision of the thesis statement that we mentioned earlier:

• ‘Computer laptop and standard postal services provide many different opportunities, but the speed in which the messages are being delivered, the pocket-friendly cost of emails (you pay for the internet connection only) and an opportunity to insert videos and images make emails a better option when it comes to exchanging messages.’

Gather Supporting Evidence

The very moment you choose the topic for your compare and contrast essay in technology, you have to do deep research to ensure you can cover your topic with enough materials. If you find out that you can gather enough supporting information for your topic, it’s time to check stats, facts and evidence available online and in printed sources.

If it’s possible, look for the points of view of professional scholars in the field of technology. You’ll also want to check testimonials or even interview some of the experts to dig true-life materials.

If you can, make sure to search for some personal statements about your topic. If you write a comparing and contrasting essay about “Android vs. iPhone: Which Device Gets Your Money’s Worth with You”, see what kind of commentary you can possibly gather from each in order to support their differences and similarities. Cite sales statistics, the variety of applications, the reviews of the experts in order to have something that goes beyond your personal perceptions, i.e. – factual evidence.

Compare & Contrast Essays Introduction

An introduction in the compare and contrast essay in technology reveals the main point of the paper and bring light to the primary data about the chosen items with the target readers. Include your thesis statement.

The opening paragraph is the part of the essay where you give a short explanation of the selected items to analyze (make sure to stress why the offered essay might be valuable for your target audience). Do your best to inspire the reader start reading your text from a to z by initiating a string hook sentence.

There are many types of the hooks that you can choose from when writing a compare and contrast essay in technology:

• Sayings of famous people (‘Technology is nothing. What’s important is that you have a faith in people, that they’re basically good and smart, and if you give them tools, they’ll do wonderful things with them’. Steve Jobs)
• Interesting statistics or facts (Google, HP, Apple and Microsoft have just one thing in common, except for the fact that they are IT corporations. They were all started in garages.)
• Joke or anecdote (I decided to make my password ‘incorrect’ because if I type it in wrong, my computer will remind me, “Your password is incorrect”.)

Write the Body of the Compare & Contrast Essay

The body of the compare and contrast essay in technology can be arranged in two ways. You can do that by individual points or by subject. The method that you choose will depend on your readers and the purpose of your essay.

The point-by-point way enables you to discuss one point of comparison at a time. If you don’t have much to say about each of the items that you’re comparing, a single paragraph would be enough to talk about how a particular point of comparing and contrasting is related to all the items you talk about. For instance, in case with the topic ‘Android vs. iPhone: Which Device Gets Your Money’s Worth with You’, you might talk about the prices in one paragraph; in the next paragraph, you might compare the apps available; in a third, you might contrast the desired of Android and iPhone systems.

If you have more to say about the items that you compare and contrast, ensure to provide a whole paragraph to how every point is related to every item. For instance, you might have a whole paragraph written on the quality of the photos made by iPhone, followed by a whole paragraph about the quality of the photos made by Android. Next, make sure to proceed to making two more paragraphs each dedicated to your next point of comparing and contrasting.

Use compare and contrast phrases in order to cue your target readers to the ways you analyze the relationship between the items.

Compare & Contrast Essays Conclusion

When you’ve completed the body paragraphs of the compare and contrast essay, you have to begin to work on the next step – the conclusion. The final part of the essay usually leaves the last important impression. Thus, you have to make maximum efforts to make your impression positive. In a concluding fragment, make certain to sum up the evidence that you’ve introduced, restate your thesis (but never copy this part – just reword it!). And don’t forget about the most important thing – show all difference and similarities.

Edit & Proofread Your Essay

When you have the essay draft and you believe you are ready to show it to your professor – don’t do that straight away. Before that, make sure to ask yourself the following questions:

• Have I followed all essay requirements?
• Have I written a comparing and contrasting essay? What items am I comparing and contrasting?
• Does each of my body paragraphs support the thesis statement?
• Is the evidence that I use relevant?
• Do I have to provide more evidence or remove some?
• Have I provided enough transitions needed to help my readers to jump from point to point?
• Does my conclusion sum up all the essay details?
• Is my introduction interesting enough to make the readers want to keep on reading?

When you review your essay, make sure to check the questions given above all time. The reason why you check and re-check your essay is simple – you need to reveal the gaps where you have to add information or some parts that should be removed. Being an attentive reviewer is one of the keys to getting an A+ for a college project. When you have reviewed your comparing and contrasting essay, ensure to go back again to your text in order to verify that your punctuation, grammar and spelling are correct.