What is the basic unit of digital information?

The basic unit of digital information is a byte. A byte is typically made up of eight bits and represents the smallest addressable unit of memory in many computer architectures. It can store one character of data, such as a letter, number, or symbol. This foundational role of the byte makes it essential in computing and data storage, as it forms the building block for larger units of digital information such as kilobytes, megabytes, and terabytes, which are all multiples of bytes. A kilobyte consists of 1,024 bytes, a megabyte consists of 1,024 kilobytes, and a terabyte consists of 1,024 megabytes, illustrating how these larger units are dependent on the byte as the basic measure. Understanding this hierarchy is key to working with digital storage and data representation effectively.