What role does quantum entanglement play in quantum computers?

[Jalo]

I've been reading about quantum entanglement, and I read in many websites that it plays a very important role on quantum computers. I tried to find why, but the only information I got was that quantum entanglement allowed us to see the value of a qubit without interacting directly with it (and changing it as a consequence). Is this the only contribution quantum entanglement has to offer quantum computers?
I've been trying to find an answer on the web, but I couldn't find any specific information. I suspect that quantum entanglement is related to the inherent parallelism on quantum computers, but I'm not sure about that either...

All answers would be appreciated.
Daniel

 

[Jilang]

I think it because each bit rather than being 0 or 1 can exist in a superposition of both. This would mean that the speed of calculations could be speeded up greatly. Consider the number of possible outcomes after 3 steps. With the normal bit you have 2x2x2=8, but with the quibit you have, 4x4x4=64 and with more steps the greater the ratio.