How much do you use?
Energy, that is. I’m mostly talking about electronic energy usage, ’cause that’s what I think about, but we must put this in context: it won’t matter what state you leave your audio or PC in if your energy is flying out your under-protected windows or wasted heating the house when no one is home. Electronic usage changes create much smaller savings, but they are savings and They Add Up.
There is a cool calculator here that you can use to see approximately how much energy you use with your electronic equipment and even better, how much it costs per year. You can experiment with changing your usage and see what it might save you: http://www.mygreenelectronics.org/EnergyCalculator.aspx
A room with a TV, cable box, computer and cordless phone costs $25.96 each year even if they were never turned on! And technology choices make a difference – a 17″ CRT (80W and very old school) costs $66 per year vs $29 for a 17″ LCD monitor (35W). Be careful with large HD displays, however. They can burn watts like – nevermind, Watts burning… I’m back in time…….Sorry. Some HD displays use the same amount of electricity as a refrigerator.
If you buy a big HD display (and please do!) this season, be sure and have your AV Professional calibrate it for your viewing room. I’m thinking your display will not have to compete with 11 other displays at your house. Brightness often can (and should) be dialed down for better viewing. It also just happens to result in less energy used/wasted.
The AV industry is addressing energy usage; many pieces of audio equipment will have an Energy Star rating in the near future, and displays will cease their escalating energy usage if they want to sell to anyone in California. The California Energy Commission recently mandated stricter energy usage limits for displays. After 2011 no TV with a screen size under 58″ may be sold there unless it meets these newly specified limits.
The information here is great. I will invite my friends here.
Thanks