IT Power Management: Optimizing Power Consumption
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Power Consumption
The following table shows values for power consumption of everyday computing:
Average Power Consumption of Personal Computers 1
| |
Powered On |
Powered Off |
| Desktop |
140 watts |
23 watts |
| Laptop |
35 watts |
3 watts |
As the table demonstrates, simply shutting a computer off significantly reduces the amount of power necessary to sustain a computer. Although this fact may be completely obvious to most users, computers are often left powered on around the clock. This wastes countless amounts of energy and, as a result, indirectly places a substantial burden on the environment that could be avoided by applying more environmentally-friendly computing practices.
Wattage Consumption
This table shows the previously discussed wattages applied over time:
Average Energy Usage of Personal Computers Over Time 2
| |
Powered on for 24 Hours |
Powered on For 8 Hours and Off for 16 |
Savings |
| Desktop |
3.4 kilowatt hours |
1.5 kilowatt hours |
55% |
| Laptop |
0.84 kilowatt hours |
0.33 kilowatt hours |
60% |
Aside from benefiting the environment, green computing can also benefit the personal computer user's wallet. The 2006 average price of electricity in the United States was 10.4 cents per kilowatt hour2. At this rate, desktop users can save an average of about 72 dollars, and laptop users can save about 20 dollars per year.
1 Referenced from www.greenbiz.com
2 Referenced from www.eia.gov
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9/27/2023 1:58:16 PM