‘Going Green’ is becoming more and more popular with people choosing hybrid, eco-friendly cars, recycling and much more in order to protect the environment we live in. In this day and age most of us own a computer, but can our desire to be ‘green’ be extended to our computer monitors? Surprisingly, yes, it can!
The average home computer uses around 400kWh per year, costing you $35 in electricity, doesn’t sound like much, right? Well, bear in mind that it also produces 530lbs of carbon-dioxide emissions and you start seeing a problem. In fact, compare your computer with other household items and you’ll see what all the fuss is about – your computer produces 20 times more carbon emissions than your DVD player. Even more shockingly, 50% of your computer’s energy consumption comes from its monitor.
So, what’s the quickest and easiest way to cut the amount of carbon emissions and electricity consumption of your computer? Upgrade to a monitor that has been Energy Star certified. The US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Department of Energy have partnered to help us protect the environment and your wallets by using products that are energy efficient. By choosing household items with the Energy Star rating we can save around a third on our energy bills as well as reducing the amount of carbon emissions we produce.
When you choose a monitor that has been Energy Star certified you can be sure that it meets strict guidelines for its energy efficiency, but how exactly do they meet those guidelines?
Computer monitors that have received an Energy Star rating use considerably less energy whilst active but it isn’t just this that makes them more energy efficient. Whilst in the off and sleep modes computer monitors are still using energy but energy efficient models consume far less. As well as using less energy these energy efficient monitors will quite often power off when not in use, saving even more energy.
Do your bit for the environment, and your pocket, by purchasing an eco-friendly monitor, the world will thank you for it! If buying a new monitor isn’t an option right now you can still make your current monitor a little greener by ensuring you always switch it off when the computer isn’t running.
This article was written by Matt Rawlings, an expert in consumer advice articles based around technology and gadgets, helping you to get the most computers and monitors for your home or workplace.
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