| Power Supply Efficiency is LAME (but getting better) |
| Written by Hank Green | ||
| Tuesday, 02 May 2006 | ||
 Seasonic SS-300SFD Active PFC 80Plus 300W SFX Power Supply 80 plus is a program that is payed for by some electric utility somewhere. They certify power supplies that are more than 80% efficient. Right now, very few power supplies have been able to make the 80 Plus grade. But it's worth searching one out. Running an 80 Plus power supply can reduce your power consumption by 85 kWh per year heat output by 50%. The question, really, is why we're not all already using more efficient power supplies. Basically, it's because we buy our computers from Dell, who is looking to give you the cheapest PC possible. Power draw and heat output don't generally make the top ten when Dell asks consumers what matters to them. But maybe soon efficiency will be a bigger issue, and we'll see more 80 Plus certifications on new computers. There's a 300 W power supply from Seasonic available now for around $50. And hopefully you'll see a lot more coming around soon. Via: WorldChanging
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How about unplugging your computer when
written by Robin , November 08, 2008 | ||
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However I have seen many people leave their PCs on all the time - especially people who work in offices. They work there 40 hours a week and the PC is running 168 hours a week - that's a fair bit of waste. A more efficient power supply would help but just shutting down or hibernating at the end of each workday would suddenly make their PCs four times as efficient - not even counting sick days and holidays and vacation!