Tags: desktop, energy saving, Green IT, IT products, TCO Certified
Today we launch the new TCO certification for desktop computers: TCO Certified Desktops 3.0. Dell’s OptiPlex 980 is the first desktop in the world to be awarded with the new TCO Certified designation for environmental and high performance design. TCO Certified Desktops 3.0 is the third and the latest TCO criteria document for desktop computers. The environmental requirements are much tougher in TCO Certified compared with the former TCO’05 Desktops. All TCO Certified products are rigorously tested by an independent laboratory for low levels of energy consumption, noise and electromagnetic emissions as well as minimal environmental impact. These high performance products are also intended to reduce the global E-waste problem as they are designed for longer life and for recycling at end of life. Dell’s achievement of TCO Certified is also a validation of their ongoing, active commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility, a key aspect of the TCO Certification.
Go to the full announcement here.
Tags: energy saving, energy saving tips, Energy Vampire, standby, standby mode
What do you think of when you hear the term Energy Vampire?
A. Dracula trying to jump start his heart?
B. Negative people sapping your energy?
C. Electrical products in our homes and offices still sucking up energy after we put them to sleep for the night?
I immediately thought of example C the day I heard the term for the first time, although I dreamt of A later that night. Anyway, it made me think of the products in our homes and offices; the computers, displays, TVs & printers that remain active energy & money leaches, whilst farting Co2 through electricity production and also being a fire risk to homes. Their sleep mode should be as energy saving as ours, but unfortunately I’ve found a shocking truth:
It isn’t so long ago that European guidelines were made to put pressure on manufacturers to provide energy levels in user manuals to consumers, which then got them competitively producing products that have very low power consumptions during sleep mode. Unfortunately though there are still many slightly older products in use today consuming only slightly less power in their Sleep-mode as they do in normal On-mode. I know for instance that my 4 year old 32” LCD TV falls into this major Energy Vamp category.
But not everyone is able to measure the power consumption of their TV. It’s hard to be sure you haven’t got an E-Vamp in your home if you don’t have the product’s bible to guide you or specifications that have neglected the passage on Standby levels.
So what’s a person supposed to do when the ‘Hard Off’* button on products is becoming as hard to find as a blood donor these days.
Well, let me give you a simple way to drive a wooden stake into the heart of these suckers:
I’ve connected most of my appliances at both work and home (computer, display, printer, especially the TV, stereo and all number of players for this that and the other) to a Power Strip, which is a multi-socket extension lead with an integrated power switch. This way you can easily disconnect all the power to all the products with one easy flick of a switch. You can also get remote switches that you can switch off & on via a remote control.
Very easy, very effective & a safer home with No more Vampires, which means a better sleep mode for all!
Oh yeah! If your answer was either B or C…don’t let them drain you! Instead try your best to turn them with your positivity or drive a stake through their heart! ;)
*Hard Off is a switch on a product that completely prevents the electricity from entering the product. As effective as pulling out the plug…a vampire’s teeth!
Tags: energy saving, ICT, PC energy consumption, TCO Certified
Some say we need more power stations and if we’re going green then it’s got to be nuclear to fill the demand.
A scary scenario when there are already 400 nuclear power stations in the world leaving their radioactive waste for future generations to clean up, not to mention other risks with this source?
But is there really an energy crisis looming? Could it be that there would be enough to go around if we started to consume it more wisely?
The best way to avoid a crisis is through good management…and in this energy situation, the manager that has a big say over the amount of energy you’re using during the day, is YOU! You’re a self-employed energy tycoon with the right to hire & fire…& right now you might be thinking business could be better.
So, as I promised you in my new years resolution a couple of weeks ago, let me give you a simple first aid guide on how to cut back your energy consumption, your energy cost & green house gas emissions in one easy move at the office….and please try this at home also.
Just use this link:
http://www.tcodevelopment.com/pls/nvp/Document.Show?CID=4146&MID=255
It will direct you to our web site and an easy step by step guide on how to set up the energy saving function on your computer.
This set up will place your computer and screen automatically in a standby/sleep mode when you are not using it and it automatically starts it up again when you touch the mouse or keyboard.
Savings: For example: for a 19” TCO certified monitor this will mean a drop in energy consumption from approx 20 Watts to less than 1 watt during an estimated 3 hours of a working day (these power levels are not guaranteed if you do not have a TCO marked product). A computer & screen that is always on may cause 7kg of CO2/week from electricity production. If an energy saving function is active on your computer however, that level will sink to as little as 0.8kg CO2/week.
A low hanging fruit like this is something we can all reach from the comfort of our chairs…so enjoy this double energy saving, since my next tempting apple in a couple of weeks may take a bit more effort to reach 
Tags: carbon dioxide emissions, charger, energy saving, Mobile phones, usability
According to an agreement with GSMA, an operator association within TU, International Telecommunication Union, there is now a great chance for all mobile phone manufacturers to equip their phones with a charge function through micro- USB, according to an agreement called UCS, Universal Changing Solution.
This is great!! The goal with UCS is to decrease the manufacturing of chargers by 50% per year and be far more energy efficient. This will decrease the carbon dioxide emissions. This will also in the future eliminate all specific chargers as you will be able to charge your phone directly through your computer. And our Usability habits will surely change in a positive direction.
read more www.gsmworld.com/our-work/mobile_planet/universal_charging_solution.htm
Tags: carbon footprint, CO2 emissions, energy saving, environment, Green IT, IT products, save energy, sustainability, sustainable IT
While major electronics brands compete to develop more eco-friendly PC products, some areas of Green IT are actually shifting towards greater industry collaboration. A couple of recent stories caught my attention. Firstly, at CES I attended an Electronics Takeback roundtable, hosted by the US EPA and featuring senior environmental managers from Panasonic, Best Buy and L.G. When discussing the challenges of implementing a cohesive takeback infrastructure, industry reps agreed there is a need to work together to create a common eco-system and create efficiencies in how takeback is handled across multiple product categories.
Second, the Green Touch project was announced this week in a cross-industry effort to reduce PC processory energy use 1000-fold. In real terms, this would mean being able to run the world’s communications networks, including the internet, for nearly three years using the same amount of energy it currently uses in one day. The Green Touch project kicks off in February. More details here
Tags: energy saving, LCD display, monitor, Product Spotlight
The Fujitsu P22W-5 ECO is worth a look.
It boasts super sleek design, large viewable area and a power saving ECO button, allowing you to save around 30% in power consumption. Check it out…
http://ts.fujitsu.com/products/displays_projectors/premium/scenicview_p22-5_eco.html
Tags: cooling plate, double sided printing, energy saving, lap top, noice, TCO Certified Display
In the blogg May 6, Anna Pramborg described how to reduce IT Climate Impact.
This is an important information, so do read it again, Reduce your IT Climate Impact by 80% !
What more can be of benefit for you and the planet?
Here are four good advices:
1. When using your TCO Certified display,
be sure to connect your display, your PC, your desk lamp and the rest of your work place with an energy saving power supply equipment. Choose a highly product developed electricity saving master-slave junction box. Connect your PC to the master socket and the rest to the slave sockets.
An extension lead detects when the master socket is not being used.
This detection will automatically power down the other sockets, in other words saving energy!
2. When working with your lap top,
save energy by using a cooling plate. This is a convenient pad placed between the lap top and your lap. The cooling plate has a cooling effect for more than 5 hours, recharging in 3 hours in normal room temperature.
The cooling plate reduces heat from the cover material to the skin as well as reducing electromagnetic radiation from the laptop. Cooling your laptop this way also makes battery power of your lap top last for a longer time before the need of recharging it again.
3. Reduce electrical equipment in your personal work place,
Store printers, copiers, scanners and fax machines in a separate room. This also reduces noice from these machines as well as noice from other people’s voices. So this third advice reduces energy from machines and makes it possible to energize your body and mental work.
An extra benefit while walking to the machine room is the possibility to get away from your computer for a second or two. So take the chance to stretch your body or just use this little walk as a good rest from your computer walk.
4. Do you really have to print out so many documents?
A study from a large Swedish office showed that by organizing files and documents in computers in a smart way, including printing on both sides on a reduced amount of copies, saved more than 100 printed copies a day and person. So save the environment by printing fewer paper copies and do not forget to print double sided.
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