Green computing

Home Office Computing, July, 1994 by Rosalind Resnick

IF YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING YOUR PART FOR THE ENVI-ronment by recycling your newspapers, think again. Though you may not know it, you're probably harboring an energy hog in your office-your computer.

Personal computers are the commercial world's fastest growing user of electrical power. Today, computers account for up to 5 percent of the nation's commercial energy use, according to studies by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). By the year 2000, that share could double. What's more, the EPA estimates that the typical computer is used less than half the time it's on, and as many as two out of every five computers are left on overnight and during weekends, even though nobody is working on them.

If you figure that the average computer system--meaning the central processing unit (CPU), monitor, and laser printer--sucks up 235 watts of power, then leaving one on all the time drains more than 2,100 kilowatt hours (kwh) per year, says the EPA. At an average cost of eight cents per kilowatt hour, this adds up to about $165 in annual energy costs. Multiply this by the millions of computers on millions of desktops and you're talking serious money and energy.

Energy-Saving Solutions The good news is that now there's something you can do about this waste. Instead of plunking down your money for a power-guzzler, you can go green and buy a computer--or printer, for that matter--that's better for the environment and perhaps even for your wallet.

Credit President Bill Clinton for leading the charge. On April 21, 1993, the President released an executive order that states the federal government is required to purchase only computers that bear the EPA's Energy Star logo and meet the agency's strict guidelines. To comply with EPA rules, the CPU and monitor of an energy-efficient computer must each be able to power down to 30 watts or less for a total consumption of 60 watts or less.

Computer vendors who didn't want to lose the government's business decided to straighten up and fly right--and for good reason. The feds, as it happens, are the world's biggest buyers of computers, snapping up at least one out of every five microcomputers sold in the United States, according to Government Computer News. Not only did the manufacturers create new Energy Star models for the government, but they also rolled them out for sale to the private sector.

The pitch to consumers: If all computers complied with the Energy Star program, power savings in the United States alone would total more than $2 billion per year. Less power consumption also means less carbon-dioxide emission--the equivalent of pulling 2.5 million cars off the road.

So computer makers like Dell, Compaq, and Gateway 2000 have jumped on the Energy Star bandwagon in a bid to do well. IBM, for example, trotted out its PS/2 E computers, which even at full power use less energy than the Energy Star program requires--they consume less than 40 watts at full power but power down to 22 watts in idle or sleep mode. Since the program was launched last year, roughly 150 technology manufacturers have agreed to make computers and printers that adhere to the EPA's guidelines.

What People Are Buying But will green computers and printers catch on with the public? According to Computer Intelligence InfoCorp, a San Diego market research firm, sales of Energy Star computers will account for more than 9.6 million desktop units in 1997, about 70 percent of the U.S. market for desktop systems. The reason: Buying an energy-efficient computer is not only good for the environment, but it also cuts your electrical bills to the tune of more than $100 a year. And, like a well-lubed car, more efficient computers burn less energy, generate less heat, and therefore can be expected to suffer fewer mechanical problems over time.

"I'm not a fanatic about environmental issues, but if I can help, I'll do it," says P.K. Shiu, 32, a home-based computer consultant in Arlington, Massachusetts, who's currently in the market for a new PC to replace his old 386. "If there's a choice in front of me, I'll pick the green one."

John Morris, a 36-year-old Missouri machinist, says he's interested in green computing for another reason--he likes the ability to put his computer to sleep, then wake it up with the touch of a key or a system setting. It's a feature he now enjoys when he uses his Macintosh PowerBook and one that he's likely to find in his next desktop computer.

"It's a handy feature if, for some reason, I leave the house and realize later that the computer is on," Morris says. "The fact that it uses less energy and is easier on Mother Earth is nice, too."

But while there seems to be interest on the part of computer shoppers, some companies say that sales so far have been disappointing. An IBM spokesperson, who did not want to be identified by name, said that the company's PS/2 E computers are not moving as quickly as IBM would like. The reason, he readily admits, is sticker shock. Though IBM cut prices on the PS/2 E models up to 20 percent last fall, even the least expensive version--a 486 machine with a 14-inch color screen that retails for $2,500--still costs about $1,000 more than the standard PS/2.