IDAHO NATIONAL TRANSPORTER Idaho
Transportation
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Energy savings may be as close as your fingertips Are there energy savings waiting to be discovered on your desk? A recent report by Nancy McPherson, Technology Investment Program manager for ITD, indicates laptop computers are more energy efficient than a stand-alone computer and monitor. She compared energy consumption of an MPC TransPort T2500 laptop computer with a desktop MPC Client Pro computer linked to a 17-inch flat screen monitor. Her analysis estimates the desktop computer and monitor combine for about 320 watts of electricity compared with 120 watts for a laptop powered by an AC adapter. Based on an eight-hour workday and 20 work days in a month, the desktop/monitor combine for 49.6 kilowatt-hours or a cost of $1.84 to operate. In contrast, a laptop would consume about 19.2 kilowatt-hours per month, for a cost of 71 cents to operate. Both comparisons use ITD’s kilowatt-hour commercial energy rate of 3.7 cents. In other words, a laptop potentially could create monthly savings of $1.13 per user. McPherson’s analysis does not consider advantages or disadvantages of one system compared with the other, just the energy required to power them.
Published 3-7-8 |