Gizmodo: energy star

Energy Star Guidelines Lag Behind World in Clarity and Purpose

Mark Wilson — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 14:40:00 EDT

In the US, we're supposed to be the worldwide masters of consumerism. But as pointed out by Pop Mech, our Energy Star guidelines are not just inaccurate, they fail to compare one product to any other product. There's no context.

Meanwhile, take a trip pretty much anywhere else in the world and things change:

Looking at an EU dishwasher label...The machine is rated not only on total energy and water consumption, but also on cleaning performance, drying performance, size and noise. At a glance, consumers get a sense of how this dishwasher stacks up against every other dishwasher on the market....The American EnergyGuide label lists the manufacturer-submitted annual kilowatt-hours consumption estimate, compares that to the other manufacturer-submitted estimates, then crunches those numbers with another set of assumptions to project how much money it might cost to operate the machine for a year. It's up to the shopper standing on the dishwasher aisle to figure out whether 100 or 1000 kilowatt-hours per year is a reasonable cost for clean plates.

Basically, the rest of the world gets a free issue of Consumer Reports on the label of every appliance they're about to buy. We're left needing a subscription. [Popular Mechanics]

Energy Star Setting Consumption Guidelines For Game Consoles

Sean Fallon — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:20:00 EDT

It's no secret that your game console is not going to do much to save you money on your next power bill. However, Energy Star is finally prepared to set guidelines on energy consumption for these devices. In order earn an Energy Star seal of approval, manufacturers will have to use less than one watt during 'off' mode, and less than 5 watts in standby. The devices must also automatically power down after sitting idle for an hour. Furthermore, any set-top box and DVD/Blu Ray/Movie playback functions have to come within 10% of current Energy Star requirements.

As you know from all the other appliances in your home, being Energy Star certified is a choice, not a requirement. So it will be up to the manufactures to decide whether or not to comply—and somehow I doubt that many will so so right off the bat. I, for one, frequently leave my console on pause for hours while I go and do something else. That is one way I can see powering down after an hour being a real bitch. [GoodCleanTech via Treehugger via Kotaku]

Your TV Sucks (Power, Even When It's Not Running)

Charlie White — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 10:20:50 EST

That TV set of yours still sips power even when it's turned off, to the point that phantom power use can add 10% to your electricity bill. In fact, the average US household consumes about 50 watts of standby power per hour. There's a lot of talk about Energy Star ratings for electronic devices, but plasma and LCD TVs are still sucking up energy when they're doing nothing, and that's why Get with Green tested 50" plasma and 37" LCD displays to see which ones are the hungriest in standby mode. Of the 50" plasma displays, it looks like the 1080p Panasonic TH-50PZ700U (pictured above) is one of the greenest in standby. Let's take a look at the list:

50" Plasma TVs
(Manufacturer/Model/Standby/On/Mode)
Panasonic TH-50PX75U 0.2W 499W 720p $1999.95
Panasonic TH-50PZ700U 0.2W 695W 1080p $2999.95
Panasonic TH-50PX77U 0.2W 499W 720p $2099.95
Panasonic TH-50PZ750U 0.2W 705W 1080p $3499.95
Hewlett-Packard PL5072N 0.4W 460W 720p $1799.99
Philips 50PDFP5332D/37 0.67W 480W 720p $1599.99
LG 50PC5DC 0.74W 418W — $1599.95
Sanyo DP50747 0.85W 460W 720p $1294.00
LG 50PB4DA 1W 420W — $1999.95

37" LCD TVs
Hewlett-Packard LT3700 0.3W 220W

Hewlett-Packard LC3772N 0.3W 220W

LG LB5DF-UC 0.3W 170W

LG 37 LB4DS-UA 0.4W 165W

LG 37 LC7D-UB 0.5W 177W

Philips 37PFL5332D/37 0.75W 190W

Philips 37PFL7332D/37 0.75W 200W

Sharp LC37GP1U 0.9W 165W

Samsung LN-T3732H 0.9W 180W

Sharp LC37D62U 0.9W 198W

Sharp LCC3742U 0.95W 185W

Sharp LC37D43U 0.95W 185W

Sharp LC37D42U 0.95W 185W

[Getting With Green] (Thanks, Kevin!)

Nokia 3110 Evolve: Greening Up Its Act, One Phone at a Time

Wilson Rothman — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 10:11:53 EST

Perhaps in response to Nokia's sizeable slip in Greenpeace's Guide to Greener Electronics, the Finnish phone giant has "Evolved" its 3110 model to become, well, greener. The Nokia 3110 Evolve has "bio-covers" made from more than 50% renewable material, its packaging has been reduced in size and comes from 60% recycled content. It also comes with Nokia's most efficient charger, using 94% less energy than Energy Star requirements dictate. No thanks—I'm gonna hold out for a built-in wind charger. [Nokia via Reg Hardware]

Lenovo Cranking Out Energy Star 4.0 Qualified Laptops Early

kevinhall2 — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 10:40:00 EDT

The Environmental Protection Agency's Energy Star 4.0 revision hits July 20th, but Lenovo isn't worried about making the cut. Three days before the revision, Lenovo plans to have the T61p, its first Energy Star 4.0 configured machine, out on shelves. The T61p won't skimp on power to save energy, either. It has a suite of features seen across the Lenovo lines before, but never in the same machine: Santa Rosa platform, NVIDIA Quatro FX 570M, a 15.4-inch screen, and ultra-wideband, all for under $2,000. Those specs are an easy way to get us excited about saving energy.

The revision will cut the number of currently Energy Star eligible machines from around 90% to 25%, so performers will be distinguished. The company plans for all of its X-, T-, and R-series machines to get the new Energy Star sticker, as well as any Santa Rosa machine Lenovo makes. Any of its Santa Rosa systems can qualify after a free, simple download, Lenovo says. It looks like Lenovo is taking the revision seriously, which other companies would do well to imitate. [Crave]