The second line is aimed at audio systems, with GreenPower versions of the EPIR 2450, EPIR 3650, and HDP 2550 PowerCenters. These systems are designed to work with "any universal learning remote"—you simply program it with the right IR codes, and then with one flick of a button your HDTV and all its support audio and video gear will click off, protecting the environment and saving you a handful of dollars on your utility bills. It's not clear if you need line of sight to the power strip, but that's probably still pretty convenient for most users, and if you can do your bit for the environment without even having to leave your couch, that can only be a good thing.

The MDP650, 800 and 900 will set you back $70, $99 and $129 respectively, but you'd probably have to be an audiophile to consider the entertainment PowerCenter versions: the EPIR 2450 (with three socket outlets) is a whopping $500, as is the HDIR 2550 (which has just 2 socket outlets), whereas the EPIR 3650 is an even chunkier $600 and can switch off four items plugged into it. You could always just haul yourself out of the chair and flick the switch—I'm just saying. [Monster Power]

Rohm estimates that around 15 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, roughly the output capacity of two nuclear reactors, are consumed every year in Japan by devices on standby. In the U.S., vampire power is estimated to cost consumers $3 billion annually.

Experiments have already shown that an average game console could cut its power use by roughly 70% if it adopts circuits incorporating the new technology—exciting news for people like me, who tend to forget to power off their Wiis at night. Rohm says it'll start producing the circuits on a commercial basis within a year or so. [Japan Today]