Mr. Electricity is your guide to saving energy in your home.
Rebates & Tax Credits
for U.S. consumers
Rebates. For buying energy-efficient appliances like refrigerators, washing machines, and air conditioners.
Tax Credits. For installing things like high-efficiency water heaters, air conditioners, heaters, roofing, insulation, doors & windows, solar panels, etc.
We're recommended by the government of Berks County, PA.
Related sites:
Watt Watt. News about efficiency and conservation, written by readers of the site.
Home Power Magazine. All about renewable energy for the home.
No-Impact Man. Blog about a family striving to have no net impact. (i.e., What little they use, they offset.) Inspirational.
Off-Grid. News and resources about living without being connected to a utility company.
Ask Mr. Electricity in the news:
Cold, hard cash, Kansas City Star, June
22, 10
Stretch your dollar, not your budget, Globe
and Mail, May 18, 10
Energy-saving schemes yield ¤5.8m in savings, Times
of Malta, Dec. 20, 09
Four ways to reduce your PC's carbon footprint, CNET,
Dec 2, 09
Enjoy the mild weather, low electricity bills, Detroit
Free Press, Jul 18, 09
The most energy-efficient way to heat a cup of water,
Christian Science Monitor, Jun 16, 09
Ten ways to save energy, Times of Malta,
Jan 3, 09
Measuring your green IT baseline, InfoWorld,
Sep 4, 08
The Power Hungry Digital Lifestyle
(PDF), PC Magazine, Sep 4, 07
Net
Interest, Newsweek, Feb 12, 07
Going Green, Monsters and Critics, Jan 6,
2007
A hunt for energy hogs, Wall Street Journal
Online, Dec 18 06
|
If you like this site, you might also like some of my other
sites:
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
[an error occurred while processing this directive]
|
|
TV energy use in watts
(2008-09 models)
|
|
LCD w/
LED
|
LCD
|
Plasma
|
DLP
|
|
32"
|
research-
ing
|
125
(98-156)
|
125
(125)
|
n/a
|
|
42"
|
127
(91-236)
|
176
(91-236)
|
270
(188-464)
|
n/a
|
|
50-56"
|
research-
ing
|
260
(210-322)
|
340
(191-474)
|
170
(150-206)
|
Notes: (1) Some manufacturers are
calling their TV's "LED", but they're really LCD TV's with LED
backlighting. (2) What's above are averages. Use the TV calculator to find your particular model.
Google picks the ads, not me. I
don't endorse the advertisers.
|
How much electricity does my
television use?
Most TV's use about 80 to 400 watts, depending on the
size and technology. Using a sample cost
of 15¢ per kilowatt-hour and five hours of viewing a day, that's $1.83
to $9.13/mo. ($22 to $110 per year) Below you'll find energy usage
information for different models.
Before you obsess over how much electricity your TV
is using, I want you to obsess over how much your heating, cooling,
and lighting is using.
TV energy use is a drop on the bucket for most people. TV's typically
account for only 5% of home electrical use.1 You can save
more money by attacking the real energy hogs first.
The easiest way to save energy with your TV is to
turn it off. Does anyone lie on their deathbed thinking, "I wish
I'd watched more TV" ? I consider myself fortunate to have had a
near-death experience, because it made me realize that I didn't want to
waste the limited time I have on this planet on watching television.
This isn't just my idea -- the idea that a television is a necessity is
at an all-time low. (Pew Research,
2009)
You may have heard that the newer TV's are energy
hogs. That's true, but it's not because of the new technology, it's
because new TV's are bigger than the old ones. LCD's are
actually more efficient than the old CRT's they're replacing. But when
you double or triple the screen size, that's gonna take more power.
If you're getting a new TV, here's my basic advice:
- Get an Energy Star model. The U.S. government
gives the Energy Star label to energy-efficient appliances. Energy
Star-labeled TV's use about 30% less energy than other models. Happily
about 75% of current models are already Energy Star-compliant. Get an
Energy Star TV and you can't go wrong. In fact, California is
considering banning all non-Energy Star TV's. (MSNBC, 2009) See the
list of Energy Star TV's.
- For <50" get a LCD, for >50" get a DLP.
LCD is more efficient at small sizes, DLP at larger sizes. And if
getting a DLP, get a model that uses an LED light source, which uses
even less energy than older DLP models, and which will save you from
having to replace the bulb every 1-3 years.
- Think twice about plasma. Plasma sets are the
worst of all, in terms of energy use. However, if you don't watch TV
very much, then the extra energy use of plasma won't be significant.
Here's a rundown of the different kinds of TV's.
|
|
|
|
|
|
CRT. These are the big, bulky TV's and
computer monitors from yesteryear. The tube is basically a big light
bulb. They're not very energy efficient, but they use less energy than
newer models because they tend to be smaller. A 19" TV uses about 80
watts, way less than just about any modern TV.
|
LCD (and LCD/LED).
This is the same type of screen that goes in laptop computers and
modern computer monitors. Much more efficient than CRT, they use about
125, 210, and 280 watts for the 32", 42", and 52" sizes respectively.
They come in the widest range of sizes, from 5" to 65". Standard LCD's
are lit with fluorescent lighting and don't have the best contrast
(e.g., they don't show the deepest blacks). Newer models that are
backlit with LED's and which have the "local dimming" feature
have good contrast.
If you're getting a new TV,
LCD is a good choice for models up to 50" in size. (For bigger
than that, go DLP.)
|
DLP. Also called "rear-projection", but
there's no "projector" that you can see -- it's a regular enclosed TV
like any other. Available only in larger sizes (50"+), and efficient at
that size (~175 watts for a 56" model). If
you're getting a huge 50"+ TV, go for DLP, and get one with an LED
light source (otherwise you'll have to replace the bulb every
1-3 years).
|
Plasma. Typical screen size 32"-60". Huge
energy hogs. Plus, they generate lots of heat, which you'll be paying
to remove with your AC. Not recommended (unless you watch such a small
amount of TV that the extra energy usage isn't significant).
|
OLED. The most efficient of all, but not
available in sizes greater than 11" until 2010, and even then will
probably be pricey for a few years compared to LCD and DLP. (Sony's
11-incher costs $2500, but it uses up to 40" less energy than a 20"
LCD). OLED's are also ridiculously, ridiculously thin. (more
at an OLED website)
|
Confusing TV terms
explained
Contrast. This is a measurement of picture
quality, referring to the range between light and dark colors. A higher
contrast ratio means a more vivid picture. All TV's have a pretty good
contrast ratio except standard LCD's (not LCD/LED).
DLP. One of the five kinds of TV's (along
with CRT, LCD, Plasma, and OLED). Often called "projection" TV's, but
the projector is internal so you can't see it. Available only in larger
sizes (50"+), and energy-efficient at that size. Provides a better
picture than standard LCD's while using less energy at the 50"+ sizes
than plasma.
CRT. One of the five kinds of TV's (along
with LCD, Plasma, DLP, and OLED). These are the old, big, bulky TV's
and computer monitors from yesteryear. They're not energy efficient,
but they use less energy than newer models because they're so much
smaller.
Edge-Lit LED. An LCD+LED TV with the
backlighting on the sides of the picture, rather than behind it. This
allows the TV's to be ridiculously thin (like 1.2"). But Edge Lit
models lack Local Dimming, so the contrast isn't quite as good as
models with dimming.
Energy Star. The U.S. EPA awards this label
to products that are energy-efficient. Energy Star TV's use about 30%
less energy than standard models. The easiest way to ensure that you're
getting an energy-efficient TV is to make sure it has the Energy Star
label.
HDTV. This just refers to modern TV's which
are wide rather than squarish. All new TV's are HDTV, whether they're
LCD, DLP, or Plasma. You can't buy a non-HDTV these days. (Not new,
anyway.)
Local Dimming. A feature of some
backlit LCD+LED models which turns off the backlight in parts of the
screen when necessary, to produce deeper blacks. (Compare to Edge-Lit
LED.)
LCD. One of the five kinds of TV's (along
with CRT, Plasma, DLP, and OLED). They're the most common, best value,
and use the least amount of energy. LCD's use one of three types of
lighting: (1) fluorescent ("CCFL"), (2) Edge-Lit LED, or (3) Backlit
LED. Confusingly, some manufacturers (like Samsung) are deceptively
calling #2 and #3 "LED TV's", but they're really LCD's TV's with LED
backlighting. (True LED TV's like OLED aren't yet available in larger
sizes.) The LCD/LED models have a better picture (better contrast,
wider viewing angle) than the standard LCD models.
LED. True LED TV's aren't really
available yet in the consumer market, as I write this in Jan. 2010.
What some manufacturers are dishonestly calling "LED TV's" are really
LCD TV's that employ LED backlighting. True LED models, such as the
OLED technology, aren't readily available. (e.g., Best Buy doesn't have
any.) LED TV's are touted as being the wave of the future, but they're
simply not available yet -- though companies like Samsung are trying to
trick you into thinking otherwise. (BTW, Samsung also doesn't disclose
how much energy their TV's use on their website. Double shame on them.)
Plasma. One of the five kinds of TV's
(along with CRT, LCD, DLP, and OLED). Produces the best picture
(highest contrast, deepest blacks, wide viewing angle), but uses the
most energy.
|
In terms of energy use, not all LCD's are equal, and not
all DLP's are equal, and not all plasma TV's are equal, even at the
same size. Even within a particular technology and size, the energy
usage can vary greatly by model. So rather than going for a certain
kind of technology, the easiest thing is to just look for the Energy
Star label.
By now you're probably familiar with HDTV, but if
not, it refers to TV's that can display very high quality pictures, and
have a wide rectangular display rather than an old squarish one.
All modern TV's are now HDTV, whether the insides are LCD, DLP, or
Plasma.
Standy power isn't
the problem it used to be. Manufacturers have gotten wise and the
overwhelming majority of TV's made after 2006 draw less than 1 watt of
power when they're plugged in and not running. That's less than 9¢/mo.
at current average electric rates.
Make sure your TV isn't running in "store demo" mode,
especially if you bought a floor model. The store demo mode is
super-bright in order to do battle with the powerful ceiling lighting
in electronics stores. But once you get home the extra brightness will
likely just be annoying -- and energy-wasting, to the tune of an extra
5 to 27%.2 The setting
you want is usually labeled something like "Movie", "Pro", or "Normal",
and some plasma TV's even have an "Eco" setting (because plasma TV's
are such energy hogs to begin with). The wasteful setting will say
something like "Dynamic" or "Vivid. So if your TV is in the super-high
brightness mode, you can save energy with it at the touch of a button.
Picture quality by TV type
|
Standard LCD
|
LCD+LED
(edge LED)
|
LCD+LED
w/Local Dimming
|
Plasma
|
|
Good contrast (e.g.,
deep blacks)
|
Fair
|
Good
|
Best
|
Best
|
|
Wide viewing angle
|
Fair
|
Good
|
Good
|
Best
|
|
Typical thickness
|
83mm (3.25")
|
35mm (1.4")
|
83mm (3.25")
|
89mm (3.5")
|
|
Toxic mercury
|
some
|
no
|
no
|
no
|
|
Power consumption
|
Low
|
Very Low
|
Very Low
|
High
|
(From my survey of typical models
available at Best Buy in January 2010.)
TV's of note
- Sony Bravia WE5 (42" LCD). This 2009 model not
only uses way less energy in normal mode, it also senses when you leave
the room and turns the picture off. Stay gone for 30 minutes and the
whole thing powers down. Its standby mode barely sips any juice at all
(0.17 watts), but if even that's too much for you can turn off standby
with a special separate switch. This model was announced by Sony
Europe, and I haven't been able to find out whether it will be
available in the U.S. Unfortunately Americans don't demand
energy-saving products as much as the Europeans do, which sometimes
means that those products aren't sold here. (Sony Europe)
Television energy calculator
You wanted it, you got it. My TV energy
calculator will tell you exactly how much energy your TV uses, and how
much you're paying for it. If your model isn't listed, just choose
"Don't know/generic" for the brand and you'll get a pretty close
estimate. I do have an assistant working on adding hundreds of models
to the list, so your model might show up here eventually.
How much energy do cable boxes
use?
According to the Natural Resources Defense
Council, an HD cable set-top box uses about 45 watts of
electricity. (source, PDF)
Footnotes & Sources:
(1) In 2004 TV's were 4% of home energy use, which was
expected to grow to 6% by 2009. (NRDC, PDF) But
since 2004 TV's have gotten more efficieint so I think 5% is a safer
number. TV's were 2.9% of home energy in 2001. (Dept. of Energy) In 2008 TV's accounted for 1% of total U.S.
electricity consumption. (Efficient Products)
(2) Store demo mode 5-27% higher than normal mode (EfficientProducts.org)
Sources for TV wattage information. CNET has a good list of over 100 TV's and how much
power they draw. It's where I got much of the model data for this page.
(Others I got from manufacturers, or by direct measurement.) More Energy Savings also has a list, but the site
is very slow and usually crashes my browser.
TV market info. This 2006 EPA report has lots of info such as the
marketshare of each type of TV (CRT, LCD, etc.) per year, the
energy-share of those TV's, how much energy can be saved via Energy
Star standards, etc.
Top manufacturcers. In 2008 the top manufacturers
of U.S.-sold TV's were Samsung Electronics, Sony, Toshiba, Panasonic,
and LG Electronics. (China View)
Last updated: January 2010
|
|
