The easiest way to cure phantom power problems is to switc things off and not leave them on standby. That's easy, requires no new technology and saves money too!

Standby isn't really phantom power. Phantom power is turning off your TV but it still using electricity because it has to be able to detect the remote signal. Each device doesn't use much but nearly every device in a home uses electricity while off so it adds up.

It's good to see some competition for the kill-a-watt:
http://www.p3international.com/products/special/P4400/P4400-CE.html

Until now, I'd thought my only other option was a datacenter type power-infrastructure. Datacenter power components are often instrumented to get this kind of information, but those pieces usually cost more than an individual can afford, and aren't flexible enough for household use anyway. (This stuff is really designed to be mounted in locked cabinets or on a raised floor.)

And to further confuse the issue, TVs on standby use more power than just that required to detect the remote. They also need to keep the tube filaments warm so you can have instant on.

Unless you have an LCD TV.

Never mind then.

"Phantom power is turning off your TV but it still using electricity because it has to be able to detect the remote signal."

That IS standby. Plugged in, switched off but still using power. When I say 'switched off' I mean really off, pull the plug, switch off at the outlet, kill all the power.

Restarting? So will this device not let you restart your computer (not turning it off then back on manually) because when it turns off for that split second, it kills the USB power and thus the strip kills the power to the computer?

this is good , my computer is on all day and all night..i need to buy this

at saintchuck:
"Turning off your TV but it still using electricity because it has to be able to detect the remote signal."

This is the definition of standby, the TV is not "turned off" it is instead placed in a standby mode so that it can accept the remote signal and turn on quickly. There by Standing by waiting to be turned on.

So, would this be called hyperwatting, hyperamping or hypervolting? I always get confused.

I do turn off all my appliances when not in use. The problem is when I have my devices in power strips. I want to turn off my microwave and toaster oven, but not the minifridge (I live in a dorm) that is on the same outlet strip. Same goes for the computer- go ahead and turn off my speakers, USB hub, and monitor, but not the tower if it is still running.
By the way, in summer I turn off my computer whenever it is not in use. In winter, I leave it on, doing Folding@home or another grid computing project. Since my building's heating is old and incredibly inefficient, I consider it a great improvement to heat my room with the waste heat from my computer... like using the electricity twice, once to help the world and once to help me. I made it through all of last winter in Boston only having to turn on the heat on 2 nights.

Or...
you could just unplug the things!

It's Magic!

I have a grandaughter who has a window unit a/c. we cannot decide if will save electricity to turn it off in the 100 degree Texas weather, since it runs continusally, unlike our central a/c., [she has her own little apt.] I think disconnecting it & turning it on an hour before she returns from work to cool down to 78 would save on electricity bill? can anyone help me.

can anyone tell me if you have your stuff plugged into a power strip and you turn the strip off; is the strip still drawing power since it is still plugged in or not?

A power strip cuts off ALL electricity and doesn't draw any power when it's off (unless there is a light on it that stays on when the switch is off). And jackie, shutting the unit off for a few hours will save electricity. It's when it is very frequently turned on and off electricity is being wasted.

A power strip cuts off ALL electricity and doesn't draw any power when it's off (unless there is a light on it that stays on when the switch is off). And jackie, shutting the unit off for a few hours will save electricity. It's when it is very frequently turned on and off electricity is being wasted.

First, you can't save 70% on your electricity using this. That means a discount on using the same amount of power as before. Second, you aren't going to save 70% of your total electricity with this, you're going to save something like 70% of the electricity used to power your computer and perepherals.

I like the concept of the power strip. Rather than being an all or nothing strip, it looks like an individual socket strip. So I can plug my speakers and printer in, but leave them off (really off) until I'm about to use them.

As for whether devices plugged into a power strip draw power -- that depends on the strip. The idea of the strip is to break the connection between the device and the grid, but anything that offers instant on, including power strips, is drawing a small amount of power to keep the system "topped off".

Steve R - the switch is a physical break in the power chain, unlike the TV "off" button everyone else is busy discussing. Turning the surge off breaks the circuit so electricity will not flow.

standby is not when you turn your tv off! its when it goes into a different mode the tv is still running just like your computer has a standby button! it is still on but doing minimal work in the background.

phantom power is when the tv or other appliance is turned off with an off button and is still sucking juice...usually to keep a clock running or other minimal activity that gets lost when you unplug the device.

"As for whether devices plugged into a power strip draw power -- that depends on the strip. The idea of the strip is to break the connection between the device and the grid, but anything that offers instant on, including power strips, is drawing a small amount of power to keep the system "topped off". " - Anne

Anne, no true info here, so here is some clarity.

"As for whether devices plugged into a power strip draw power -- that depends on the strip." Not true. Power strips, when switched off, completely cut off the supply of electricity; this isn't dependent on the strip, this is true of all of them. While true that some strips have a few always-on outlets, we're talking about the ones that are controlled by the power switch. Switch off = no electric.

"The idea of the strip is to break the connection between the device and the grid, but anything that offers instant on, including power strips, is drawing a small amount of power to keep the system "topped off"." Yes, no, no. As I clarified above, the strip does break the connection to the grid - yes. Nothing that offers instant-on "tops off". TVs use a few watts to always power the infrared circuitry to read your remote and turn the TV on, but they aren't "topping off" like a battery charger, they are "using". Which brings me to power strips. They aren't "topping off" either, they are either on or off. Maybe you meant UPS power strips, which do "top off" their batteries all the time, but these aren't the type of power strips you should use for most appliances to help you save electricity.

It didn't take long for my wife and I to get in the habit of turning a power strip on or off as needed to either use the television/DVD player/Wii or the computers (two separate power strips in different rooms). Everything used by the computers is connected to the strips, including the modem and router. Once I told her about phantom power, she had no issue disconnecting her phone charger from the wall.

Sure, having it connected to the computer allows you to optimize "the efficiency for [your] workstation", or you could just power down when you aren't going to be using the workstation for any amount of time.

I have a kill-a-watt, and it's useful for seeing what kind of draw you are getting and helps determine if you have any chargers that don't draw phantom power. I guess if you are going power-saving-crazy, you could get some use out of it. Or, as I said, you could just turn things off and call it a day.

BELKIN has recently presented a set of power saving power strips and outlets, some of which can be turned off with a remote.

I personally switch on and off my power stips manually every day, which involves crawling under the table.

Does anyone know if this is available in stores in the US?

Let's be serious people who say unplug everything. In our day and age of where our appliances really perform best when plugged in. Unplugging everything at the end of the day is not feasible so do not even suggest it. Unless you want to go back to the stone ages. You mean to unplug your alarm clock? Unplug and never charge your cell phones? Leave the computer off as soon as you are done only to turn it back on 5 minutes later? Unplug your memory dependent devices so that you can save a slight kilowattage? Unplug? Come on!!! Phantom devices are the only solution. If I unplug most of my stuff, all the memory will reset including all of my high tech tv and stereo equipment. I should unplug them before I go to bed? So that I have to reset everything when I have to use it? Don't make dumb comments to cover up your initial dumb comments ok? Unplugging is a dumb solution for caveman types; not for people with lives. Ya, let's all unplug our cell phones, Blackberries, and iPhones ok? Brother...