Want to Save $100 A Year and Power San Diego? Just Turn off Your XBox
by Jaymi Heimbuch, San Francisco, California 
on 11.24.08
Photo via drdemento
Video game consoles suck a lot of energy, and it turns out that turning them off can save big bucks, according to a report by National Resources Defense Council and consulting firm Ecos.
It also turns out that console makers could go a long way in making the devices more energy efficient in the first place.
The authors said the industry should adopt automatic power-down features and make it easier for consumers to locate these features. Idle machines consume nearly as much energy as when machines are turned on. The XBox 360, for example, has a power-down feature, but it's turned off by default and is hard to activate because its buried deep in the menus.
According to the report, the Xbox 360 consumes about 119 watts in active mode, equivalent to running a PC. On the other hand, the Nintendo Wii uses just 16 watts. Get a load of these jaw-dropping numbers:
Energy-efficiency efforts in the computing industry, such as Climate Savers consortium, resulted in more standardized parts and measurements in things like as power supplies.The study's authors estimate that taking similar steps in the gaming industry would cut the U.S. electricity bill by more than $1 billion per year as well as avoid 11 billion kilowatt hours of electricity and avoid seven million tons of carbon dioxide emissions.
Because about 40 percent of U.S. homes have video games, the numbers on energy usage add up. The NRDC and Eco estimated that gamers consume roughly as much electricity in a year as the city of San Diego.
The organizations behind the report call for gamers to turn off their consoles when not playing, and for manufacturers to get with the program on energy efficiency. Both demands are pretty legit. Gaming consoles getting some needed attention from Energy Star could help push things a little more quickly towards efficiency.
Via Cnet
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Gaming Consoles Finally Getting Attention from Energy Star
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Virtually all "wasted" energy is heat.
That xbox warms your living room, just like your old incandescent bulbs did.
Anyone who heats their house will see no energy savings whatsoever.
The xbox 360 does have a power-down after idle for 6 hours. Though I wouldn't call it "green", it would be good if everyone had this set by default as a start.
What kind of person keeps their XBox on all the time?
I've seen the 360 start to pull 180 watts on peak loads.115 watts != computer. My desktop at peak usage starts to suck 750 watts, comparatively making the 360 seem like a beacon of efficiency. The space heater for my under insulated apartment uses 600 to 1200 watts, I try only to use it when I can't feel my fingers and toes anymore.
I've never met a person that leaves their system on constantly.. you'd end up burning the fan at some point.
do these people leave their car running while they sleep?
Just how much did the consulting firm Ecos make doing this study? Can I get a grant to study how much energy is wasted when people leave their oven on all the time?
'Idle machines consume nearly as much energy as when machines are turned on.' ie- even if its turned off- its still using an exhorbitant amount of energy ie:'vampire power'.
vboring- i think there are more efficient ways of heating your home than with an xbox, not to mention in areas that run air conditioning now use even more energy to combat the 'waste ' heat produced by these consoles.
I dont know if its lack of coffee or are xbox users prone to trolling? :)
Uh, yeah, maybe consult with some gamers first, huh? Cuz all of the ones I know (including me!) turn off their consoles when they're done using them. Really. All of us.
What's next - new study reveals that turning off faucets when not using bathtubs could save enough water to supply San Diego!
You want to save energy? Don't use electricity at all!! http://www1.eere.energy.gov/consumer/tips/appliances.html
Your refrigerator is the biggest loser, not your game console.
The first poster points out a real truth. There would be no savings during the heating season, and even if you were cooling around the year, the XBox would have to be using over 100 watts 24/7 to spend $100.
This really is a bit of swag passed off as fact.
to people who don't know what a power button is/ forgotten what it is or where the power button is on their machines/ consoles - It's usually the little button with POWER written next to it, or it will have a broken circle and vertical dash symbol on it... push the damn thing till all the lights on the system go off and you cant hear it's fans scream.
if not, then put them to sleep or hibernate... there are several options.. Don't leave the machines on all the time...
and man.. I din't know the X-box can heat up the entire room... thats a hell of a lot of power getting used up...assuming one is actually going to leave them on... who the hell leaves it on anyway??
@ RetardsDon'tResearch - hey retard .. so what you gonna do?? ice the basement and use the ice all through spring summer and fall??? close the effing fridge after you're done with it... or get an efficient one.. and wake up to the modern world man from the 18th century... EVERYTHING runs on electricity now... well mebbe not your hand fan and wind-up fob-watch.
options :
1.get renewable energy
2.get efficient appliances
3.live in a cave with a hand cranked computer like Retard.
@ sean... good one!!
@ Retards:
Want to save water? Don't use water!
Nonsensical post.
sid, I was also amazed to learn that I can heat my house with an Xbox. Actually, yet, most the energy does turn into heat, but I have a feeling a good amount of that never really makes it beyond the casing. The Xbox, and other consoles, isn't designed to heat anything, so the heat transfer would be really really inefficient. So it would most likely STILL waste energy in the heating season. I guess it would heat the small part of the floor below it...