More processing power... higher electric bill?

[Mark Holtz]

From CNET:

Power could cost more than servers, Google warnsA Google engineer has warned that if the performance per watt of today's computers doesn't improve, the electrical costs of running them could end up far greater than the initial hardware price tag.

That situation that wouldn't bode well for Google, which relies on thousands of its own servers.FULL ARTICLE HERE (http://news.com.com/Power%20could%20cost%20more%20than%20servers%2C%20 Google%20warns/2100-1010_3-5988090.html?part=rss&tag=5988090&subj=news)

[Nick]

I am already offsetting the increasing costs of electricity and computer power drain :computer: by transitioning to flat-panel PC and video displays. No more CRT-based monitors for me. :bad_nono: In accordance with FCC guidance, the switch to low-power consuming LCD monitors should be completed by December 31, 2009.

:p

[DonLandis]

Nick- Hope you are doing better these days.

I just switched from a huge Sony box, a 21" Cad monitor CRT to this Dell 24" wide screen display. For general computing and even video editing with huge display of a timeline in 1920 x1200 pixel display, it is fantastic. BUT I'm still not happy with the color rendition for photo retouch work and color matching.

I'm considering adding a dual display system not, bringing back a CRT for use on only those times when I have to do color correction in my work. IT will probably be something like a Sony PVM 8044Q. I use one of these now for my shooting monitor. It would be fed by the software via a 1394 digital feed to my DVCAM VCR and its component out to the Sony monitor.

I don't know about electricity bill savings since one monitor going from the 21" to the 24" LCD may noy have significant impact on the monthly bill. From an environmental viewpoint, every little bit helps. :)


On another OT note- I dumped my T-Mobile GPRS card last week. Replaced with a Verizon EVDO service. I have been typically getting 1Mbs to 1.2 Mbs on downloads and 356 kbs on uploads. I've used it all over the state in all major cities so far. The service costs 59.99 a month which is very high but it is expected to lower as Verizon is really pushing this. The T-MObile GPRS service just went up for new subscribers, however, to $39.99 a month. You will not receive an increase however. But I would if I went back.

If anyone is looking to buy a T-Mobile GPRS card cheap, let me know. I have no more use for mine. IT served me well for 2 years but I need to move to state of the art for wireless speed and Verizon has it today. Not as fast as cable but just as fast as most DSL service.

[TechnoCat]

Power usage is a financial issue, but not of a computer (or television) so much. A typical high-end computer PLUS monitor takes less than 300 watts during normal usage, though they can spike a bit higher. Laptops and LCD monitors take less, of course. Lets assume we raise that 50%, at the cost of $0.08/KWh (about normal for the nation), for a system in use 50 hours a week, 50 weeks a year. (Yeah, assuming vacation for easier math.) That would be:

50 (hrs) * 150 (incremental watts) = 7500, or 7.5 KW per week, or 375 KW/year. Which is $30.

I went through similar math on my my blog (http://bloggit.livejournal.com/) when I was ranting about Compact Flourescent warranties being meaningless due to the timeframe and usage. (http://bloggit.livejournal.com/2005/02/01/) And similar math proved that there's no way to recoup costs of retrofitting a heat pump to a house. (But if you have leaky single-pane windows, you could recoup those costs.)

For systems to less than their power, systems would have to get cheaper or use enough more power that they would need their own circuit breakers.

[Nick]

Nick- Hope you are doing better these days....The T-Mobile GPRS service just went up for new subscribers, however, to $39.99 a month. You will not receive an increase however. But I would if I went back.

If anyone is looking to buy a T-Mobile GPRS card cheap, let me know. I have no more use for mine. IT served me well for 2 years but I need to move to state of the art for wireless speed and Verizon has it today. Not as fast as cable but just as fast as most DSL service.Doing good, thanks! :stickman:

T-Mobile is giving the Sierra 750 aircards away now with signup for their GPRS service. Last time I checked, their
Sony-Ericsson Wi-Fi/GPRS cards were $99 w/ service.

My GPRS aircard saved my sanity while I was 3 weeks in rehab. :rolleyes:

[DonLandis]

Gosh, I don't know how you calculated your heat pump non-savings but I can tell you that I was paying an average of $4600 a year for my electric bill with an older AC and electric strip hot air system. I did the conversion and that was a cash outlay of $2200. The next year I paid a total of $3025. and it has averaged about that same +-100 for the next two years. I'm sure you can crunch the numbers and use what I call isomath to build a case the way you stated but if we look at the bottom line over a long period of time, that tells the whole picture as to how quick the heat pump pays off. In addition, I feel that heat pump may have been even quicker payout because I added a second edit suite of electronics after the heat pump installation and that got figured into the bill as well. Of course, I live in a part of the country where the climent is particularly heat pump friendly. in more northern climents they become less efficient. You list Pacific NW so you are probably correct that a heat pump is not particularly efficient as they are here in Jacksonville FL.

[DonLandis]

"T-Mobile is giving the Sierra 750 aircards away now with signup for their GPRS service. "

Yes, I read that somewhere but I thought it was a 2 year contract. Let's see, increase the monthly $10 then collect that difference for 2 years, $240. I think I paid $150 for the card so that would be a pretty smart marketing scheme they set up. FREE is indeed the most compelling word in advertising, you know. Folowed by CASH and then SEX in that order.

[SimpleSimon]

I'm using 6-700KWH/mo. That includes running no less than 3 computers with 4-5 CRTs at any given time (on 24/7, but power-saving applies), plus a 60" RPTV (on at least 10 hours a day) with multiple boxes (stereo, etc.) hooked to it. Plus, my dryer is electric.

So, I think the 300w figure given by TechnoCat could be high. I'm using an average of about 1KWH for the whole house.

[Bogy]

Power usage is a financial issue, but not of a computer (or television) so much. A typical high-end computer PLUS monitor takes less than 300 watts during normal usage, though they can spike a bit higher. Laptops and LCD monitors take less, of course. Lets assume we raise that 50%, at the cost of $0.08/KWh (about normal for the nation), for a system in use 50 hours a week, 50 weeks a year. (Yeah, assuming vacation for easier math.) That would be:

50 (hrs) * 150 (incremental watts) = 7500, or 7.5 KW per week, or 375 KW/year. Which is $30.

I went through similar math on my my blog (http://bloggit.livejournal.com/) when I was ranting about Compact Flourescent warranties being meaningless due to the timeframe and usage. (http://bloggit.livejournal.com/2005/02/01/) And similar math proved that there's no way to recoup costs of retrofitting a heat pump to a house. (But if you have leaky single-pane windows, you could recoup those costs.)

For systems to less than their power, systems would have to get cheaper or use enough more power that they would need their own circuit breakers.
Why would you buy such a big bulb and pay so much? Just so you could complain? I buy bulbs that are the size I need, not the biggest bulb possible. :lol: I also pay 99 cents for most of them, a little more for some more special bulbs. Since I would have to replace the bulb anyway, at pretty much the same cost for incandescent, its pretty much a win win situation. In some cases, since the energy usage and heat are much less with the CFs I can increase the luminescence in some cases and still use less electricity.

[DonLandis]

Bogy- I found that some lights that burn long hours benefit from the new low wattage flourescent screw in types. But I have been running into a real problem over the past few years with the cheapo bulk pack light bulbs burning out in just a few months. Decided to check my 120v service and discover I'm at 126-128 volts here. Power companies keep jacking up the voltage to keep it at 120 minimum at the end of the line. That is the official answer but the conspiracy theory is that technically it gives them a boost in revenue as it raises your electric bill since higher voltage on same appliance results in higher wattage consumed. The losses are things like bulbs. So, I went to the local bulb warehouse and talked to the experts. Bought a case of 130volt bulbs and now they have been lasting normal life. Home Depot and such only sell 120v bulbs. The 130v bulbs cost a few penneys more but they last 10 times longer. They still output the same lumens. For most of the house, I have replaced bulbs with CF's except in places I need dimmer control, then I switched to 130v pars and std bulbs. MY wife likes the outside floods on at night now so I've replaced all those with CF floods and spots. Some of these were expensive so I'm not too sure about the pay off time.

[BobMurdoch]

There have been several stories that talk about how much power the XBox 360 requires. Not as much as a Plasma TV, but almost as much as a gaming PC.