Buy a Green Computer
So, you've decided to buy a brand new computer. Congratulations! Being the environmentally conscience person that you are (or a person that wants to save some money on their energy bill), you have come to the right place. Now we will present you with some tips on how to buy a greener computer.
What Kind of Computer do you Need?
The decision between a notebook or a desktop computer has become easier over the last few years. You no longer need to trade power for portability and the price of a good laptop has dropped considerably. It is little wonder that notebooks outsold desktops in 2008.
If you want to use as little energy as possible, buy a notebook computer. The hardware of a notebook is designed to be as energy efficient as possible (to increase battery life). The energy used by a notebook plugged in is a fraction of what a desktop computer would use. We are not saying you have to buy a notebook to be greener, but it is the easiest way to do so.
But what if you still prefer using a keyboard, mouse, and large monitor at your desk? Well, you can still have those things. Most laptops have all the ports you would need to hook up all of your computer accessories. Use a USB hub to connect all of your USB devices so you only have one plug to connect to your computer. You can also buy a notebook that has a docking station to make things even easier.
There are companies now releasing desktop style computers with laptop hardware to reduce energy. This could be another option for you.
Determine What you will be using it for.
Determining what you need applies for anyone buying a computer, but, when thinking green, this changes slightly. You not only have to figure out if what you are buying is enough, but you want to make sure it is not more than what you need. You don't want to buy a computer that is not powerful enough to do all of your tasks, but having a computer that is more powerful than you need can cause it to be worse for the environment and your electric bill.
So, when buying your new computer, think about what you are going to use it for. If you just need something for doing school or office work, then you probably don't need to buy the fastest quad-core processor on the market and a huge video card. More powerful processors often use more energy and discrete graphics cards use significantly more energy then their integrated counterparts.
Here is a quick list for reference:
- Work/Student Desktop: Dual-Core Processor, Integrated Graphics, 19"-22" Screen
-for web browsing, office software, applications, multi-tasking - Work/Student Notebook: Dual-Core Processor, Integrated Graphics, 14"-17" Screen
-for web browsing, office software, applications, multi-tasking - Gaming Desktop: Dual-Core Processor, Discrete Graphics Card, 22"+ Screen
-for gaming, web browsing, office software, applications, multi-tasking - Gaming Notebook: Dual-Core Processor, Discrete Graphics, 15"-19" Screen
-for gaming, web browsing, office software, applications, multi-tasking - Netbook: Low-Energy Processor, Integrated Graphics, Solid State Hard Drive, 9"-12" Screen
-for web browsing, office software, some applications - Nettop: Low-Energy Processor, Integrated Graphics, 19"-22" Screen
-for web browsing, office software, some applications, remote desktop/thinclient - Power User Computer: Quad-Core/Dual-Core Processor, Discrete Graphics Card(s), 22"+ Screen, Advanced Cooling
-for rendering 2D/3D graphics, gaming, overclocking, virtual machines, server, calculating pi, space heater
This list is far from conclusive, but it should give you a better idea of what hardware to look for and what each type of computer is capable of.
Green Computer Indicators
Unfortunately, there is no sure label that one can look at to tell how much energy each computer uses or even if one computer is better for the environment than another. However, that does not mean that there are no indicators.
Energy Star
Energy Star doesn't automatically mean that a product is good for the environment. It does mean that the product does adhere to a set of energy saving industry standards. However, pretty much every computer sold does follow some Energy Star standard. Just seeing the Energy Star symbol does not tell us much, but there is a grade to the standards. The latest versions of the standard to look for are Energy Star 4.0 and 5.0. Many desktop computers that achieve this standard are using very low energy or laptop hardware and energy saving building materials.
Green materials
Many computer manufacturers have started to advertise about using greener materials and manufacturing methods when building their computers. This can be anything from using less mercury and other toxic materials to use of less packaging. The energy and resources needed to produce a single computers is huge and anything companies can do to reduce waste is great. Consumers should encourage this and expect to see more of it in the future.
Just remember, try not to buy more computer than you need just to attain these greener materials. If you buy a too powerful computer, then the energy you waste in every day use may negate the environmental savings.
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