Every day it seems that another product comes out in a green version. Green cleansers, green homes - even green cars. Not surprisingly, PCs have gone green, too. And none too soon: PCs are energy hogs. The 180 million computers Americans use each year account for 2% of the country's energy consumption. And up to 30% of that energy gets dissipated as nothing more than heat. You don't need a physics degree to see that PCs are big energy wasters.
In today's eco-conscious world, PC makers are developing more environmentally friendly systems. But just what makes a PC green? There's no single answer, because there's really no standard, but in general, green PCs:
- Have power supplies that use energy more efficiently.
- Have power supplies and processors that consume less energy to begin with.
- Eliminate or minimize environmentally harmful components.
- Use plastic or aluminum parts made from post-consumer recycled material.
That's good news for the environment - and for you, too: You'll have a wider variety of green systems to choose from, and they'll cost you less to run. (To see just how much less, use this calculator.)
Of PCs and Power Energy efficiency is the biggest factor in making a PC green. The easiest way to spot a power-thrifty computer is to look for an Energy Star label. That's the same Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seal of approval you look for when you buy an air conditioner or refrigerator. For PCs, that label means more now than it ever has: In 2007, for the first time in 15 years, the EPA strengthened its efficiency standards for PCs (you'll find the new standards here). To qualify for an Energy Star label today, PCs must:
For example, to be Energy Star - certified, a PC's power supply must convert 80% of its AC power into the DC current that runs the computer. The EPA calls this its "80 Plus" standard, and it's an improvement over the earlier standard of 65% efficiency. |  |
More than 1,000 desktop and notebook PCs conform to these new standards. Before you shop, check out the list of compliant products here. Toxic Parts The most important thing that goes into a green PC is what doesn't go into it - parts made with harmful metals and petrochemical-based ingredients bearing cryptic names like hexavalent chromium and polybrominated biphenyl. Once these components reach landfills, their toxic elements can leach into water supplies. Manufacturers are looking for replacement materials, including lead- and halogen-free motherboards and lead-free processors, memory, hard drives, and DVD drives. Chip maker Intel, for example, found a way to eliminate lead from all future processors. |  |
Unless you start disassembling PCs on store shelves, a practice retailers tend to discourage, you'll have a hard time identifying systems with environmentally safe innards. That's where the Green Electronics Council comes in. The council, a consortium of business and environmental groups, rates the eco-safety of PCs using a standard called the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT, pronounced "e-pete").
EPEAT identifies 51 categories of environmental friendliness for PCs - everything from how much environmentally safe material they include to their use of toxin-free packaging - and rates the products accordingly.
To qualify for EPEAT's entry-level bronze certification, for example, products have to meet 23 criteria, including Energy Star certification, 65% recycled material, and an end-of-life disposal program (easy disassembly of parts to facilitate recycling, for example). |
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To further encourage manufacturers to green up, EPEAT offers two higher levels of certification. Products that meet up to 28 additional environmental goals can achieve silver or gold recognition. Some of these goals take their cue from those at the bronze level - requiring 90% recyclable materials instead of 65%, for example - while others are new, like using toxin-free plastic parts. You can search for PCs that meet any of the three levels of EPEAT certification here.
Off-the-Shelf Green PCs
| Apple has been among the most aggressive manufacturers
on the nontoxic front, pledging to eliminate PVC (polyvinyl chloride), flame retardants, and arsenic from its products by
the end of 2008. Other manufacturers have set similar, if less immediate, goals. In fact, these days almost every new PC comes with a green pitch. There's HP, whose new Energy Star - compliant models produce less heat, reduce cooling energy by 15% to 30%, and use up to 75% less energy in sleep mode. HP also plans to boost the energy efficiency of its products by at least another 40% by 2011. PC maker Lenovo has 42 EPEAT-approved models and claims that, at 90% recyclable, its A61e ThinkCentre is "one of the greenest PCs in the world." |
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And Dell says its future PCs "are being designed to consume up to 25% less energy by 2010 relative to systems offered today." It's been prototyping desktop models that are as small as paperback novels. Dell has even been known to launch tree-planting campaigns, and it plans to make its operations carbon neutral by the end of 2008.
As You Shop
Even if you make no conscious effort to shop smartly, your next computer will most likely be greener than those in use now. But with a few extra steps, you can achieve savings that will help your computer pay for itself over its lifespan (especially if energy costs keep rising) and support earth-friendly computing at the same time:
- Only consider PCs on the EPEAT list.
- Look for cases and parts made from recyclable aluminum, steel, or plastic.
- Don't buy more computing power than you need - you'll save both energy and money.
Sidebar 1: Green Around the Edges: Energy-Savvy Peripherals
So have you bought your solar-powered backpack yet? How about those speakers crafted from hemp? As the green lifestyle becomes a multibillion-dollar business, marketers are rushing to provide gadgets and gizmos that have at least a patina of eco-friendliness. Unfortunately, those products often fall flat. Last year, for example, all the eco-blogs lit up with excitement over the news of an impending "bamboo laptop." As it turned out, the computer, which looked like it came straight from Gilligan's Island, was a regular laptop covered with a bamboo laminate affixed with a very non-green epoxy. Oh, well.
Peripherals
When you shop for a new monitor, look for the same EPEAT certifications described for PCs - EPEAT measures the earth-friendliness of monitors just as it does for PCs. Manufacturers can use only a specified amount of mercury in their displays to qualify for bronze certification, for example - and even lower amounts for higher certification. You can run a search for EPEAT - compliant monitors before you shop.
The $50 HYmini taps wind power to charge your gadgets. An optional ($9) strap lets you mount the HYmini
on bicycle handlebars.
The EPA Energy Star label isn't just for computers, either. You'll also find it on printers, scanners, monitors, fax machines, and even the external power adapters that recharge your cell phone. Search the list of compliant products when you're ready to shop, or look for the Energy Star logo as you browse the shelves - it's the easiest way to know you're on the right track.
Gadgets
When shopping for greenish gadgets, seek out devices that generate a bit of power, not just those that consume less of it. Cell phone addicts, for example, can make good use of the Solio range of solar chargers ($80 to $200). Just a couple of hours of sunlight provide enough juice to bring your dead cell phone or MP3 player back to life.
HYmini ($50) can do the same, but with wind as its power source. This handheld wind turbine turns 20 minutes of a stiff breeze into 40 minutes of music, 4 minutes of cell phone talk time, or 20 digital camera shots.
Need help carrying it all around? There are dozens of solar bags and backpacks to choose from, some more chic than others. Check out NoonSolar for style ($270 to $475), Voltaic for school ($199 to $599), and Reware for the beach ($200 to $300). Each bag has a built-in battery that stores solar energy for all your portable devices.
All these gadgets are great alternatives to external power adapters that draw power 24/7 (feel them - they're warm!). To get a sense of the ever-increasing scope of the green gadget marketplace, visit a few Web sites that specialize in finding the coolest new toys. Try Great Green Gadgets, Inhabitat, or the misleadingly named Hippyshopper.
Sidebar 2: Buying Green When Your PC Isn't
If you're planning to stick with your older, non-green PC for a few more years, or if you have no choice but to buy a superpowerful water cooled dual-processor behemoth (gamers, you know who you are), there are ways to go green without saying goodbye to the computer you know and love.
Replace Your Old Monitor
Recycle your old CRT (tube) monitor right away. For about $200, a 17-inch flat-screen LCD model uses half the energy of a 17-inch tube monitor. It also generates far less heat, takes up less space, and is much easier on your eyes (there's no flicker). With prices for decent-sized models under $200, flat-screen monitors, which draw 40 watts of power rather than the 80 watts of CRTs, will pay for themselves in reduced energy costs over time. You save around $30 a year and relieve eye strain at the same time.
Buy the Right Printer (and Print Less)
GreenPrint World's a free - and well-designed - printing utility. It omits wasteful pages (indicated
in red; you double-click to override), and lets you refine page printouts by right-clicking.
According to the Columbia University Guide to Green Computing, if the paper used each year for personal computing were laid end to end, it would circle the Earth more than 800 times. Yikes! Make sure the printer you choose can handle double-sided printing, so you use less paper each time you print. Print drafts on scrap paper. Print more efficiently, perhaps with the help of a free software utility like GreenPrint World, which analyzes what you're about to print and reformats it for maximum paper coverage while eliminating annoying one-line runovers. GreenPrint even keeps a running tally of how much paper you're saving. While you're at it, consider buying an all-in-one device to replace your scanner, fax machine, copier, and printer with a single energy-saving unit.
Use USB-Powered Devices
Everyone loves cordless mice, but they require toxin-filled batteries to operate. At the very least, use rechargeable batteries. You can replenish them many more times than standard batteries before they stop holding a charge. If you don't mind a cord, get a USB powered mouse that gets its juice from your already-powered computer. And look around for other USB-powered devices, like small speakers and low-power external hard drives.
Take Advantage of Corporate Recycling Policies
Seek out manufacturers and stores that support recycling. Dell offers recycling for any brand of computer, keyboard, mouse, monitor, or printer for $36; it recycles Dell-branded products for free. Lexmark has innovative recycling programs, including an offer to recycle your old printer for free when you buy a new Lexmark. HP offers computer and peripheral recycling for $17 to $46.
Staples offers $3 in-store rewards when you recycle a Dell, HP, or Lexmark ink cartridge and recycles old equipment for a $10 fee. Best Buy has recycling kiosks for batteries and ink cartridges in every store, and it's testing a free electronics recycling program at 117 stores in eight states.
Developed for PC.com by O'Reilly Media's Missing Manuals division.
