Save money by buying energy efficiently

Good advice on savings

• Use the Purchasing Guidelines. The Trust’s Purchasing Guidelines are your guide to energy efficient purchasing and operation.
• Purchase monitors with the Energy Saving Label Reduce your electricity bill by up to EUR 135 over a monitor’s lifetime by choosing a product displaying the Energy Saving Label.
• Go for flat screen monitors. You can save up to 50% by replacing your old CRT monitor with a new flat screen model.
• Install power management features. You can set the monitor’s power management features to switch from active to sleep when you are not using it.
• Use your finger – switch off the monitor. Switch off the monitor if you have not used it for some time. Switching the monitor on and off several times per day will not damage it.
• Connect an AutoPowerOff. An AutoPowerOff plug bank automatically switches off your monitor when you turn off your computer.

Typical savings

• Switch from CRT monitor to flat screen: Save 50% or more
• The best flat screens use less than half the power of the worst
• Choose a monitor with the Energy Saving Label: Save up to EUR 135 over its lifetime

Choose a flat screen
Advantages:

• Flat screens with an adjustable base make it easier to adjust the screen to the optimal viewing angle.
• Screen size equates to the size of the visible image whereas the visible image on a CRT monitor is often 1 inch less.
• Picture quality is better, and remains constant over its lifetime.
• Low levels of electro magnetic radiation and static electricity.
• Better indoor climate in warm periods, because a flat screen radiates less heat into the room.

Disadvantage:

• Some flat screens do not have sufficiently fast refresh rates for gaming. However, it is possible to find suitable flat screens with fast refresh rates if you need one.

Install power management features, and save electricity
The power management feature of your monitor optimises your savings by letting the monitor revert to sleep or by switching it off when it’s not in use.

• Set the monitor to sleep when you are not using it.
  The monitor can be set to sleep mode when not in use, instead of having to switch it on and off completely.
• Let the power management feature take care of this for you.
• If the power management feature is not activated to switch off the monitor when you are not using it, then turn it off yourself. Switching the monitor on and off several times per day will not damage it.

AutoPowerOff turns everything off the moment you switch off your computer
An AutoPowerOff plug bank ensures that your monitor is switched off when you power down your computer. You can connect all your extra equipment to the plug bank. Apart from the monitor, these can include peripherals such as a scanner and printer, etc.