[size=16pt]PCSTATS Investigated The Fact That websites with black background save energy[/size]


Read a summary of the results below. The full link is at text bottom.

Is the search page, Blackle.com, really an energy efficient alternative to Google? The theory is websites with black background save energy. That claim is based on an assumption that "a given monitor requires more power to display a white (or light) screen than a black (or dark) screen. Is this a blatant green washed marketing ploy, or an earnest energy saving tweak for something we use every day?

To find out, PCSTATS hooked up an Extech Power Analyzer to a 19" CRT and a 19" LCD. One explorer window, set to full screen (1280x1024) was opened to each of the following websites. Blackle's claims appear to hold water, although the difference is just 17.7W and 3.8W for CRT and LCD respectively. What that adds up to over the course of a year, for every second you spend doing a search on Google is anyone's guess.

The resulting monitor power consumption to display a webpage fluctuated as shown below:

---------------19" CRT ADI Microscan-------19" LCD Samsung 192MP
Google.com------83.5 Watts ----------------38.6 Watts
Blackle.com-----65.8 Watts---------------- 34.8 Watts
PCSTATS.com-----76.2 Watts-----------------37.8 Watts

Testing the internet: where monitor power consumption is potentially wasted

Expanding on the Blackle.com vs. Google.com question further, how many website designers out there have considered the electrical impact of their creations on monitor power consumption? Few, I'd wager. PCSTATS certainly never considered this...

Before comparing Google vs. Blackle we wouldn't have thought that the colours used in web design would have a significant impact on energy consumed by the display device. Yet faced with the lower energy useage that Blackle.com proves is possible with crafty use of dull dark colours and stationary images, we got to wondering. What is the carbon footprint of some of the most popular websites out there? How about websites that focus on environmentally friendly design, products, lifestyles and energy sources? Are there websites which disseminate this timely and important information using an power sensitive colour scheme?

Link: http://www.pcstats.com/articleview.cfm?articleID=2649