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Televisions: If you are planning to purchase a new LCD or Plasma television, choosing an LCD model will be up to 35% more energy efficient for any given screen size than its plasma equivalent. LCD televisions use fluorescent backlighting to produce images and they require substantially less power to operate than plasma screens which use a lot of electricity to light each individual pixel you see on a screen - even the dark ones.
It has been estimated that TVs account for 9% of household energy (source: www.treehugger.com) yet demand for large Plasma and LCD TVs is huge with the average UK household now owning 3 TVs. The lack of energy efficiency within the TV market is a sign that consumers still aren’t aware of the environmental cost these enormous TVs carry with them. The old style Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) televisions used around 3.4 watts per screen inch while modern plasma televisions use 9.4 watts per screen inch, this lack of efficiency coupled with the larger nature of modern TVs indicates how a lack of environmental concern within the industry has lead to the sharp difference between CRT consumption (211 watts) and modern plasma consumption (339 watts) (souce: Cnet reviews). However when comparing the two competing modern technologies, LCD and Plasma it is clear that LCDs offer better energy efficiency although they generally tend to be smaller is size so comparisons can be difficult.
A recent vote by the European Union means that the current energy rating labels will be replaced by a new system in 2011 for fridges and freezers although they voted to not introduce the system for Televisions sold in the European Union. This leaves any comparisons on efficiency between TVs up to the consumer although many sites will help simplify the process through their own testing.
Simple steps such as turning off your TV at the wall instead of standby can help cut you energy bill and it has been estimated that £915 million is wasted by people leaving electronics on standby and not turning them off. A range of products are available on the market to help stop energy being wasted on standby, these “standby savers” are designed to stop your electronic equipment from drawing power while on standby mode. A range of products are available on the market and should all help save some money off your electricity bill, although there is a great deal of difference in the features included, such as exempt sockets and remote controls.C
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