HP Aims to Cut PC Energy Use by 25 percent

Hewlett-Packard said Tuesday that it is aiming to cut the energy consumption of its desktops and notebooks by 25 percent by 2010.

The HP announcement, delivered at the Consumer Electronics Show, almost reads like it comes from an auto manufacturer trying to cut the miles per gallon requirements of its fleet.

Technology vendors are increasingly using their green IT initiatives to improve their standing in the market place. It’s becoming difficult to distinguish the marketing from the green technology reality. Indeed, HP touted the number of its products meeting gold and silver ratings under EPEAT (the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool).

What may be more interesting is how HP plans to get to its 25 percent energy reduction. HP said it plans to use more efficient power supplies and lower energy chip sets. That’s a no brainer. But HP also touted the Verdiem Surveyor remote power management agent. Surveyor can measure and manage PC and monitor energy consumption and reduce it accordingly. In plain English, the Surveyor turns off your gear when it’s not in use. Turning off your PC may do more than any fancy chip set will when it comes to energy consumption.

Source: blogs.zdnet.com/