Letters to the Editor
-
Don't dump that monitor early!
While tweaking Web sites to reduce energy consumption is a funky, fun idea, needlessly upgrading your computer monitor isn't.
Monitors are lead-filled recycling disasters; keeping them out of the waste stream as long as possible is a good thing, even if they use more electricity. Considering the tiny total percentage of American electricity used by computer monitors, this is one area where holding onto the old, wasteful model for as long as possible is better for the environment.
Swapping that 1995 Olds for a Prius might make eco-sense; dumping a 2004 CRT monitor for an EnergyStar flat-panel might not.
-
The Consumer Conundrum
While I agree in theory I think you need to consider other factors in the overall equation. Those CRT monitors, if they avoid the landfill, will probably be shipped to some overseas locale for "recycling," an effort that will consume an inordinate amount of energy in itself, and expose probably third-world workers and their land to the hazardous chemicals that result from "e-waste". Secondly, the origin of manufacture for those energy efficient LCDs will most likely be China, where further environmental degradation is likely, and will also consume more resources (although somewhat less this time around than their CRT predecessors) to get them to the welcoming arms of U.S. consumers who think they're being "green."
-
Salon's background color?
You do know that Salon's background color is white, right? :)
-
how about low power processors too?
The monitor (CRT or otherwise) uses a fat chunk of power, but so too does the processor of a modern computer. Indeed, we've been on the wrong side of a power law for several generations of Intel processors now, with us actually getting fewer instructions per watt of power than we used to. Modern processors are using 80 watts or more, equivalent (all by themselves) of a 19 inch CRT. It's time for computer manufacturers to start printing the power drain of their CPUs on their packaging and in their literature, and to also clearly express info such as millions of instructions per watt of power (MIPs/watt) - this would allow potential green consumers to make better decisions. Most of the CPU power in a modern Windows computer is wasted on Norton Internet Security anyway - so if someone were instead to buy a lower-energy PowerPC-based Macintosh (I know - they aren't made anymore - but you can get them used and they have a great MIPs/watt rating and don't require CPU-wasting anti-virus software) then perhaps Intel and AMD would have a greater incentive to produce lower-wattage processors.
By the way, though I have no interest in ponies, I built my own solar hot water system and replaced my CRTs with LCD screens. But I gave up my Prius because its relatively-weak energy efficiency and the impact of its manufacture rendered it ecologically (and financially!) less prudent than the 1996 Honda Civic I got for $3000 on eBay. The planet is served better by the strategic use of used equipment!
-
Of course...
Replacing a few incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescents would save more power than either your computer or your monitor use in a day.
-
Lovely thought...
...but impractical for those of us who don't have hundreds of dollars to blow on a new screen. I've been wanting an LCD screen for years, but I haven't had that kind of spare change for at least a decade. (My current monitor is a used one that a friend gave me when my original one - eight years old already - finally blew its porch light.)
I know the price of these things goes down over time, but a hell of a lot of people simply can't shell out a thousand dollars for a gizmo. Not even $300 (which is where the cheapest LCD screens stand now, at my last check). We're the folks that have a hard time making the rent, and I for one spend my share of time worrying about what will happen when my screen (or hard drive or processor or whatever) stops working and I can't supplement my income on the web anymore.
The day the computer companies stop making themselves filthy rich and start pricing their products more reasonably is the day you'll see large numbers of people making this kind of switch for energy reasons. Until then, the talk of "green" computing will be something folks with money can indulge in. The rest of us have a hard enough time just keeping our machines from dying at all.
-
I realize I am rich, but...
You know LCD monitors are actually pretty cheap these days. You can get a 19" LCD for about $160. I paid close to $500 for mine a few years ago.
But I agree that replacing your monitor proably doesn't make sense given the enironmental costs of getting rid of the DRT. I still have my old 17" CRT collecting dust in my closet.
-
Just buy the LCD!
If you take a quick look at any technology bargain websites, you will find a 17" LCD for $100-$120 within seconds.
If you use your monitor for ~6 hours a day, an LCD will pay for itself over the course of 5 years.
The following analysis seems accurate except for its electricity cost per kwh -- electricity in the Bay Area is roughly twice as expensive, so the monitor pays for itself in 5 years rather than 10.
http://www.google.com/answers/threadview?id=1082
-
Recycling concerns
Some readers seem to have gotten the wrong idea from various journalistic exposes of shoddy electronics recycling practices, and have concluded that old CRTs should be kept in use, or at least in your garage.
That's a crock.
If your monitors are still working, then you can donate them to e.g. Goodwill for reuse in schools, where they'll do a lot more good than they will in your garage.
Also, many major computer companies will take back their products and process their e-waste responsibly:
http://www.epa.gov/epaoswer/hazwaste/recycle/ecycling/donate.htm
And there are a number of recyclers in California and elsewhere who promise to keep all e-waste local.
"These materials do NOT end up in overseas landfills nor are they burned."
http://www.unwaste.com/company-services.php
-
Real Geek Analysis
Upgrade from your CRT to an LCD? Wait! What is the energy cost of manufacturing and delivering the LCD? What is the energy cost of disposing of the CRT?
A real geek would figure out the trade off and determine if the energy savings are greater than running the CRT to end of life.
Alas, I'm not a real geek and can't give you an answer or guidelines.