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New gen Consoles costs Americans $1 billion annually in power consumption.

ijKs Snow
By ijKs Snow
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http://finance.yahoo.com/news/video-game-consoles-could-cost-americans--400-million-a-year-%E2%80%94-when-we-aren-t-even-using-them-203733603.html

 

Not sure if it was already posted here in the forums, but I couldn't find it.

 

The new gen consoles (XbOne, PS4, Wii U) is costing about $1 billion annually in power costs, but that isn't the main point.

 

Interestingly enough, almost half ($400 million) is being spent on stand-by mode for these consoles.

 

Da fuq? I assumed these consoles would act like PC hibernation/sleep modes when not used, but I guess my assumption was way off.

 

Xbox is leading the pack on energy consumption in stand-by mode. It's roughly consuming 240 kWh annually, with PS4 behind it with ~180 kWh. Wii U (obviously) uses much less power then these 2 consoles coming in last with 37 kWh.

 

Even MORE interesting is, these new gen consoles are consuming more power then high-end laptops during HD video streaming.

 

The PC industry is going towards energy efficiency, but it seems this gen's consoles took the opposite path.

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That's x86 for you.

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I wonder how much power cryptocurrency mining takes.

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I'm really surprised, since these are using GCN architecture processors which presumably have ZeroCore tech. Even the 7970 would idle at 15W (source).

 

Seems like it's the hardware additions and software Microsoft and Sony developed that are causing the trouble.

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That's x86 for you.

more like shitty design by sony and MS, standby on those thing must be just turn off the display and dim the lights, i really doubt the use of x86 chips is the cause, seems more like bad power management in their OS's  

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they are probably a hell of a lot more power efficient than your average at idle, so i don't see why people are complaining.

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they are probably a hell of a lot more power efficient than your average at idle, so i don't see why people are complaining.

 

Most likely because $1 billion sounds like a big number and they have no way of putting it into perspective. 

 

I'll bet more than $1 billion is wasted on cellphone chargers that are left plugged into the wall when not used. Not that I unplug them, just saying. Most people don't even realize that a power supply still draws power when OFF, not just at idle/standby. I don't feel like shutting my gaming PC down right now to get numbers... but I have a J1800 build with a 80w power supply that draws 25w at load, 15w at idle, and 1.5w when the system is turned off but still plugged in.

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they are probably a hell of a lot more power efficient than your average at idle, so i don't see why people are complaining.

The article shows how inefficient it is at idle.. which is why people are complaining.

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That's x86 for you.

You mean AMD. Intel idle power on their highest power stuff is tiny. They beat ARM in effciency north of 3 W.

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Hey, at least the Wii U is winning in one field... Low energy consumption... Yay...

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The PC industry is going towards energy efficiency, but it seems this gen's consoles took the opposite path.

 

R9-295X2...

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I wonder how much power cryptocurrency mining takes.

I would imagine a lot more than this.

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Hey, at least the Wii U is winning in one field... Low energy consumption... Yay...

I disagree, Wii U has the best games.

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What a waste of power

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I disagree, Wii U has the best games.

Nuh uhhh I love to play COD refreshes at 30fps on a 50inch 720p TV on 2 sticks. I love the experience. More like #unnecesarilyhighgraphicsrace

On a serious note, I don't know if the parents would necessarily realize that the extra money they're paying was for their child's xbox or ps. Not trying to defend ms or Sony, ACTUAL power saving commands would be pretty nice, not just a button to dim your tv

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