TV wattage surprise

[Mark J. Dulcey]

Scott R. Ehrlich wrote:
> In trying to save on energy consumption costs, I figured I'd look at my 
> computer electronic devices - I have an old 19 inch tube tv, 95 watts.   I 
> thought that was a lot.   I researched specs for some LCD tvs, and was 
> shocked when I couldn't really find any 32 to 40 inch displays below 130 
> watts!   The space for the tv has grown, so a larger tv would be 
> beneficial, but the tradeoff of a larger screen also means more power 
> draw, regardless of older tube-type or newer Energy-Star systems.
> 
> What have others done to battle this?  My tube tv won't last forever, and 
> when it does need to get replaced, it looks like I'll be consuming more 
> energy, for even more money - 700+ dollars for a larger display and 
> greater power consumption.  I won't be saving money anywhere!

You could buy a smaller LCD TV; they consume less power than the big 
models. You could look for a new model with LED backlighting; they 
consume less power than fluorescent backlights do. Finally, the specs 
give the peak power consumption with the brightness turned up all the 
way; the power consumption of a reasonably adjusted set in the real 
world will be lower, probably no worse than the 95 watts used by your 
existing set.