LCD Energy Consumption

You’ve obviously heard that LCDs are more energy efficient than those old CRT monitors. What you probably don’t know is why, or even by how much.  Technology has come a long way. LCD monitors are smaller, better for your eyes and produce less heat. Better technology also means better energy use (and that often means less energy use).

Let’s look at the backlights in LCD screens. The pixels that make up the image are part of the screen, which means that they don’t take up the energy being used. The backlight is doing most of the heavy lifting. This means you can have a better resolution screen without the increase in energy consumption.

How about side effects of the power usage? Old CRT screens run hot. LCD produces a lot less heat, so you don’t waste money cooling your computer room. LCD screens can save up 2/3 more energy than the old CRT screens, which is a substantial amount. While the actual savings might not seem that fantastic right now, long term you’ll be saving money and quite a bit of energy.

Right now LCD screens are your best bet in terms of energy conservation. Newer technologies, such as plasma screens use more energy. On the bright side, as technology has advanced your options in LCD screens have also gotten better. LCD screens even come in HD now.