Energy Star PCs Help Environment, Not Bottom Line

Buying Energy Star PCs helps the environment, but the EPA’s new energy-efficiency requirements won’t save companies money, Information Week reports.

According to the article, the EPA estimates a company can save $2 to $10 a year in electricity running an Energy Star PC. Assume the typical lifecycle for a business PC is three years-so you’re saving $6 to $30 lifetime. Manufacturers tell the EPA the new power supplies will add about $30 to the cost of PCs. “So you’re lucky to break even. Even stretching the life cycle to five years, the median savings of $30 is about break-even.”

The EPA thinks the price of those more efficient power supplies will fall with bulk orders. It also estimates Energy Star PCs will save companies and individuals $1.8 billion in energy costs the next five years.

In March, Hewlett-Packard released the first business PCs configurable to meet the hardware standards of Energy Star 4.0.

Also in March, Intel released an implementation guide, developed with the EPA, to help PC manufacturers and system integrators deliver ENERGY STAR-qualified PCs based on Intel microprocessors and other system components.