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[CTLance]

NRDC ("The Natural Resources Defense Council") confirms what we've all known before.

A recent NRDC study about power usage of gaming consoles, aptly dubbed "Lowering the Cost of Play - Improving Energy Efficiency of Video Game Consoles" goes into great detail how much power a 360, PS3 or Wii sucks out of the outlet when playing a game, watching a movie, idling, folding, and all the other modes. As expected, Wii sports the best numbers.

Old news? Maybe. Some of the NPD numbers are certainly a bit dated, among other things. Still, it's an interesting read, and there are purty charts to be had. The data may be interesting or new for some of us.

Article here

Today, more than 40 percent of all homes in the United States contain at least one video game console. Recognizing that all that gaming could add up to serious demand for electricity, NRDC and Ecos Consulting performed the first ever comprehensive study on the energy use of video game consoles and found that they consumed an estimated 16 billion kilowatt-hours per year -- roughly equal to the annual electricity use of the city of San Diego. Through the incorporation of more user-friendly power management features, we could save approximately 11 billion kWh of electricity per year, cut our nation's electricity bill by more than $1 billion per year, and avoid emissions of more than 7 million tons of CO2 each year. In this November 2008 issue paper, NRDC provides recommendations for users, video game console manufacturers, component suppliers and the software companies that design games for improving the efficiency of video game consoles already in homes as well as future generations of machines yet to hit the shelves.

Report PDF here
Fact sheet PDF here

Sample images/quotes:

A Sony PlayStation 3 or Microsoft Xbox 360 left on 24 hours per day, seven days per week will consume as much electricity each year as two new refrigerators.

(Wii has its own fridge-related troubles though...)

During game play, the Nintendo Wii uses one-seventh as much power as the Sony PlayStation 3 and one-ninth as much power as the Microsoft Xbox 360. Each console does, however, offer a different set of features and a different game play experience.

Old NPD data is old. This report took some time, it seems.

(R:FoM4, it's just too good to let it idle)

Disclaimer:
Fatal error: Allowed memory size of 201326592 bytes exhausted (tried to allocate 83 bytes) in /var/gaf-sites/ga-forum.com/upload/includes/functions.php on line 63

 

[Orlics]

Interesting if you're into power

 

[RobertM]

Interesting if you're into power

Lol GameCube and Wii.

 

[Haunted]

Interesting if you're into power

or consumption.


Yeah, results as expected/known.

Disclaimer:
Fatal error: Allowed memory size of 201326592 bytes exhausted (tried to allocate 83 bytes) in /var/gaf-sites/ga-forum.com/upload/includes/functions.php on line 63

One of the more creative "I searched, lock if old" variants I've seen. :lol

 

[ThatObviousUser]

360 is a beast.

Wii... practically doesn't even exist.

 

[Barrett2]

PS3 wins!!

 

[a Master Ninja]

One more reason to buy the 360 version of multiplatform games.:lol

 

[Haunted]

PS3 wins!!

Year of the PS3 continues!

 

[CTLance]

Oh yeah, I am in no way affiliated with NRDC, I just saw this on /. and thought it might be neat to have. I was undecided whether to post this here or in the OT, to be honest.

Interesting if you're into power

Some of us just like playing with it.

 

[morlock]

Wat?

PS3 2007 uses more power in idle than active mode?

Wonder what the power usage is with the new 65/65 model.

 

[Hcoregamer00]

I don't get it, what model consoles did they use?

It would make sense if we got a reference.

After all, the PS3 is like this
1. 20, 60, 80 gig models 90nm CPU/90nm GPU
2. 40 gig model 65nm CPU/90nm GPU
3. 80 gig (sans BC)/ Uncharted Bundle 65nm CPU/65nm GPU

Between the first and the second one is a huge power difference while the difference between the second and the third is fairly small.

Wat?

PS3 2007 uses more power in idle than active mode?

Wonder what the power usage is with the new 65/65 model.

Ahem, here is what I found online a while back.

80GB PS3 Core -

* XMB idle - 111.9 watts
* DVD playback - 126.0 watts
* Game (MGS4) - 130.0 watts

40GB PS3 Core -

* XMB idle - 125.8 watts
* DVD playback - 141.2 watts
* Game (MGS4) - 155.2 watts

80GB PS3 MGS4 Bundle -

* XMB idle - 180 watts
* Bluray Playback - 182 watts
* DVD playback - 197 watts
* Game (MGS4) - 200 watts

 

[borsdy]

PS3 wins!!

buhahah

 

[PhoncipleBone]

PS3 wins!!

By drawing more money from your wallet with the larger electricity bill.

 

[CTLance]

I don't get it, what model consoles did they use?

Thou shalt read thy fornicating article, for it is full of info.

As I said, the data seems to be kind of old. But whatever.

 

[blu]

i find the very notion of an electronic toy sucking > 100W power laughable.

 

[CTLance]

i find the very notion of an electronic toy sucking > 100W power laughable.

I agree. Still...

It's the fun that counts. Just look at the PC guys with the 500+Watt PSUs.

 

[2 Minutes Turkish]

ok ok hold on.

The newer PS3s consume MORE power in idle mode than when they're on? what the fuck?

Resitance 4 is is out!!!?!?!11

So MS' new slogan should be "Buy a 360, it'll save you money". :lol

 

[Link]

360 is a beast.

Wii... practically doesn't even exist.

The industry parallels are amazing.

 

[DeadGzuz]

So they used old PS3s, how lame.

 

[Wollan]

Numbers are from 2007.

You don't see the consumption the consoles have today (and 2008 has been pretty important when it comes to all of this. The PS3 today uses 65nm tech for both CPU & GPU in the latest models).

Old PS3's had 90nm for both CPU, GPU + BC chipset
(Oct 2007) 40GB PS3's had 65nm for CPU, 90nm for GPU
Latest 80GB PS3's has 65nm for both CPU, GPU
Sony have started mass producing 45nm CPU's for next year

 

[Jaded Alyx]

Nintendo Super Nintendo

 

[ThatObviousUser]

The industry parallels are amazing.

More like perpindiculars for that analogy.

 

[Link]

More like perpindiculars for that analogy.

I know what I said.

 

[CTLance]

Aside from the occcasional newb or the few nutcases with too much money most of us are likely still using our first-gen hardware revisions. We're talking consoles here, not PCs. So in that context, it might still be good data. I agree though, the supplied data is kind of old.

 

[ThatObviousUser]

I know what I said.

Me too.

 

[CosmicGroinPull]

PS3 Powaahhhhh

 

[Hcoregamer00]

Man, the Wii sure is an electric lightweight.

Is Nintendo going 65nm on the machine also for GPU/CPU?

 

[brain_stew]

That really reinforces my respect for the Gamecube's design. How Nintendo came close to matching the Xbox with 1/4 the size and roughly 1/3 of the power draw and cost of the Xbox is mindnlowing. Its definitely the most efficiently designed console there's ever been imo.

 

[MiamiWesker]

Thats why I always turn off my PS3 on the back. I might as well leave it on if I am going to put it on standby.

 

[watership]

That really reinforces my respect for the Gamecube's design. How Nintendo came close to matching the Xbox with 1/4 the size and roughly 1/3 of the power draw and cost of the Xbox is mindnlowing. Its definitely the most efficiently designed console there's ever been imo.

Is that really that big of an achievement? The original Xbox was built with off-the-shelf PC parts and had a full sized dvd drive and hard drive. As hardware went it was incredibly unoptimized. It's not really hard to be more efficient with a specifically designed device.

 

[blu]

Is that really that big of an achievement? The original Xbox was built with off-the-shelf PC parts and had a full sized dvd drive and hard drive. As hardware went it was incredibly unoptimized.

how does an inefficient design excuse the product? also, you make it sound as if ms shopped at direct surplus for their supplies. poor design or not, it was an embedded system, was designed and produced as such, and was serving a particular purpose.

It's not really hard to be more efficient with a specifically designed device.

it's freaking damn hard to be power efficient - every new console architecture has to go through a bunch of iterations before it becomes commonly accepted as 'efficient' (see the ps2->pstwo evolution). and yet the gamecube architecture was efficient from the get go. as of today it's on a plane of its own wrt efficientcy.

 

[D.Lo]

That really reinforces my respect for the Gamecube's design. How Nintendo came close to matching the Xbox with 1/4 the size and roughly 1/3 of the power draw and cost of the Xbox is mindnlowing. Its definitely the most efficiently designed console there's ever been imo.

Not to mention manufactured incredible cheaply yet was by far the most reliable. It was an engineering marvel, sadly ignored by the same people who now claim they want 'the most hardware power per dollar'.

 

[scitek]

The Wii is just an evolution in design from the GameCube. It's quite a feat IMO that it's as small as it is yet it's twice as powerful. Would that not make it even more efficient than the GameCube?

 

[blu]

The Wii is just an evolution in design from the GameCube. It's quite a feat IMO that it's as small as it is yet it's twice as powerful. Would that not make it even more efficient than the GameCube?

wii is both notably more powerful, and notably less power-drawing than the cube. so yes, it's way more efficient than the cube.