TVs Shedding Watts, But Gain as Overall Power Hog from Longer Viewing Hours, More Sets
SAN DIEGO -- Despite continued power reductions in flat-panel TVs, TVs remain by far the biggest electricity hog in the average home, Tracy Peacock, 3M’s global marketing manager, told DisplaySearch’s Flat-Panel Display Conference Tuesday. Watt usage for the average 32-inch LCD TV has dropped to 45 today from more than 200 watts four years ago, Peacock said, and Energy Star standards have accelerated ahead of pace since they were first introduced in the fall of 2008. She noted that Energy Star 5.3 goes live in September and Energy Star 6.0 specs will be published in November.
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But those advances in energy efficiency have been offset by a “dramatic shift in consumers’ preference for higher performance, larger TVs and more TVs per home,” she said. Video games, Web connectivity and an increased number of channels and movie options have resulted in more hours in front of the TV, with North Americans now turning on their TVs more than eight hours per day, according to Nielsen data.
The industry is countering higher consumption with energy reduction programs like Energy Star to encourage consumers to buy lower-power TVs. To date, most energy labeling programs have been voluntary, although Australia and Japan instituted mandatory programs last year, Peacock said. This year there will be major shifts in the market and the three largest consumer TV markets -- North America, Europe and China -- are all adopting mandatory consumer labeling so when consumers are comparing specs and features while shopping for a TV, “they'll also be comparing energy efficiency,” she said.
Public reporting of energy consumption by TV brand is helping to drive consumer awareness, Peacock told us, and 3M is looking at helping to educate consumers about TV energy consumption through social media. She said consumer websites including Consortium of Energy Efficiency, CNET and Energy Star are available to allow consumers to monitor energy consumption by brand. Financial incentives to purchase lower consumption TVs, which began in California, are gaining traction, she said, and are being adopted in China this year.
3M’s role in the power reduction chain is multi-layer optical films that cut power consumption 32 percent by “recycling light,” Peacock said. She said the company works with “all major brands.” For emerging markets, the company is working on Power Over Ethernet solutions where residential infrastructures are being built from the ground up. The company is also developing a PC monitor solution that powers the monitor over USB, eliminating the need for extra components required for AC-DC conversion, a dedicated cord and related packaging. The design is said to deliver 43 percent power efficiency without sacrificing performance.