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View Full Version : Are netbooks.......green? (good for the planet)



user1397
November 1st, 2010, 05:08 AM
I just thought about this.

My mindset on computer hardware has always been the same up until very recently. I always had this thirst to have the latest hardware, the latest intel chips, the latest graphics card, etc

It was like a thirst that could not be quenched.

But recently, I bought a netbook and I have adapted to it so much that I think it has changed my mindset on computer hardware forever. I don't really need all that power in a desktop or high-end laptop (the most intensive stuff I ever did on my desktop anyways was play some 3d games...other than that, web browsing, office software, some image editing, etc)

A netbook fits my needs perfectly, and I suspect it fits the needs of most people (as in the average user), aka web browsing, office productivity, simple image editing, etc.

A desktop or high end laptop consume a lot more power than a netbook, plus it just seems like a waste of money, space, electricity, and power to have such powerful hardware when only 20% of it is used by the user.

What do you all think?

weasel fierce
November 1st, 2010, 05:24 AM
The majority of users really dont need much computing power.
Clicking on Chrome or openoffice wont go much faster whether you have 2 or 8 cores

TNT1
November 1st, 2010, 06:43 AM
The majority of users really dont need much computing power.
Clicking on Chrome or openoffice wont go much faster whether you have 2 or 8 cores

Yip.

I was using a friends Linkbook (Freescale PowerPC processor, 256 MB of RAM, 16GB flash storage) Was agonisingly slow for me, but she never has a problem...

Mr Bean
November 1st, 2010, 08:24 AM
Living in a shack in the woods is good for the planet. I wouldn't worry about it too much.

Being "green" also encompasses more than just energy usage. Consider for example:

1. cost to manufacture and transport
2. cost of disposal
3. efficiency (energy usage vs work done)
4. longevity (how long will the product last before you need to replace it)

I suspect that buying a netbook under the pretence of it being green is actually a rather poor decision in the grand scheme of things. Especially if you buy it in addition to a desktop computer. Seems to me that the "green" decision would be to not buy a netbook at all.

TNT1
November 1st, 2010, 08:38 AM
Being "green" also encompasses more than just energy usage. Consider for example:

1. cost to manufacture and transport
2. cost of disposal
3. efficiency (energy usage vs work done)
4. longevity (how long will the product last before you need to replace it)



Too true. When we had our kids we did the comparison along those lines of disposable nappies versus re-usable/cloth nappies... When you factor in the cost (monetary/environmental) of washing the cloth nappies, the disposables come very close in terms of overall impact.

The reality is that in going green, the calculations of the true costs of anything become very complex. We now make our own cleaning products/detergents/etc, grow our own vegetables, and so on...

Mr Bean
November 1st, 2010, 08:46 AM
I think an important question is not "what can I buy that is green?" but "what can I stop buying altogether?".

That side of things doesn't get much media attention though, as companies still have product to sell.

weasel fierce
November 1st, 2010, 08:49 AM
I think an important question is not "what can I buy that is green?" but "what can I stop buying altogether?".

That side of things doesn't get much media attention though, as companies still have product to sell.

I imagine the answer to the latter is a lot longer than people tend to suspect. Our economic systems are mostly based on people buying stuff they don't need or on a whim.

phen
November 1st, 2010, 08:58 AM
if you buy a netbook in addition to your desktop, its not a green decision but a decision to power the economy (as allready mentionend above), but if you want to replace your years old desktop, you could save up to 80%-90% of power consumption.

also, I think that such a decision could save many companies a lot of money. I remember hundreds of fully equipped dual core desktops running office and a browser and nothing else. Often those systems aren't powered off in the evenings.

A laptop like hardware could save lots of power, also because they offer better power saving options

TNT1
November 1st, 2010, 08:58 AM
I think an important question is not "what can I buy that is green?" but "what can I stop buying altogether?".

That side of things doesn't get much media attention though, as companies still have product to sell.

Exactly. See my previous post.

handy
November 1st, 2010, 09:04 AM
The corporations that make whatever product are where the action is:

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/toxics/electronics/how-the-companies-line-up/

lancest
November 1st, 2010, 10:32 AM
I just thought about this.

But recently, I bought a netbook and I have adapted to it so much that I think it has changed my mindset on computer hardware forever. I don't really need all that power in a desktop or high-end laptop
A netbook fits my needs perfectly, and I suspect it fits the needs of most people (as in the average user), aka web browsing, office productivity, simple image editing, etc.

A desktop or high end laptop consume a lot more power than a netbook, plus it just seems like a waste of money, space, electricity, and power to have such powerful hardware when only 20% of it is used by the user.

What do you all think?
Great post. Proud to be an independent minded netbook user.
Just differ a bit on emphasis. Economics is my focus. Still use desktops at home but netbooks outside.
With Linux you can run netbook CPU'S with great results. I abandoned buying expensive notebooks for netbooks. I run both ATOM and Neo with great results. Max out your memory, use Linux and you've got a valuable workhorse. My netbooks work well on projectors too using OSS drivers. Prefer MSI netbooks BTW.

Johnsie
November 1st, 2010, 11:08 AM
The atom chip is designed to be small and have low power consumption. However I would expect ARM processors to be even greener than an intel chip. ARM processor are already found in alot of mobile phones, ipads and tablets and are getting more powerful all the time. I think over the next year or so you will see alot more ARM-based portable computing units. This growth will be driven by Android tablets and netbooks as well as IOS which are starting to use these chips.

Shakz
November 1st, 2010, 09:18 PM
Cant help myself. I have a ted...
http://www.theenergydetective.com/
I have had mine for a couple of years now. I love it....my wife...prolly not so much.
I suggest everyone get something like it. It really has enlightened me.

My desktop quad core with 9800gtx + sitting idle uses around 200 watts. Normal usage (youtube, hulu, email etc) bumps that up to 350 watts.

Gaming on it WoW, Sims3, Minecraft pops that sucker up to around 400 - 450 watts.

My xps gaming laptop with wow/sims/minecraft tops out at 85watts. drops to 40 watts for normal websurfing.

My wifes 18 inch HP laptop uses about the same.

I also have a netbook for running around the house. Plugged up it uses around 25 watts. (thats the same as a nightlight mind you)

I have my old netbook eeePC 900 which I use as a home server. That plus the external drive plugged up to it for hosting videos etc. Even when its cranking out or in a torret maxes out a grand total of 15 watts.

Desktops are a gross waste of power....period. You cant beat a netbook or even high end laptop for significantly lowering your carbon footprint. At least if you compute as much as I do.

Knowing the power my household uses....it makes me cringe when my buddies at work talk about thier 8 core home server with 8 raided drives and 1000w power supply. After getting my TED I almost never use my desktop anymore and I make damned sure I turn it off when I am done using it.

After income tax its prolly getting replaced with a mac mini...duel booted of course ;)

user1397
November 2nd, 2010, 04:26 PM
Living in a shack in the woods is good for the planet. I wouldn't worry about it too much.

Being "green" also encompasses more than just energy usage. Consider for example:

1. cost to manufacture and transport
2. cost of disposal
3. efficiency (energy usage vs work done)
4. longevity (how long will the product last before you need to replace it)

I suspect that buying a netbook under the pretence of it being green is actually a rather poor decision in the grand scheme of things. Especially if you buy it in addition to a desktop computer. Seems to me that the "green" decision would be to not buy a netbook at all.
well yes i meant having a netbook as your sole computer, and trying to keep it as long as you can...

fatality_uk
November 2nd, 2010, 07:45 PM
Lets not forget the indium, lithium, bismuth, ruthenium, platinum, nickel, gold and plenty of other metals that are used in the production of a laptop. PC's are not really green as such.

That said, the fact that netbooks use a lot less energy over a lifecycle does give it greener credentials than say a standard laptop

juancarlospaco
November 2nd, 2010, 08:06 PM
They are Green, also avaliable on other colors...

MasterNetra
November 2nd, 2010, 08:17 PM
Unfortunately I doubt we can have a truly green society while using currency? In order to maintain a healthy financial economy people must spend money, the more that is spent the better the economy. If people aren't spending companies and such cannot obtain the money required to employ their workers or themselves forcing more and more people into unemployment. Currency bad for us, but of course until someone comes up with at least a acceptable alternative to use in its place its a crap heap we are stuck with. :/
But in regards to just netbooks verses Desktops & Laptops I suppose if it uses less energy, takes less resources to make and last at least nearly as long as the desktops & laptops then its most certainly the "greener" choice.