So how much energy does the internet use?
September 28, 2007
If you’ve ever wondered that, here’s your answer:
I've estimated the electricity consumption for the internet as follows: US: 350 billion kWh per year World: 868 billion kWh per year These numbers represent 9.4% of total US electricity consumption, and 5.3%of global electricity consumption. =========================================================== The breakout of the data is as follows: Annual Electricity Use for the Internet--US and World Category..........................US Consumption.......World Consumption.....................................Billion kWh........Billion kWh (1) Data Centers (includes cooling)......45.................112.5 (2) PCs&Monitors........................235.................588 (3) Modems/routers/etc...................67.................167 (4) Phone network.......................0.4...................1.0 TOTAL ELECTRICITY DEMAND ~350 billion kWh ~868 billionOF THE INTERNET ........................U.S.................World
Crikey! That’s a lot of power! Time to look for better more sustainable power supplies for PC’s? Perhaps we could all sit at our desks pedaling while we surf…
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