While there are many things we can do to reduce our carbon footprint, something many of us use every day, a laptop, is a good place to start. Becoming green is a large task. Don’t bite off more than you can chew. Start small and add more green habits slowly so they become a way of life, rather than another task to add to your to do list.
The following are ways you can conserve energy with your laptop. Start implementing some of these tips in your life and turn over a new ‘green’ leaf. Start slowly and add more as you go.
Adjust Screen Brightness
Having your screen brightness at its’ max will use up a lot of energy. Adjust the screen to a lower light to save energy and lengthen battery life. Simply find the button on your screen, or often one of your function keys, and turn down the brightness.
Sleep Mode
Computers are an important part of our lives. Many people use them all day at work. However, there are times we are stepping away from our computer, but aren’t ready to completely turn it off. When you know you are going to be away from the computer for a little bit, turn it to sleep mode. This way, your computer will be using less energy while you are away.
How do you set your computer to sleep mode?
Windows: Start --> Control Panel --> Power Options
Mac: System Preferences --> Energy Saver
Close Applications Not In Use
If you are not using an application, close it. If an application is open, it is consuming energy. If you do not currently need it, close it. You want to make sure of this especially with applications that have a lot of graphics like games and pictures. Just like we don’t leave all the lights in our house on in rooms we aren’t using, we don’t keep applications up that aren’t in use.
Stick with a Laptop
A lot of the energy consumed by laptops happens during manufacturing. Because of this, taking care of your laptop so you don’t have to constantly buy a new one is a way to conserve energy. However, if the time does come that you need to replace your laptop, get another laptop. Laptops consume about 1/6 the amount of energy a PC uses. If you must upgrade, stay in the laptop world. You will use a lot less energy to run your laptop than you would use if you were running a PC.Use Built in Power-Saving Features
There are features built into a computer to lessen the amount of power being used. One great power-saving feature is idle mode. This will put certain parts of your computer into idle mode, such as the hard drive, when not in use. Author Bio:
David Borg is a writer for Dell. When David isn’t working he enjoys spending time with his two kids.
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