Keep Your DVR Turned Off Unless Using it to Save Big on Energy Bills [Saving Money]

Matthew Rogers ?It turns out that DVRs, cable boxes, and satellite TV boxes are horrifying energy hogs, eating up half as much as a brand new, full-size refrigerator, and more than most modern TVs.

Since the boxes don't really ever go to sleep, they just keep burning up the meter until they're shut down. It's not about cheap set-top boxes, either, because the nicer the cable box or DVR, the higher the power consumption. Satellite TV HD-DVRs are the absolute worst of the bunch, but the same boxes hooked up to cable aren't much better.

The Natural Resources Defense Council wants regulation for set-top boxes that could fix this problem by forcing manufacturers to build them with power consumption in mind, but until that day comes, it's probably best to just turn them off when not in use. Photo by Joshua Blount.

Better Viewing, Lower Energy Bills, and
Less Pollution | NRDC.org via USA Today

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/6L8NfG18K38/keep-your-dvr-turned-off-unless-using-it-to-save-big-on-energy-bills

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