Hello, does anyone ever check how much power their EuP-compliant power supply is drawing on standby? Of course it uses <1w, doesn't it, because the manufacturer says it does...or does it?
I have been trying to get such an item for my computer and have now been through no less than four power supplies in a row that draw up to 30x the stated power at standby. Yes, you read right, I did say 30 times the declared consumption. What does this mean in real terms? Aside from the environmental effects, every standby watt is worth just over £1 per year on your electricity bill, so over 5 years my psu could have cost me an amazing £150 on top of the purchase price.
So which ones have I tried? First there was a Corsair CX400 that used 11w (although not strictly EuP, and after a while it did sort itself out to around 1-2w); then there was a Corsair CX430 v2, which used 19w when switched off and 31w under no load. I sent two of these back to the supplier. Next came an OCZ StealthXStream2 400w, which used about 20w under no load. Finally today I received an FSP SagaII 400w that uses 9w when switched off and /14w under no load.
So - do you really know how much your beloved EuP psu is costing you?
I have been trying to get such an item for my computer and have now been through no less than four power supplies in a row that draw up to 30x the stated power at standby. Yes, you read right, I did say 30 times the declared consumption. What does this mean in real terms? Aside from the environmental effects, every standby watt is worth just over £1 per year on your electricity bill, so over 5 years my psu could have cost me an amazing £150 on top of the purchase price.
So which ones have I tried? First there was a Corsair CX400 that used 11w (although not strictly EuP, and after a while it did sort itself out to around 1-2w); then there was a Corsair CX430 v2, which used 19w when switched off and 31w under no load. I sent two of these back to the supplier. Next came an OCZ StealthXStream2 400w, which used about 20w under no load. Finally today I received an FSP SagaII 400w that uses 9w when switched off and /14w under no load.
So - do you really know how much your beloved EuP psu is costing you?