The Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) system is a tool designed to help folks in both the public and private sectors evaluate, compare and select electronic products such as desktop and notebook/laptop computers and monitors, based on their environmental attributes.

Desktops, laptops and monitors that meet 23 required environmental performance criteria can be registered in EPEAT and carry one of three ratings; Gold, Silver or Bronze. The better the eco criteria of the product, the better the score.
The green criteria used includes…

Reduction/Elimination of Environmentally Sensitive Materials
Material Selection
Design for End of Life
Product Longevity/Life Extension
Energy Conservation
End …read more

The question of just how much energy does a particular appliance or electronic device use is a valid one. For one thing, if you’ve got some cash for a green upgrade why not invest that money in the best most energy saving option?
The U.S. Department of Energy offers the following calculation…
Formula for Estimating Energy Consumption
“(Wattage × Hours Used Per Day ÷ 1000 = Daily Kilowatt-hour (kWh) consumption
(1 kilowatt (kW) = 1,000 Watts)
Multiply this by the number of days you use the appliance during the year for the annual consumption. You can then calculate the annual cost to run an appliance …read more