Ask SmartPlanet: which gadgets can help me turn off standby?

Dear SmartPlanet, I'm useless at remembering to turn stuff off standby. Are there any gadgets or tricks that will do it for me automatically? Andrew, Swansea, UK.

Andrew, we salute your intent and are here to help you save a stack of cash (£37 a year if you're an 'average UK household') and keep a serious wedge of CO2 out of the sky. The ultra low-tech trick would be to stick a note on the inside of your front door with a blunt "have you switched off standby?" reminder. You could also rope in a housemate or partner to spank you with a fair trade paddle every time you forget to switch something off standby.

There are, however, a stack of gizmos you could employ to help, and as even the most numerically dyslexic will notice, purchasing just one of these means you'd theoretically save your money back in a year.

Here are a few of the best known ones:
-- ByeBye Standby (review), £20
-- One For All Energy Saver remote control (news), £40
-- Standby Buster, £15+ 
-- Intellipanel, £30 
-- Intelliplug, £17
-- PowersaferX, £18
-- Auto Switch-off extension, £17
-- Energenie, £13
-- Standby Saver, £20

The most comprehensive are the ByeBye Standby and the virtually identical (but Energy Saving Trust-endorsed) Standby Buster. Each works by giving you a bunch of plug adapters to stick around your home and a remote that'll wirelessly switch either the whole house off standby, or one plug-strip at a time. We've used both and they're easy to get to grips with, though you do run the risk of losing the remote.

The Intellipanel, meanwhile, is good for PCs with a bunch of power-guzzling peripherals attached (speakers, printers, you name it). And the Powersafer's specifically designed for TV setups with a myriad of boxes underneath.

Last but not least, you can do yourself (and the planet) a favour by buying energy-efficient stuff in the first place. Most gadgets should ideally use less than 1W in standby, but the reality is few do: our Sky HD box at home uses a monstrous 47W in standby, just three less than it does when fully on. Consoles (see here) and set-top boxes are other hungry culprits. Check the specs on gadget reviews before you buy.

If you're not convinced by any of these standby-killing gadgets, you can always take the shock-and-awe approach. Work out how much cash you're burning using this standby calculator [link temporarily down] and you might find yourself switching off standby without any assistance.

Do you have a green shopping dilemma? Want an eco debate settled? Or want to know what a environmental buzzword really means? Email us on green@smartplanet.com and we'll do out best to help out in an upcoming Ask SmartPlanet.

Related Links

• SmartPlanet