Things on the energy front

[imported_Imp]

So I'm studying for a course about preventive engineering and how we're all screwed due to the way we ravage the earth, which got me wondering: how's it going with computers? I'm hearing a lot about people needing bigger and bigger PSUs into the 500+W range now, and how 500W isn't even future proof anymore. I know this applies mostly to enthusiaste builds/parts, but the power requirements are still going up for everything else.

Cars and other appliances are being sold as more and more energy efficient; has this even begun to happen with computer parts? I hear the new Nvidia 7600/7900 lines are slightly better power wise, SOME PSU makers are trying their stuff at 80%, so is there anything else? The move into dual cores and 100+W reqs. don't look so pretty...

 

[oznerol]

Originally posted by: Imp
So I'm studying for a course about preventive engineering and how we're all screwed due to the way we ravage the earth, which got me wondering: how's it going with computers? I'm hearing a lot about people needing bigger and bigger PSUs into the 500+W range now, and how 500W isn't even future proof anymore. I know this applies mostly to enthusiaste builds/parts, but the power requirements are still going up for everything else.

Cars and other appliances are being sold as more and more energy efficient; has this even begun to happen with computer parts? I hear the new Nvidia 7600/7900 lines are slightly better power wise, SOME PSU makers are trying their stuff at 80%, so is there anything else? The move into dual cores and 100+W reqs. don't look so pretty...

I am running a relatively powerful machine on a 250W PSU, and it's been running 24/7 since I built it last July. Most of the hype over massive power supplies is created by the manufacuturing companies themselves.

Also, I've seen PSU's with up to, and possibly over, 90% efficiency.