Toshiba’s USB Power Strip Eliminates Phantom Draw and Saves Money

 13 Jul 2010 - By Omar Mariño+
 omar@myddnetwork.com


Phantom draw (the negligible amounts of electricity your technological doodads suck up while in dormant states) may not seem like much at the time but when you add up that loss over time the figure can be quite exasperating.  Thankfully, Toshiba understands your frustration and has created a new USB power strip that can actually regulate what device gets power and when.

Sometimes you just can’t or don’t want to unplug something every time you stop using it but not only are those tiny amounts of electricity you’re wasting bad for the environment (it’s estimated that standby power—also called phantom draw or vampire power—is responsible for at least 5% and maybe as much as 19% of worldwide electrical consumption and responsible for 1% of all greenhouse gases!) it can cost you some serious change.

The Toshiba strip sports four universal power slots capable of accepting plugs from the USA and Europe and is controlled by a USB cable running to your computer.  While only two of the sockets can be turned on and off, the others can be controlled manually or automatically (such as your computer commanding the strip to power up your printer before it sends the data to a dead device!) 

The device isn’t available yet and there is no mention of a price tag anywhere but Toshiba says the power strip will hit shelves in August.






Disclaimer - Category: Control, Digital, Gadget