Green, But Quick
For mainstream business and consumer users, green PCs perform like other PCs. Dell's OptiPlex 755 earned a WorldBench score of 84--tops among the business PCs we've tested with Windows Vista. The HP rp5700's score of 67 was below average, but the PC scored well enough in other areas to rank third on our value business desktops chart.
Lenovo's ThinkPad T61p, which ranked third in our online desktop replacement notebook chart, earned a stellar WorldBench score of 81, and its battery life of 4 hours, 3 minutes is above average. The T61p produced solid graphics scores, thanks to its nVidia Quadro FX570M discrete mobile workstation graphics. Toshiba's Tecra M9, which we tested for our all-purpose notebook chart, earned a WorldBench score of 73--average for the notebooks we've tested--and an unimpressive battery life result of 2 hours, 48 minutes.
But until we can purchase solar-powered PCs, using an Energy Star-certified computer is the best way to reduce energy use and costs.
Note: For an interesting alternative to the essentially standard machines discussed here, see our review of Zonbu's energy-efficient Linux-based mini-PC.
Energy Star 4.0 PCs
See our chart of the Energy Star 4.0 PCs we tested by clicking on the icon below.
| Energy Star 4.0 PCs | |||||
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| Value Desktop PC | PCW Rating | Performance | Real-world energy consumption tests |
Net energy impact | Bottom line |
| Dell OptiPlex 755 Mini-Tower $1272 (when reviewed) Review |
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EPEAT Gold-certified business PC is easily expandable and offers solid performance; includes remote-management and security features. | |
| HP rp5700 Long Lifecycle Desktop $1368 (when reviewed) Review |
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EPEAT Gold-certified business PC was the least energy-efficient and least powerful of our desktop competitors, but it has a long five-year warranty. | |
| Enano EX7200 $1500 (when reviewed) Review |
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Mini-PC outfitted with a notebook processor offers the best balance of power consumption and performance, but compact design is not upgrade-friendly. |
| Power laptop | PCW Rating | Performance | Real-world energy consumption tests |
Environmental impact | Bottom line |
| Lenovo ThinkPadT61p $2303 (when reviewed) Review |
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Desktop replacement expertly combines power, energy efficiency, and battery life; its nVidia Quadro FX570M graphics card also performed well. |
| All-Purpose Laptop | PCW Rating | Performance | Real-world energy consumption tests |
Environmental impact | Bottom line: |
| Toshiba Tecra M9-S5514 $1799 (when reviewed) Review |
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Touchpad and buttons on this otherwise full-featured, solid-performing, EPEAT Gold-certified model felt uncomfortable; battery life was so-so. |
| CHART NOTES: Prices and ratings are as of 9/12/07. Our power-consumption tests differ from those required for Energy Star 4.0. FOOTNOTES:
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