Energy-saving mode, screen brightness, and search engines
Make the most of your computer’s automated energy-saving features!
- Want to go get a quick cup of coffee? Put your computer into sleep mode whilst you’re away.
- Don’t rely on always remembering to put your PC into sleep mode yourself; instead, use the automatic settings.
- Don’t set the time before your computer goes into sleep mode too long.
- Reduce your screen brightness. Why not give it a go and see if you notice a difference when you reduce the brightness to 80 %, for example?
- Switch your computer off completely at the end of the working day if you no longer need it.
- Try using a climate-friendly search engine as your default search engine.
Using computers in a clever way
The idea that screensavers save energy has long been debunked as a myth. The situation is quite different when it comes to energy-saving options that automatically put a device into sleep mode after a certain period of inactivity. Kawamoto et al. (2004) estimated that the full implementation of automatic energy-saving management for office equipment in Japan could save just under 2 % of total commercial electricity consumption.
Energy-saving measures can also be worthwhile on a smaller scale. In a study at a Korean university, a system for detecting room occupancy was installed which automatically put computers, monitors and computer peripherals into an energy-saving state when no one was in the room. This reduced the electricity consumption of monitors and computer peripherals by 26 % (Bae et al., 2016).
These examples show that automatically switching to sleep mode after a reasonably short period of inactivity can be worthwhile. One should not rely on always remembering to put the computer into energy-saving mode manually.
Screen brightness also has an impact on energy consumption. Jones et al. (2013) demonstrated, using the example of a typical laptop power budget, that the LCD display can account for around 43 % of energy consumption. In their study, many students used a very high screen brightness: 63 % of the readings were at least 90 %, and 52 % were as high as 100 %. At the same time, in a test, many participants could barely tell when the brightness was reduced to 80 %.
When browsing and searching the internet, we can also influence resource usage. Studies show that the resource consumption of different search engines can vary (Greenspector, 2026). Climate-friendly search engines consistently use renewable energy and channel all their profits towards climate protection measures and the restoration of ecosystems (Ecosia, 2026).
Keep reading on
Kawamoto et al. (2004): Energy saving potential of office equipment power management, Energy and Buildings, 36, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enbuild.2004.02.004
Jones et al. (2013): Laptop energy-saving opportunities based on user behaviors, Energy Efficiency, 6, https://doi.org/10.1007/s12053-012-9167-5
Bae et al. (2016): Real-Time Occupant Based Plug-in Device Control Using ICT in Office Buildings, Energies, 9, https://doi.org/10.3390/en9030143
Greenspector (zuletzt aufgerufen 01.10.2026): https://blog.greenspector.com/en/search-engines/
Ecosia (zuletzt aufgerufen 01.10.2026): https://blog.ecosia.org/ecosia-search-engine/