Now game consoles will have a so-called power saving mode, which can not only avoid consuming too much power when in standby, but also can start quickly when you want to play, without waiting too long for the boot time. However, the Xbox is special. In addition to the power saving mode, it also provides an “instant start mode”, which can speed up the startup speed once more. For fast play, many Xbox players will be in this mode, but you may have to pay more for electricity.
Recently, foreign media conducted various game consoles and various power settings, and found that if the Xbox is set to instant start mode, compared with the power saving mode, the monthly electricity bill may be up to 5 pounds more, which is regarding NT$180.
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The foreign media tested the Xbox power settings and found that using the power saving mode can save up to nearly 200 Taiwan dollars in electricity bills per month (PlayStation is also tested)
Recently, the United Kingdom and Europe have been increasing energy-related costs. Electricity bills are one of them. In order to help everyone save money, foreign media The Verge recently tested the power supply gap of Xbox, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch to set the electricity bill.
Microsoft provides two power settings for Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S: “Instant Start Mode” and “Power Saving Mode”. The power consumption of instant start mode is regarding 11W ~ 13W, depending on the model, this mode Allows players to quickly enter the game. The power consumption of the power saving mode is much lower, only regarding 0.5W, but the startup time is longer.
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According to The Verge, if players put their Xbox in instant-on mode for 24 hours, it will cost regarding £4.93 more per month (using UK electricity bills) compared to power saving mode. Although the power saving mode requires you to press the Xbox button to power on every time, the time to enter the main screen of the console is relatively slow, but recently Microsoft has improved the boot speed of the Xbox, such as the Xbox Series X has been shortened by 5 seconds, and the older Xbox One The model has also become faster, requiring only regarding 15 seconds of waiting each time it is turned on, saving nearly the monthly cost of a Netflix subscription each month.
Electricity bills in Taiwan are not as expensive as those in the UK, so the difference is not that big. However, following a whole year, you can save several meals. I think it’s worth waiting a few seconds each time you play. It’s quite recommended for Xbox players. Set to power saving mode.
As for other game consoles, the gap is not so big. PlayStation 4 has “power off” and “standby mode”. Power off will only consume 0.5W, and other modes only consume up to 3.4W. The default power saving mode of PlayStation 5 is only 0.5W, and the maximum standby mode is only 2W, so the electricity bill between the two will not be so different. PlayStation players can basically choose according to their own habits. However, if electricity prices continue to rise in the future, there is also a chance that the gap will widen.
Nintendo Switch players don’t need to worry regarding this, even if they are connected to a TV to play, they will only consume 7W, which is lower than the power consumption of the Xbox instant start mode.