Plasma

Test Procedure

The purpose of this test was to determine the average power consumption of a 50-inch plasma TV when operated over an eight-hour period. Each plasma TV was set to operate in its “daylight”, “normal”, or “standard” mode. The test signal was an eight-hour loop of programming from cable TV, recorded to a hard disc drive. A widely available power consumption meter with automatic data logging was used for this test.

Results and Conclusions

Power consumption over an 8-hour time period ranged from a low of 292 watts to 505 watts for an average of 399 watts. Current consumption ranged from 2.45 amperes to 4.17 amperes for an average of 3.31 amperes.

Over an eight-hour period, the average kilowatthour rating was 2.94 for all five plasma TVs. Assuming a base rate of eight cents per kilowatthour ($0.08 kWh); the average cost of operation was 23.6 cents for the group. Multiplied by 30 days, the average cost of operation (8 hours/ day x 30 days) was $7.08 for the group.

Consumer Perspective

Plasma TVs do not cost all that much to operate. For the example shown, the monthly cost is equivalent to a tall cup of premium coffee. Even at double the kilowatt-hour rate shown, the cost is less than two tickets to see a first-run movie.