Internet boxes and TV decoders in our homes constantly consume electricity. But do we still have to turn them off every night to save money, as some organizations advise?
Long neglected, the electricity consumption of the devices we use every day has become a major concern, for both ecological and economic reasons. Between the impact on the environment and the price of energy which continues to increase, it is now impossible to ignore this aspect of our daily lives. Thus, with the energy crisis and various government measures, the regulated electricity price increased by 59% in France between 2020 and 2024. The last increase dates from February, the price of a kilowatt hour (kWh) having increased from 0.2276 to 0.2516 euros – or 8.6% more on the base rate, without peak-off-peak hours option. In short, from now on, every watt counts!
In this context, organizations like Ademe regularly provide advice on how to preserve our resources and reduce bills. And in addition to measures linked to the insulation of homes, the regulation of heating and the use of household appliances, the Ecological Transition Agency points to the consumption of Internet boxes, accused of wasting electricity due to the fact that They are permanently on, even when not in use. And its recommendation is simple: it would be enough to turn it off during periods of inactivity, and particularly at night, to make substantial savings. But what is it really?
In its recent investigative report on the impact of digital published on March 21, 2024, Arcep (the “policeman” of electronic communications) has studied very closely the electricity consumption of the TV boxes and decoders associated with them. According to those revealed, the boxes consume between 10 and 25 W depending on their brand, their generation and their technology. Assuming that we turn off a “gluttonous” box every night, i.e. for 8 hours, for a year, we would reduce its consumption by 25x8x365 or 73,000 Wh (73 kWh). At the current electricity price, the annual saving would be 73×0.2516 or 18.36 euros. With a more economical box, the reduction in consumption would be 10x8x365 or 29,200 Wh (29.2 kWh). And the annual saving of 29.2×0.2516 or 7.37 euros. Not really fortunes, then.
The results are even more mixed with TV decoders associated with boxes. Because if the gap between the models is still quite wide (from approximately 2 to 18 W), this time we must take into account the standby mode in which these boxes spend most of the time, a mode which obviously reduces their consumption. But assuming that we turn them off completely and systematically when we are not using them, for 16 hours a day, we would save “at best” between 12 Kwh per year, or 3 euros for the most sober, and 105 kWh per year, or 26 euros for the greediest.
We see, even if they are not zero, the savings made are nothing extraordinary. Especially with recent boxes and decoders, which consume much less energy than older models, and which have various energy saving functions, such as scheduled Wi-Fi cutoff in addition to automatic standby. In addition, you should be aware that by cutting off the Wi-Fi network, completely turning off a box generally prevents many connected objects from working, which can pose various security problems in homes equipped with them. . Not to mention that, in general, electronic devices suffer from repeated switching on and off which can damage their components and ultimately cause breakdowns.
The fact remains that if turning off all this equipment at night or outside periods of use has little financial impact on an individual scale – between 10 and 45 euros per year – it is quite different on a global scale. collective, as highlighted by the Arcep report which specifies that all of the French’s boxes and decoders consume three times more electricity than all of the operators’ fixed networks. It is up to everyone to see, in their own soul and conscience, what they want and can do for the general interest and for the planet.