OneClick Desktop Computer Intelliplug DSK105 - automatic power switch

IS YOUR COMPUTER ACTUALLY COSTING YOU MONEY TO RUN EVEN WHEN IT IS SWITCHED OFF?

I seem to be running a general theme recently on my recent reviews - basically money saving and energy saving, so I thought I would continue with this theme for this review, as in times of money being hard to save or earn, every penny saved is valuable.

IS YOUR LIVING ROOM FULL OF LITTLE LIGHTS?

A large proportion of homes ...
...have items attached to them such as monitors, broadband modems, printers, speakers, scanners and / or sub woofers.

Most people, when not using their computers, switch them off, but do they actually switch off the items attached to it (the technical term for these add ons is 'peripherals')? Little tell tell signs give it away - all those little green, blue, amber lights tell you that the peripherals are still plugged in and powered ... more

IS YOUR COMPUTER ACTUALLY COSTING YOU MONEY TO RUN EVEN WHEN IT IS SWITCHED OFF?

I seem to be running a general theme recently on my recent reviews - basically money saving and energy saving, so I thought I would continue with this theme for this review, as in times of money being hard to save or earn, every penny saved is valuable.

IS YOUR LIVING ROOM FULL OF LITTLE LIGHTS?

A large proportion of homes these days have computers, and a lot of these computers have items attached to them such as monitors, broadband modems, printers, speakers, scanners and / or sub woofers.

Most people, when not using their computers, switch them off, but do they actually switch off the items attached to it (the technical term for these add ons is 'peripherals')? Little tell tell signs give it away - all those little green, blue, amber lights tell you that the peripherals are still plugged in and powered up, slowly using up your electricity.

HOW MUCH DO THOSE LITTLE GREEN LIGHTS ACTUALLY COST YOU?

Leaving any electrical equipment on standby wastes energy, costs money and can reduce its lifespan - but most people, even with the best intentions, do not turn off everything at night when they go to bed, as it can be time consuming, and more often than not, the actual sockets in the wall are difficult to get to - you know the ones, the ones that are behind a cabinet, a desk, a sofa etc etc.

If you do a bit of research, you will soon find out that electrical equipment left on standby or on charge wastes over £740,000,000 of energy and creates over 4,000,000 tonnes of excess carbon dioxide emissions every year. That's a lot of money being spent just to have all those little red/blue/amber lights on at night doing absolutely nothing. In addition, research suggests that leaving electrical equipment on standby can reduce equipment lifespan by an average of 15% and creates a needless fire risk.

The makes of this item claim (OneClick Technologies) claim that this item will work for at least 15 years.

SO HOW DOES THIS GADGET WORK?

It looks like a standard block adapter but this is a clever adapter. You plug it into the main wall socket, and then plug your computer into the top socket of your adapter. There are two other sockets (one on each side), and you can plug your monitor and speakers into these. If you have other add ons, in one of the sockets, you can plug in another normal adaptor, and then into the normal adaptor, simply plug in your other items. These can include phone chargers, desk lamps etc etc. The list is almost endless.

That is the hard work all done. From now on, it gets easier.

Most computers these days have complicated demands for power, due to the software inside it which looks to reduce the amount of power the computer is using at any one time. When you switch your computer on, all the internal 'bits', including the CD drivers are powered up. Once the computer has decided what is not needed, it will then switch off the unused bits. So the amount of power that computer needs varies from an average of 70 to 350 watts and in some cases less than 2 watts. Whilst all this is happening, your add ons (remember those - e.g. printer, speakers, scanner, screens, monitors etc etc) continue to be left switched on when the computer is no longer being used. The makers have developed something called Auto-Calibration technology which detects that your computer is not being used and therefore triggers a message to switch everything off - the moment you go back on your computer, it senses that it is being used and as if by magic, all your extra bits get turned on too.

This handy device, also acts as a surge protector - this is a phenomenon that does not happen very often, but should it happen, then it could be expensive to fix. Basically, in simplistic terms, when you switch something on, you expect a constant level of electricity coming down your power lines to operate your item. On odd occasions, you suddenly get a spike of energy coming down the line due to a fault at a power station, or more often than not, during a thunder storm. This spike or surge of energy can blow your fuses, or horror of horrors, make your computer completely useless.

HOW MUCH WILL IT ACTUALLY SAVE YOU?

The manufacturers indicate that is saves an average 35 watts per hour depending on the number of connected peripherals and that this thing can pay for itself in less than a year of use. Obviously, the more items you have attached to it, the bigger the savings.

WHAT IS A WATT HOUR AND HOW MUCH IS THAT IN POUNDS AND PENCE?

If you ask most people and say "Brilliant news, I have saved 3000 watts per hour, I can now afford to do something", then they would say you were bonkers. So I have worked it all out to try and make it simple enough for me to understand.

Basically, you would be saving roughly £1.88 per month in electricity costs, or £21.56 per year. Obviously, it does depend on what electricity tariff you are on, and on how many items you have attached to this intelligent gadget, but if you use a ball park figure of say £2 per month, or roughly £20 per year, then this gadget pays for itself in the first year, and thereafter, you are saving money.

OTHER SPECIFICATIONS / POINTS OF INTEREST

You can use this with standard trailing adaptors.
Switches everything back on within 5 seconds from it detecting you are on your computer.
Total Maximum Power 13 amps
Plug and Play - in other words no software required.
British Standards and RoHS compliant
PC and MAC compatible
Warranted for one year against faulty workmanship.

WHO MAKES IT?

One Click Technologies Limited
Units 2 & 3
H2O Business Complex
Lake View Drive
Anneslay
Nottinghamshire
NG15 0HT

Tel 01623 751414

www.oneclickpower.com

HOW MUCH DOES IT ACTUALLY COST TO PURCHASE/

I know that CIAO gives indications of prices, but have done some research also, and this is what I found:-

www.keene.co.uk £12.99
www.amazon.co.uk £13.48
www.microdirect.co.uk £13.79
www.ethicalsuperstore.com £14.63
www.watt-power.co.uk £16.62
www.oneclickpower.com £19.56

The thing that struck me as being odd, that the most expensive supplier is the actual maker itself, so just goes to prove that it is worth while shopping around. 

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