Manufacturers must now meet more stringent criteria to receive the Energy Star Logo, as new Energy Star 4.0 standards went into effect on May 1.
All TVs manufactured past the date of May 1 must be Energy Star 4.0 compliant to place the logo on its products.
Previous standards under the 3.0 banner weren't very strict, and the Energy Star logo seemingly lost some of its value. For example, the old 3.0 standards let a 50-inch TV consume 318 watts, while the 4.0 standard prevents the same TV from consuming more than 153 watts.
Another new standard regulates the amount of energy a TV can use when it's in sleep mode. If a TV is in sleep mode -- often when the user hits the "power" button -- the units can only consume one watt of power. I think it's very good to see the industry taking an interest in reducing vampire power usage in electronics.
Obviously, manufacturers aren't required to try and earn the Energy Star logo, but it could help consumers pick one model over another.
Even though it looks like the standards are more restricted, TV manufacturers have already released TV models that meet the new Energy Star requirements. Sony, Samsung, Sharp, Vizio and Panasonic already meet these standards -- and will continue to make TVs that meet the more stringent rules down the road.
California will impose that the standard be met by all TVs sold in its state, and retailers are prohibited from selling models that fall short of the new energy standards. The new laws put in place by the California Energy Commission officially go into effect next January.
Manufacturers are already working on energy efficiency for the future, as Energy Star 5.0 is scheduled for release on May 1, 2012.
