EPA Weighing New ‘Performance Levels’ for Energy Star Displays

The EPA is updating the Energy Star specification for displays, citing steadily increasing market share for Energy Star qualified devices since the first phase of version 5.1 of the spec took effect in October. The agency said the second phase of the specification, which was to take effect Oct. 30, will be superseded by a revision that it’s working on. The EPA said it wants to “revisit” requirements in the specification for digital picture frames, monitors and professional displays to see whether “new performance levels are appropriate."

Also targeted for review in the specification revision is the relevance of both screen size and resolution as “primary factors in power consumption” for monitors and digital picture frames. The agency said removing screen resolution from the maximum on-mode power use equation is “feasible” and would help in harmonizing displays’ performance levels with TVs’. It also wants to look at the market adoption of automatic brightness control features and their energy efficiency benefits for displays, the EPA said.

The agency said it is also interested in getting stakeholder input about setting a “default test luminance” for testing and reporting on-mode power for displays with screens larger than 30 inches. It wants to know what display makers are doing to reduce global warming gas emissions in the supply chain. The agency will hold a Web-based meeting in late January or early February to discuss its proposals for revising the specification, it said.