The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    Alternative to Kill-a-Watt with "Peak" feature?

    Discussion in 'Accessories' started by HTWingNut, Jul 7, 2012.

  1. HTWingNut

    HTWingNut Potato

    Reputations:
    21,580
    Messages:
    35,370
    Likes Received:
    9,877
    Trophy Points:
    931
    I have a Kill-a-Watt that I use quite a bit for monitoring power consumption from devices, primarily laptops during gaming. It is an inexpensive and easy to use device, however it lacks a "peak" feature so if you want to know peak power consumption you have to monitor it to ensure you have the max wattage used. Anyone know of something similar with a "peak" function even if it's substantially more expensive. Preferably under $100.
     
    HTWingNut, Jul 7, 2012
    #1
  2. Tinderbox (UK)

    Tinderbox (UK) BAKED BEAN KING

    Reputations:
    4,745
    Messages:
    8,513
    Likes Received:
    3,823
    Trophy Points:
    431
    I have a few kill-a-watt type meters, but i would like one with an average wattage function.

    My Toshiba laptop has an eco function that show real-time wattage used in a graph form, and gives you a report by the day, month or year.

    John.

    [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
    Tinderbox (UK), Jul 8, 2012
    #2
  3. CrazyEgg

    CrazyEgg Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    12
    Messages:
    130
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Is there any software available similar to eco utility that could be used on any laptop to monitor power consumption?
     
    CrazyEgg, Jul 8, 2012
    #3
  4. Tinderbox (UK)

    Tinderbox (UK) BAKED BEAN KING

    Reputations:
    4,745
    Messages:
    8,513
    Likes Received:
    3,823
    Trophy Points:
    431
    Tinderbox (UK), Jul 8, 2012
    #4
  5. CrazyEgg

    CrazyEgg Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    12
    Messages:
    130
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    The funny thing is after looking around I came across Joulemeter as well and after doing the calibration on one of my laptops I was coming on here to edit my previous post to let people know what I found.

    As far as accuracy goes it's currently saying that on idle my cpu (q9000) uses less than half a watt and my HDD uses 0 watts when it's in use.
     
    CrazyEgg, Jul 8, 2012
    #5
  6. ViciousXUSMC

    ViciousXUSMC Master Viking NBR Reviewer

    Reputations:
    11,461
    Messages:
    16,824
    Likes Received:
    76
    Trophy Points:
    466
    Software is not a reliable way to monitor power use. Hardware is the way to go.
     
    ViciousXUSMC, Jul 8, 2012
    #6
  7. Mobius 1

    Mobius 1 Notebook Nobel Laureate

    Reputations:
    3,447
    Messages:
    9,069
    Likes Received:
    6,376
    Trophy Points:
    681
    Some people prefer not to spend money :p
     
    Mobius 1, Jul 8, 2012
    #7
  8. ViciousXUSMC

    ViciousXUSMC Master Viking NBR Reviewer

    Reputations:
    11,461
    Messages:
    16,824
    Likes Received:
    76
    Trophy Points:
    466
    $20 is something that is worth investing into, as $20 for a real reading beats a free false reading.

    Id spend $5.00 for a real sandwich and you can have the free cow dung sandwich :D
     
    ViciousXUSMC, Jul 8, 2012
    #8
  9. CrazyEgg

    CrazyEgg Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    12
    Messages:
    130
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    I totally agree that hardware is better than software when it comes to this.

    I actually have 2 watt meters at home but I'm out of the country in a place where there are power outages nearly everyday and I saw the Toshiba Eco Utility Software so I got curious to see if there was any power monitoring software out there.

    Edit: I made a mistake with the reading because when in idle the idle cpu and disk spinning power is included in the base power reading which is why the cpu only seems to consume half a watt (but ramps up when you give it some work to do). So I guess that one of the problems was that I didn't thoroughly read the start guide.
    I'll do some proper outlet readings when I go back home to check accuracy.
     
    CrazyEgg, Jul 8, 2012
    #9