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trule

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Mar 16, 2007
310
0
hi, has anyone actually measured the power consumption of their Apple TV in its various operating modes?
 
I'm sure someone will come along with specific numbers, but it wouldn't consume much power because of the relatively weak (but efficient) processor and graphics card it uses.
 
I'm sure someone will come along with specific numbers, but it wouldn't consume much power because of the relatively weak (but efficient) processor and graphics card it uses.

Yes, but it needs to be unplugged to be fully off so that will up the power hunger A LOT
 
I posted this in another post....

I just plugged my Apple TV into my Watt meter. Here are the readings...

In Menu mode, nothing playing = 20 Watts
Widescreen Movie Trailer (HD?) playing = 22 Watts
In Standby Mode = 17 Watts

It's dissapointing that Apple TV doesn't power down to 4-5 watts in standby mode, like the mac mini. Also, It should self power down after a set time of non-use. I guess the good news is that 20 watts isn't a huge power draw, and shouldn't put a large amount of heat in your house. Remember, In winter time these devices actually assist your homes heating needs a little.
 
Thanks for the measurements.

The "ON" consumption is similar to what I get from a similar PC (VIA EPIA @ 500MHz with 2.5" disk), however the "Standby" is pretty bad. 17 watts in this day and age, for something that is doing nothing, speaks volumes about the design. Add that to the limited video output (no s-video etc) and small HD...and I don't think this is for me :(


The Apple home, iPod + iTunes + iMac + Apple Router + Apple TV + ASDL and what ever else they invent, is starting to look like a significant energy sink...all of that just to listen to music or watch TV.
 
The reason that it uses 17 watts in standby is because it really isn't sleeping like a mini would. The only thing that you are doing by putting it in standby is disabling the video output. You will notice, that if you put it in standby, then try to sync it, it will connect and sync just fine and all the while the unit will remain in standby. The Apple TV is an always ready device.
 
It would seem that they don't even spin the disk down then, if its at 17 watts. I wonder if it decreases further after some time (like several hours).

Anyway, its too much for something that is doing nothing IMO. Does Wake on Lan work over WiFi, is a 5 second delay while it spins up the disk too long? Perhaps a bunch of "fixes" will come out of the community...its a pretty interesting device to hack.
 
It would seem that they don't even spin the disk down then, if its at 17 watts. I wonder if it decreases further after some time (like several hours).

Anyway, its too much for something that is doing nothing IMO. Does Wake on Lan work over WiFi, is a 5 second delay while it spins up the disk too long? Perhaps a bunch of "fixes" will come out of the community...its a pretty interesting device to hack.

WOL does not work over WiFi, hence the reason that it never shuts off.
 
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