The Carrot Project

I needed to buy a new computer monitor. Being a cost-sensitive geek, I went directly to my most trusted source of up-to-date computer product reviews, the ars technica system guide, budget box section. Their recommendation is the Asus VW224U 22”, it consumes a maximum of 55 watts, and at the time of recommendation, it was priced at about USD 150.

I wanted to support a crunchy business, so I came to the Carrot Project site to find out what monitor (or brand of monitor) they recommended. Right now there are no listings for computer monitors, so I asked for a recommendation from the community on the feedback forum. Jake came back with some info on the LG Flatron W2252TE, possibly the most efficient monitor on the market. The LG Flatron consumes 22 watts and right now it’s priced around USD 250.

The specs of the two monitors are roughly equivalent, but the crunchier LG Flatron costs USD 100 more up front than its less crunchy, geek recommended competitor. Can the money the Flatron will save me on my electricity bill make up the difference? A tiny bit of online research helped guide me to some reasonable estimates.

My monitor is on a lot. I’d guess somewhere between 4-5 hours per day, seven days a week. I’m going to assume I’ll use the monitor for three years before upgrading. So the actual cost of any monitor I purchase also includes the cost of electricity for running it over its lifespan. “Mr. Electricity” figures that average cost of electricity in the US is USD 0.12 per kilowatt hour. You can check the recent prices for your state here.

Here is a breakdown of the total cost of owning and running these two fine monitors assuming 5 hours of usage, 365 days a year, for 3 years.

Working under these assumptions, supporting a “crunchy” product in this case costs me a premium of USD 78.34. The way I see it, it would only be reasonable to buy the Flatron if one, or a combination of the following were true:

• The cost of electricity in the US quadruples.
• I use my monitor for 14 years instead of 3.
• I decide that spending an extra USD 80 is worth it to “be crunchy”.

At this point in my career as a freelance developer a USD 80 premium for “crunchiness” is high. I need to save my money for more important things. It would be tempting for me to externalize that USD 80 to the environment and the public at large. My question to Carrot Project blog readers is: What should I do, and why?