Over at the Leader Talk blog Pete Reilly breaks down the energy costs associated with school computing, and suggests that switching from desktops to laptops, netbooks, or other options could yield significant savings.
Reilly, the president of the New York State Association of Computers and Technology in Education, and founder of Ed Tech Journeys Inc., writes:
Even if we take the 'best case' desktop scenario: a 65w computer and 35w display, the energy savings for shifting to laptop, netbook, or thin client devices is 54% resulting in a savings of $227,230.In One to One implementations, if students use battery power during the day and are required to charge their devices at home, the energy savings can be more than 95% and a cost savings of $378,717.
The potential cost savings of this approach are obviously worth investigating. I wonder, though, what are the downsides?
Downsides:
1. Netbook keyboards are too darn tiny, unless you're talking about elementary kids
2. Schools already have desktop computers lying around
3. Netbooks and laptops are more difficult to repair
4. Netbooks and laptops are easier to steal or destroy