Power strip protects, saves energy, too

Anyone who works with a computer at their desk will tell you that there’s never enough power outlets nearby. This axiom seems to resurrect itself every time you get a new piece of equipment and you have to locate a new place to plug it in. I speak from personal experience with this one. I think I’ve got things under control from the last time this happened only to discover that once again, I’m coming up short when I need to plug something in.

The answer of course is to use power strips. But power strips are definitely not all created equal. The most basic of power strips merely provide extra plugs into which you can plug things in. Most of these do provide some kind of master on/off switch but that’s about it.

The problem with these is that many consumers mistake them for surge suppressors. If there is some kind of power surge, anything plugged into one of these strips receives no more protection than if it had been plugged directly into the wall socket.

The purpose of these devices is to simply give you more plugs. And if you use anything that has one of those bulky power transformers plugs at the end, chances are you’ll lose at least one of those extra sockets and maybe more because the bulky transformer is going to partially or completely cover the adjoining plug receptacle in the strip.

Better power strips offer more widely spaced plugs or at least one or more that are spaced further apart so that the transformer won’t cover the plug next to it. Not too long ago, I wrote about the Power Squid that offers a different approach by using plugs at the end of separate cables instead of a solid strip.

Not all created equal

Finally if you are looking for power surge protection, paying a bit more will move you into power strips with built-in surge suppression. But like anything else, these too are not all created equal. Different products offer higher degrees of protection as well as different physical methods to obtain that protection. Some are better than others, some a LOT better. My suggestion is to do a little digging on the subject matter before entrusting your precious equipment to one of them. And while you’re looking around, I’d like to draw your attention to one of these power/surge suppressor strips that offers something new.

Anyone who’s felt one of those transformers at the end of a device’s power cord can tell you that these things are warm to the touch whether the device itself it powered on or off. That means it’s drawing power all the time it’s plugged in and that translates into wasted electrical power, which costs you money. Now I’m sure some will argue that the cost is negligible but depending on how many you have and how long it stays on, it can begin to add up.

One of the advantages of a power strip is its convenient on/off switch. When you’re done, just reach down and turn everything off. But what if that convenient switch is located in an inconvenient location, say sequestered somewhere out of reach behind your desk?

To solve that problem and more, Bits Limited has come up with their Energy Saving Smart Strip. They come in a variety of sizes, number of sockets and varying degrees of surge suppression. But the interesting feature that they all offer is their Autoswitching Technology.

Simple, but smart

The concept is simple but ingenious. One of the plugs on the device is colored blue. That’s the one into which you plug your computer. The other plugs that are colored red are the plugs into which you connect your peripherals. That’s it. Now when you turn your computer on and off, the Smart Strip senses it and powers the connected peripherals on and off correspondingly. Turn your computer on, everything plugged into the red sockets turns on. Turn your computer off, everything plugged into the red sockets turns off. What a concept. Why didn’t I think of this?

So there you have it. All of your connected stuff will power on and off automatically for you. And those nasty little power bricks won’t be draining power 24/7. You’ll only be using power when your computer is turned on and that’s the way I like it. You and your monthly electrical bill will like that, too.

XCraig Crossman is a national newspaper columnist writing about computers and technology. For more information, visit his Web site at www.computeramerica.com.

© 2007 McClatchy Tribune