How to Adjust Power Settings in Windows 7

Go green with your computer!? Saving power, energy and ‘going green’ has been the big term these past few years and Windows 7 made it pretty easy to do so.

Seriously, when was the last time you really went into your power settings and configured when you want each part of your computer to turn off or how much time it should wait to display a screensaver…is a screensaver even really saving power?

Check out how to adjust your power settings on your computer and make your rig really economically friendly!

The first step in identifying any leaks of energy is assessing your computer needs.? If you’re not a gamer or video editing, chances are you do not need some top of the line quad core machine that will act more as a heater than a computer.

Once that’s all squared away and you’re in your Windows desktop environment, navigate to the Control Panel and go to the Power Options which could be pass the System and Security icon depending on your setup.

Look at each of the items on the next screen and give each one some thought:

Some of these are really key to look at if you are on a laptop, especially the display options.? On most electronic devices that run on battery, whether it be your mobile phone or laptop, the number one battery killer is the display.? For desktops, since you’re plugged in, you do not notice it as much but the same rules apply.? Essentially, you an alter when the computer turns off the “display” when you are not responding (moving the mouse, typing…etc)- but it will NOT erase what you are doing.? Turning off the display just turns off the monitor- not what was being displayed on it.? A simple shake of the mouse will restore the screen.

I recommend you move off the screen savers.? Those were really for old CRT monitors to prevent bulbs from burning images into the screen but now with modern LCD monitors, you should not have that problem.? Screen savers actually are like keeping your computer screen on and it uses up more power!? Just have the display turn off instead and you’ll be saving some wattage or battery life!