It is estimated that the Internet uses up to 3% of the world’s electricity, making it one of the world’s most energy-intensive technologies.
What is the Internet?
The Internet is a huge network of computers that communicate with each other using the internet protocol suite. The network is made up of millions of servers that store and distribute information.
How much energy does the Internet use?
The amount of energy used by the Internet has been decreasing over time, but it still uses a lot of energy. In 2013, the Internet used 2.27 trillion kilowatt hours (kWh). That’s about the same as the electricity used by countries like India and China combined!
How much energy does the Internet use?
The amount of energy used by the Internet has been a topic of debate for many years. Estimates have ranged from 2 to 5 watts per user, with most estimates falling in the middle. However, recent studies have shown that the average American uses 10 watts of energy per day through their Internet usage. This amounts to around 1 million watts per year, which is enough to power over 150 homes. In addition, other activities such as streaming media and gaming use an additional 3 to 5 watts of energy.
Why is the Internet a big energy user?
The Internet is one of the biggest users of energy in the world. In fact, it uses more energy than any other electronic device! This is because the Internet relies on electricity to function, and it’s growing faster than any other technology. In fact, the number of devices connected to the Internet has increased by 100 billion since 2010. And this growth isn’t stopping anytime soon- according to Gartner, the number of connected devices will grow by another trillion by 2020.
The reason for all this energy usage is simple- the more devices that are connected to the Internet, the more data is being transferred. And data consumes a lot of energy- especially when it’s being transferred over long distances. That’s why the Internet is a big energy user- not only does it need a lot of electricity to function, but it also needs a lot of energy to move all that data around!
Conclusion
According to a study by the University of Surrey, the amount of energy used by the internet has tripled over the past five years. In 2012, it was estimated that the internet users around 1.5 terawatt hours (TWh) of energy; this figure rose to 3 TWh in 2018. Whilst this may not seem like much, it is clear that the internet is using up an increasing amount of resources and needs to be looked at as a resource rather than a waste product. We need to start taking measures to conserve our resources and limit how much we use online if we want to keep our planet healthy for future generations.
