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Old April 10th 10, 12:08 AM posted to alt.comp.hardware
Strobe
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Posts: 31
Default More or less safe to turn off power supply rocker switch?

On 09 Apr 2010 03:26:08 GMT, Nicholas Dreyer wrote:

I keep my PC on for at most a few hours a day. After it has powered
down, is it safer to shut off all power to the motherboard using the
toggle switch on the power supply, or is it better to leave it on, or
does it not matter at all?

Thanks for any advice, or pointers to some useful studies on the matter.


For ultimate power economy, use the switch - modern PSUs continue to provide 5v
when the PC is 'off'..

To *really* economise, switch off with a cheap external power strip - it's
cheaper to replace that than a PSU when the switch eventually wears out!

If you live in an area prone to lightning storms, it's safer to actually unplug
the PC when not in use - a nearby lightning strike on the power line can easily
jump over a power switch and *might* fry your PC.

Of course, at most you'll save a few dollars a year...
And many other devices (TVs, microwaves, cable boxes) also suck power when
they're nominally 'off'.