IDF: The search giant claims current PSU standards are outdated and harmful to the environment

Google has called for a new standard for power supply units (PSUs), claiming current units waste around a third of the electricity they consume.

In a white paper, launched at the Intel Developer Forum on Tuesday, Urs Hoelzle and Bill Weihl of Google argued that most PSUs needlessly provide multiple output voltages, a legacy of computing requirements 25 years ago but pointless today.

As a result, said the authors, the standard is outdated, particularly as manufacturers now routinely incorporate voltage regulator modules (VRMs) onto motherboards.

"Typical current efficiencies (including power supply and VRM losses) are in the 55-60 percent range today, that is, power supplies use 65-80 percent more power than necessary," said Hoelzle and Weihl.

Read more: ZDNet UK