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Overview • Google PowerMeter is a new application from Google that allows users to observe the power usage in their environment shown as a graph that shows equipment using electricity individually, this lets users cut down on their power use, and thusly save money by reducing their overall electricity bill.
Reviews • "One morning I noticed that my energy consumption was higher than normal," wrote Kirsten, a Google program manager, who didn't give her last name. "I went into the kitchen and found that the dial on our toaster oven was stuck and had been on all night. • “Having data like this, day over day, week over week, month, and even year provides something no monitor collecting "real time" data can do -- Google PowerMeter can show you trends in your electrical use over time, and even within the first days and weeks is able to tell you how your usage compares to the prior period.”
Advantages • Allows users to view and manage electricity usage • Can save home users and companies large amounts of money in billing. • Easy to setup • User friendly interface • Accessible anywhere, including on smart phones • Graphical interface that shows individual devices’ power consumption
Disadvantages • Only accessible in certain parts of the world • Requires a smart-device to be attached to the power meter (some meters have this by default), if one is not there by default, it must be purchased. • Smart-Devices can cost in the hundreds of dollars and only work on specific meter types.
Future Outlook Google PowerMeter may define the future of electricity monitoring in the foreseeable future, and would be a great asset for home and business alike. Within the coming years, many more developed countries will come with these smart-monitoring-devices automatically installed on their homes and businesses.
Summary It would come as no surprise to anyone, that businesses can be huge consumers of electricity, there are always computers running, often without users in front of them. Google PowerMeter will allow companies to view this data in an easy to analyse graphical view, and identify the major consumers in their building, once identified, businesses can make the decision to limit and reduce consumption of power in those specific areas, potentially saving large sums of money.
Recommendations Google PowerMeter is free software, the only requirement for using it is an active internet connection. The money spent on a smart-monitoring device on the electricity meter is negligible when faced with the long-term savings of reducing power consumption, within less than a year the device would more than pay for itself. Thusly, I recommend Google PowerMeter to anyone, businesses and homes alike, it is a powerful but easy to use piece of software that lets people take control of their electricity use.
