The Standby Energy of Smart Devices: Problems, Progress, & Potential

The Internet of Things (IoT) has dramatically expanded the capabilities of everyday devices. These smart devices bring improved convenience, better energy management, and over-the-Internet control, but are also unfortunately reversing an important trend: they are contributing to an increase in phantom standby energy consumption. While many miscellaneous loads have seen steady standby power improvements over time, adding persistent connectivity and advanced features to otherwise simple devices is causing some loads to get worse. This paper provides an analysis of this growing problem, and identifies four primary issues that contribute to the standby energy problem based on a study of commercially available smart devices. Further, it proposes several strategies for addressing these issues, and presents two new systems to illustrate the potential for improvements.