Re:Smartphones and Dematerialization
by Causality1 on Monday July 01, 2019 @02:22AM
(#20322895)
>OP missed the fact the energy usage estimate included energy used to provide services to the phone as well.
Except those services don't exist in a vacuum. Presenting that power usage as if it is just stacked on top of the usage of a person without a phone is gross misrepresentation. Time spent on a phone is time not spent on a television, on a desktop pc, on a games console, driving a vehicle to some other distraction like a movie theater or amusement park. Except for the printed word a smartphone is among the least energy intensive ways to entertain a human being and I put forth that using one results in a reduction, not an increase, in overall energy use and carbon footprint compared to a person without one.
Except those services don't exist in a vacuum. Presenting that power usage as if it is just stacked on top of the usage of a person without a phone is gross misrepresentation. Time spent on a phone is time not spent on a television, on a desktop pc, on a games console, driving a vehicle to some other distraction like a movie theater or amusement park. Except for the printed word a smartphone is among the least energy intensive ways to entertain a human being and I put forth that using one results in a reduction, not an increase, in overall energy use and carbon footprint compared to a person without one.