Toshiba: Our TVs can be turned off, you know

(Credit: Crave UK)

As you may know, here at Crave we're big fans of the off switch. But as we've previously noted, it's an endangered species. Happily, Toshiba is keen to stop David Cameron from mounting a full-on campaign against LCD TVs by allowing its customers to turn them off properly.

You probably know what modern TVs are like. You're pretty lucky if you can find one with a proper off switch--sometimes you get a second standby button on the TV, but the good clunking motion we remember from CRTs of the '80s have long gone. This is, as you can imagine, rather a disaster for the environment, because even on standby a TV will munch its way through a fair bit of electricity.

There are claims by some companies that you need to keep your TV on in order to receive updates to the program guide and the TV's operating system. The truth is, most TVs are turned on enough to keep them up to date without them needing all night to search the airwaves for a random download.

We're certainly thrilled to see the off switch making a comeback. We watched the Toshiba representitive demonstrate it, and we're very pleased to report it worked as expected. Pressing it once turns the screen off, pressing it again turns it on again. Of course that assumes it was turned on in the first place, but we're confident most people will understand the process works just as well if you assume the set was turned off to start with.

All hail the off switch, for it has returned to bless us all with lower power bills.

(Source: Crave UK)

[ComposMentis]

What in the world are you talking about?

I'm either really tired at the end of the week, or this article doesn't make any sense. I've never seen a television that only goes into standby. And what in the heck are TV updates? Very few TVs are web-enabled. Is this a UK thing? My Toshiba LCD and Sony rear projection CRT both turn completely off.

[frz1]

Must be new

I am also gonna assume that this is something completely new and has to do with only hdtvs.

[rpvitiello]

If your remote, your TV is in standby NOT off.

When you hit the little ?off? button that is a soft touch button, only the screen and speakers are turned off. The TV is still using power so you can use the remote control to turn it back ?on? and it is using power to load an electronic programming guide (if it has that function built in)

Almost ALL electronics in the last several years have gone to ?soft off? only with no real OFF button that stops all consumption of power. Almost every modern device is constantly consuming power if you are using it or not, Your TV, DVD player, Computer, Wall AC system. If the device has a remote control that turns it ?on and off? it never really turns off.

This practice is knows to use ALLOT of power in western countries and cost you real money on the electric bill, all without you knowing it.

[auroramike71]

Can this damage a TV or PS3?

My PS3 and Olevia TV have soft on and off buttons and hard switches on the back.

Does using the hard switch over and over again cause any damage to the devices due to power surges or anything like that?