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Greenpeace Complains Game Consoles Aren't Green Enough

jasoncart writes "None of the major games consoles are 'green enough', says environmental group Greenpeace in a report released today. Zeina Al-Hajj, Greenpeace's International Toxic Campaign co-ordinator, said: "We were shocked with Nintendo; it was our biggest surprise." The company is described by the group as the least 'green' tech firm."

11 of 450 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Sigh.. by Lumpy · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Exactly, anyone taking the word of greenpeace about anything is a little wacky. Even the FOUNDER of greenpeace left because the foundation got hijacked by a bunch of nutjobs.

    Call me when a Credible organization has such a report.

    --
    Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
  2. What's so hard about re-usable materials? by tjstork · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Look, I'm an old, angry, Republican, and not one of these tree hugging types, but I think Greenpeace has a really good point.

    I mean, check this out. When I was a kid, TV's were put into wooden cabinets. Steel was used for a lot of structural things. Plastic was considered cheap and the knock on Japan was that it was all "cheap plastic stuff".

    Well, fast forward almost 40 years later and what do we find. Plastic stuff is really not all that recyclable, it comes from petroleum, so, when it really boils down to it, plastic actually really does suck as much as the old timers said that it did.

    Why can't they make a video game enclosure or a computer enclosure out of some kind of wood? Or, make controllers out of some kind of steel? Wood is at least renewable and steel is the most recycled thing there is. It just seems to be madness to be making more plastic junk out there when we already have mountains of this stuff.

    --
    This is my sig.
  3. Animal Crossing or Harvest Moon in real life by tepples · · Score: 3, Interesting

    How about people that would like a sustainable, livable environment? Then put down your Animal Crossing or Harvest Moon game and play Animal Crossing or Harvest Moon in real life: join the plain people ;-)
  4. WiiConnect24 by tepples · · Score: 3, Interesting

    According to this http://blog.wired.com/games/2007/08/wii-the-greenes.html/ [wired.com], the Wii uses 17 watts of energy, compared to the PS3's 171 watts and the 360 Elite's 194 watts. I seem to remember reading that the Wii uses more energy than the PS3 and Xbox 360 when on standby. But that's because it goes down to WiiConnect24 mode, where the "Starlet" coprocessor on the video chip (an ARM9 core like the Nintendo DS's CPU) remains on and manages occasional Wi-Fi communication.
  5. re: Greenpeace means well?? by King_TJ · · Score: 4, Interesting

    I think you give them FAR too much credit with that statement! IMHO, they DON'T "mean well" by any stretch of the imagination! They're on a rampage with a skewed agenda - and it's important for people to see them for what they are, a group of radical environmental extremists.

    If you REALLY want to encourage positive changes in our "environmental footprint" - you need to do it with education and promoting scientific advances. Research in creating lower power-consumption devices, improved battery technology, an HONEST and REASONABLE approach to the subject of "recycling" ... these are all good moves. Harassing businesses and publishing negative reports about their products just makes you lose your credibility.

  6. Re:Sigh.. by gad_zuki! · · Score: 4, Interesting

    The wii uses 11 watts of power at standby by default because of the WiiConnect24 feature. Nintendo designed it so it it checks in with wifi while 'off' for updates and other tasks. This right here is a good example of bad engineering. Instead of turning this on selectively (or turned on by games that might need it), its on by default and it just eats up power. Its like leaving a new CFL bulb on 24/7. That might not seem like a lot but multiply that by the units sold and you're seeing one of the worst standby machines on the market.

  7. Re:Sigh.. by Otter · · Score: 5, Interesting
    Note that this doesn't mean that Greenpeace doesn't use misleading information, which while not useless is detrimental.

    If I'm understanding correctly, you're berating him and accusing him of trolling because repeated, willful dishonesty isn't "useless" as it gets media attention for Greenpeace?

  8. Re:Sigh.. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    The wii uses 11 watts of power at standby by default because of the WiiConnect24 feature.

    Actually, I was looking for a spot to mention this. Every feel how hot your Wii is when it's been sitting idol for a long time? Yeah, that's a lot of unneeded power drain.

    It's also something I've been thinking about for a few years now and actually found an article on it at some point called "vampire electronics" or something. It's how we have so many things "plugged in" today that we're all constantly tapping the power grid. Cell phones, coffee makers, toasters, DVDs, game consoles, portable game systems, office computers that are logged out but not turned off, etc.

    We certainly are consuming loads more energy due to technology than we use to.

  9. Re:Moron. by Klaus_1250 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    It isn't that easy.

    Seeing the way the dollar is going, it isn't the smartest move to increase supply. As long as the dollar is weak, it is better to keep the prices for oil high (downside of selling oil in dollars). The only other option would be to start selling oil in euro's (several OPEC members already hinted at this), but that would probably crash the dollar.

    Oil is a finite supply, especially the easy, cheap accessible oil. The longer you keep it under the ground, the more you can ask for it later.

    Not all OPEC members are able to increase supply. As a whole, OPEC could increase supply, but the members who's oil production has peaked wouldn't be to happy about that. They would face both decreasing production and decreasing prices.

    Regardless what OPEC does, for at least the next few years, demand will keep outgrowing supply, and thus prices will continue to rise. OPEC may be able to provide very short term relief by increasing supply, but the emphasis is short term.

    Last but not least, there is more to the oil price than just OPEC and their production. Traders (e.g. the market) are responsible for a huge increase in the price of crude oil. The price of a barrel may be 120$ on the market, but that is nowhere near the price when it leaves the production facility.

    --
    It only takes one man to change the Wisdom of the Crowd to Tyranny of the Masses.
  10. Re:Who Cares? by sexconker · · Score: 2, Interesting

    This is correct - Greenpeace doesn't rate based on what a company DOES, they rate on what a company SAYS they do.

    They typically just browse the corporate site looking for a "Find out how we're helping save the planet by going green!" link. Whatever they see on that page ("Reducing waste", "Fewer hazardous materials", "Limiting Drown a Panda in Oil Day to just twice a year") they award points for. If they don't find much info, you'll be raked over the coals.

  11. Re:Green ?! Jesus, they are not SAFE enough by AKAImBatman · · Score: 4, Interesting
    Nintendo didn't do anything wrong. This is the same bullshit that Greenpeace pulled with Apple. Because Apple didn't have a "environmental policy" listed on their website (Greenpeace didn't even ask!), Greenpeace automatically dinged them as the worst.

    As it turned out, Apple was the best of the bunch. They were already using the safest materials, used the lowest power, and generally were superior to the competition in the area of environmental consciousness. But since they didn't shout it from the mountaintops, Greenpeace decided to get some free press out of them. Assholes.

    According to TFA, they are now doing the same thing to Nintendo:

    Nintendo came in for the harshest criticism, Greenpeace stating the firm "doesn't have any environmental policies."
    Oh noes! No policy! I'll bet they even went as far as to check Nintendo's website!

    (shock! horror! awe!)

    Nevermind that Nintendo just produced the most energy efficient game console in the history of game consoles. Only handhelds use less power than the Wii.

    As far as I'm concerned, Greenpeace has lost all credibility. They can take their little crusade and shove it for all I care. Progress may be slow when you're doing it on the level, but at least you keep the trust of the public. These publicity stunts only result in lower trust, which translates to lower credibility, which impacts their ability to be a force for change.

    Not to mention all the folks who will no longer donate toward ANY of their efforts. (Hint)