Some internet boxes can consume 4 times more than other models

Arcep has just published its annual survey on the energy impact of internet boxes and the latter can see their price vary significantly depending on the model and its consumption.

The Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, Posts and Press Distribution (or more commonly known as “Arcep”) regularly carries out studies on the electronic equipment of the French. In its latest report, the institute looks in particular at the energy impact of our everyday equipment and in particular the boxes of internet providers.

These small boxes are now very widespread across the country and in the homes of millions of French people. Their main goal is to create the link between our equipment (computers, smartphones, tablets, etc.) and the networks of major operators. This then allows you to browse the Internet using Wi-Fi or the box's Ethernet port.

However, not all internet boxes on sale from operators are necessarily equal. These have different speeds allowing you to browse the internet more or less quickly. Some also offer other advantages such as the addition of an integrated hard drive, a Wi-Fi repeater or a TV box.

But did you know that these additions also have a strong impact on the consumption of your equipment? Although these offers are often already more expensive in practice, they also have a certain impact on the electricity consumption of your household. This is one of the points noted by Arcep in its latest report where we observe that fiber boxes with integrated hard drive can consume up to 4 times more than a simple xDSL box (including in particular boxes very widespread ADSL). On average, an xDSL box consumes between 6.6 and 9.7 watts depending on the model. A box with an integrated hard drive will consume between 15.8 and 25 watts.

It is therefore possible that the box you have consumes much more than if you were equipped with a simple xDSL box. However, keep in mind that your connection speed could be significantly impacted if you decide to only settle for a copper xDSL network and not fiber.

We also need to put these figures into context. The average price of electricity consumption is rather measured in kilowatt per hour and not in single watts. As a result, the difference in instantaneous consumption of an internet box is insignificant depending on the equipment you have with it.