There are approximately 160 million of these devices in the U.S, according to a recent study from the Natural Resources Defense Council. They eat electricity because they operate at nearly full power even when not in use.
"The electricity required to operate all U.S. boxes is equal to the annual household electricity consumption of the entire state of Maryland, results in 16 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions, and costs households more than $3 billion each year."
Two-thirds of the enery consumed by the set-top boxes occurs when people are not watching TV or recording content.
