Ubuntu 8.04 vs. Windows Vista Power Usage

Written by Michael Larabel in Operating Systems on 25 April 2008 at 01:00 PM EDT. Page 2 of 2. 8 Comments.

When the Lenovo ThinkPad T60 was idling with Ubuntu 8.04 LTS "Hardy Heron" it had quite an advantage over Windows Vista Ultimate. Ubuntu was consuming five less Watts, which equates to more than 10% less power, over Microsoft Windows Vista. In our first server power consumption test, Vista Ultimate had consumed less power but it was just two Watts and both of these systems were consuming in excess of 170 Watts. With that said, however, both tests aren't precisely accurate due to all of the factors involved with measuring the power consumption between operating systems. Without a doubt, however, Linux has been improving when it comes to power management in large part thanks to Intel and their various projects such as PowerTOP and LessWatts. The tick-less kernel feature is another important addition to the Linux ecosystem. For tips on extending Ubuntu's battery life, check out this article.

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Michael Larabel

Michael Larabel is the principal author of Phoronix.com and founded the site in 2004 with a focus on enriching the Linux hardware experience. Michael has written more than 20,000 articles covering the state of Linux hardware support, Linux performance, graphics drivers, and other topics. Michael is also the lead developer of the Phoronix Test Suite, Phoromatic, and OpenBenchmarking.org automated benchmarking software. He can be followed via Twitter, LinkedIn, or contacted via MichaelLarabel.com.