Report card- Thermal image of plugs for hard drives and cell phones in power strips. This is to illustrate the amount of energy used as “vampire”, “stand-by” or by “always on” appliances. According to Wikipedia- Standby power used by consumer electronics and appliances while they are turned off accounts for an estimated 5 to 10% of household electricity consumption, adding an estimated $3 billion to annual energy costs in the USA. “In the average home, 75% of the electricity used to power home electronics is consumed while the products are turned off.