@drewdevault unfortunately, we already have too many examples of people always preferring familiarity and convenience over any but very immediately threatening environmental concerns.

@drewdevault could you elaborate? Is it that much more efficient?

@drewdevault wow I had no idea! But this is specific to mobile chips? If so, why is it different on desktop?

@drewdevault makes sense. But given the higher power envelope of desktop chips I would imagine that even a smaller increase in efficiency there would still have a sizeable impact on the environment I would imagine.

@drewdevault yeah i can imagine. Especially since afaik emissions from manufacturing are the largest chunk for almost any device.

@drewdevault @jacobscharmberg
Does that always result in lower total energy use by the whole system? 🤔

It's not necessarily better to use the GPU if it ends up using the same or more power in the end.

Likewise if software problems prompt someone to buy new hardware, the embodied energy of a new device will take a long time for energy savings to pay off, if ever.

@drewdevault @jacobscharmberg

That's true in theory, but I wonder how well it plays out in practice.

GPUs enable an abundance approach to UI designs that nobody would even try on the CPU because its too slow.

The net result might not be a savings in energy if we use more because the GPU encourages waste.

Idk, it reminds me of the tumble dryer versus the clothes line.
https://solar.lowtechmagazine.com/2018/01/bedazzled-by-energy-efficiency

@drewdevault @jacobscharmberg
And now we have mobile apps with full motion video spash and login screens to show for it.

That's sort of what I'm questioning, not whether the chips are more efficient but if the big picture plays out better for the environment.

@drewdevault @jacobscharmberg That's debatable: how often do people change workstations? How many people even use a workstation in the first place nowadays? vs. how often do people change phones? how many people use a phone?

Without researching the numbers - so I could be wrong - my hunch is that the democratization of smartphones was the worst thing that digitalization has ever done to the environment.

@ska @jacobscharmberg @drewdevault That is a valid aspect too.

I have acquired an "old" refurbished workstation as my new machine. With a few "features" disabled and an adequate operating system (QubesOS) it is possible to safely use it and it is more than sufficient for my purposes.

That isn't possible with mobile devices. They skip straight into e-waste territory.