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Right now many companies are looking to go green, and while some are doing it out of a feeling of environmental responsibility, there are many that are doing it mainly in the hope of saving some green.
This has led many businesses to look for more efficient server room hardware, desktops and office environmental systems. But what about your computer monitors? Like TVs, monitors can often be energy hogs.
Not surprisingly, vendors have started to introduce green computer monitors, and I recently had the chance to test out a new one from NEC.
The NEC MultiSync E222W is a 22-inch LCD monitor that provides several features designed to make the monitor run more efficiently and also let the user track how efficient the monitor is being. Along with the “green” features, the monitor also has several elements attractive to business users, including a screen that can be rotated to a portrait mode for viewing long documents, Web pages or images.
The stand for the monitor proved to be one of the nicest features. Along with the full swivel, the monitor could also tilt nicely and I could easily adjust the height of the monitor, making it possible for any user to get it to just the right eye level.
The integrated control buttons on the monitor included a little joystick-like button that made it possible to cycle and choose from among the monitor options. Along with the standard resolution and viewing controls, the NEC MultiSync E222W included options for controlling the green features.
These included running the monitor in ECO mode, which is designed to lower power consumption but also lead to a darker screen in general. I could also define a timer to shut the monitor down completely after a period of not being used. 
The monitor includes Intelligent Power Management capabilities to lower power use of the monitor in general. And viewing the info screen on the monitor also displayed a carbon meter, which ostensibly shows the user the energy they’ve saved by using this monitor.
As a monitor itself, the NEC MultiSync E222W is pretty good. The resolution and clarity were good, especially when viewing text, documents and Websites. Serious graphics users would probably choose to go with a higher-end professional scale monitor.
At a price of $269, the NEC MultiSync E222W is a bit more expensive than monitors of comparable screen quality, though the energy efficiency features and the nice stand could make it a worthwhile option for businesses interested in cutting down on their energy usage.
For more information, go to www.necdisplays.com.