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P3 International P4460 Kill A Watt EZ Electricity Usage Monitor | 
 enlarge | Brand: P3 International
Category: CE
Buy New: Too low to display
New (40)
Avg. Customer Rating:  49 reviews
Sales Rank: 164
Color: Gray
Media: Electronics
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 1.5 x 2.3 x 5
Legal Disclaimer: Warranty does not cover misuse of product.
MPN: P4460
Model: P4460
UPC: 751549044603
EAN: 0751549044603
ASIN: B000RGF29Q
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Features:
| • | Shows the operating costs of your household appliances | | • | Accurate within 0.2% | | • | Calculates cost and forecasts by week, month and year | | • | Displays eight critical units of measure on the large LCD display | | • | Built-in battery backup |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Connect your appliances into the Kill A Watt and measure how efficient they are. LCD display counts consumption by the Kilowatt-hour just like utility companies.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 44 more reviews...
 Killowatt Monitor July 4, 2008
It works as advertised. Really does need a backlight. I keep a flash light nearby.
Kill A Watt EZ is easy to use June 29, 2008
This unit is very easy to use and it helps with a better understanding of how much electricity is being used by such high users like a refrigerator in the garage or a flat screen TV.
Very helpful tool June 27, 2008
I wont waste time by repeating what others in this forum have said about this tool, and just still with my own personal likes and nits about it.
LIKES:
* Easy to use, fairly fast readout.
MINOR NITS: (in no particular order)
* I wish it had the ability to report on the average, min and max readings, for things like bed warmers, trickle chargers and coffee maker warming plates (these items pulse on and off to maintain a set temperature or keep a capacitor/battery topped off) ... because the meter cant average, it's readout flops back and forth between negligable and significant, depending on when you look at it. It'd be nice if you could punch up a usage chart, with an adjustable scale.
* Lacks angled display or angleable/rotatable plug - as a result, in order to avoid getting on your hands and knees, or hogging the entire outlet, I recommend getting a 3ft grounded extension cord (not included) in order to comfortablly use this device (i.e., plug the extension into the wall, then plug the kill-a-watt into the cord, then the device you're analyzing into the kill-a-watt).
* Lacks lighted display.
* I wish this unit were capable of reading and processing usage of under 1 watt.
Bottom line: recommended.
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That said, for those who are idly curious, here are some of the initial results of my own 'standby power use' survey of my house. It's not complete or exhaustive ... just some initial results, in no particular order.
Stuff taking no power or <1 watt while 'off':
* foodsaver, cuisinart food processor, kitchenaid standmixer, stick blender, braun coffee maker (it's tiny display is LCD, which takes negligable), bluetooth charger (which takes <1w even when actively charging, because the target battery is tiny), cell phone charger (0w not in use, 4w in use)
Power vampires:
* Old black & decker toaster oven, sucking 4W ... which surprised me as it was a manually operated unit that has no visible lights (when off) or touch screens.
* My newer Sony DVD player had a standby power use of <1 watt, but an older Mitsubishi VCR player was sucking 4W, and was rarely being used. Yanked.
* My cablevision converter box (currently plugged into an uninterruptible power supply) uses 18w in standby, but I cant unplug it, or it needs to go through a multi-minute reboot. Gee, you'd think they'd equip the things with non-volatile memory. Anyway, I carefully plugged it back into my apartment's electrical carotid artery, and let it resume sucking power contentedly.
* Digital blood pressure monitor, sucking 3W, even when off and unlit. Yanked.
* Middle-aged Microwave ... 4W to run an unneeded clock (which is forever needing to be reset when the power blinks) and touch screen. Unfortunately, that gets used enough to stay plugged in as well.
Haven't had a chance to measure the fridge, TV or A/Cs yet ... meanwhile, Congress should pass a law requiring all household plug-in electrical devices to not just list their standby, average and max power use in the manual, but also on the exterior of the box. Also, I think virtually all household electronic devices should include a hard 'off' button.
Anyway, once I'm done with this, I'll loan it to my friends and family, because it hasn't reached it's break-even point yet.
 Now I know what various things cost to run! June 19, 2008
3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I have been able to trim my average $224 monthly utility bill to about $125 per month by converting to 100% CF light bulbs, even above bathroom vanities, and in overhead and outdoor spotlighting. I was very happy to see my bill drop by about $25-30 a month on an annual comparison basis. Next, we started unplugging and turning off fans and lights that were not being used and then turning the thermostat up a degree.
I added double layer window treatments as well to keep the heat out. Every improvement had paid for itself and sheer curiosity led to the P3 International Kill A Watt Electricity Usage Monitor.
I plugged the power strip for my home entertainment center into this after plugging in my local utility rate, and then sat by with bated breathe waiting for the initial estimate. Nothing came through. I found out that this needed to run for at least a couple of days before it would come up with a number. Once I got a number I left it plugged in for a month and then checked again. Overall, I was very pleased. We have a 42" HDTV, HD-DVD player, xbox 360, stereo receiver with two speakers, Cable box, CD player, and a Squeezebox Duet system. Annually, the total cost is $54. I felt that was very reasonable, and it was nice to have a number. Next I plan to plug it into a lamp, and since all of our lamps are using the same bulb, I will be able to get a very good estimate of their annual (average) cost of operation as well.
If you're a big numbers person, or are looking to find ways to reduce your energy cost, this could lead you in the right direction, and it's a fun gadget to have.
Cons: screen is not too bright, and if you have it plugged in low behind things, it's hard to get to and read. Solution: buy a power strip liberator.
I think that the power companies should rent and/or loan these out to their customers (with a deposit of course). They're always trying to get people to use less energy, and this could be an affordable eye opener.
 Screen keeps falling off...no help from manufacture getting it fixed or replaced June 18, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
The screen keeps falling off exposing the LCD display. I've email P3 several times and have received no response. My next step is to contact Amazon for help with the situation. Due to the lack of customer service from the manufacture, I give this product only one star.
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