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This article examines the widely cited claim that the network electricity use associated with a wireless personal digital assistant ͑PDA͒ is equal to the electricity consumed by a refrigerator. It compiles estimates of the data flows of wireless PDAs and related networks and allocates network and phone system electricity use based on these estimates. It also conducts sensitivity analyses to verify the robustness of these calculations. This analysis demonstrates that the network electricity use associated with a wireless PDA cannot equal that of a typical refrigerator, even under the most extreme assumptions. Our best-estimate case shows network electricity use for wireless PDAs of 0.5 kW•h/year, and therefore claims that wireless PDAs use as much electricity as a refrigerator are too high by more than a factor of 1,000. Even in our upper-limit assessment, the electricity used by a new U.S. refrigerator is about 100 times greater than the network electricity use associated with a wireless PDA.

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The high-technology sector -characterized by facilities such as laboratories, cleanrooms, and data centers -is often where innovation first occurs. These facilities are sometimes referred to as the "racecars" of the buildings sector because new technologies and strategies to increase performance often trickle down to other building types. Although these facilities are up to 100 times as energy-intensive as conventional buildings, highly cost-effective energy efficiency opportunities are often overlooked. Facility engineers are in the trenches identifying opportunities to improve energy productivity but often are unable to make the broader business case to financial decision makers. This article presents the technical opportunities for reducing energy costs, along with their broader strategic value for high-tech industries.

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