PowerSwitch

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11199771

I never got the point myself. If you have something on, most of the time you actually want it on! You're unlikely to switch it off unless its something you don't really need, and the meter convinces you the cost is substantial enough to be concerned about the waste. Even lights being left on unnecessarily do not register that much in terms of cost to the individual.

What we do need are applicances that are more energy efficient, eliminate standby modes, lifestyles not so dependent on electronic entertainment etc etc

Research by a University of Oxford scientist found that the devices alone were unlikely to lead to an overall reduction in the demand for energy.

Maybe it needs a human to read it, and turn things off if the reading is too high. Surely they're just information devices for people enlightened enough to see the point in having one.

For what they cost (Owls are available at Costco for £15.99 plus VAT) I think they are worth every penny.

If you switch off everything except essentials and get a base figure, its easy to tell if things are left on, or see whats gobbling lots of power, we tend to idle around .17 Kw on idle, Freezers, Fridge, Cordless Phones etc..

You realise for instance how much a Sky Box eats and learn to switch it off at the wall.

We have found ours extremely useful.
We had one before our wind turbine and as phobos says you soon learn what takes the most power and just how much a device uses on standby and in some cases just plugged in!

Since having our wt it now tells us how much we are exporting (when the wind is blowing) and how much we are importing (when the wind is not blowing enough).
A great inexpensive device.