Jan292012

How to calculate the power supply and check how much I have?

Osama Javaid asks:

I have this system configuration:
Intel DH61WW motherboard
Intel Core i3-2100 3.10 GHz
4GB DDR3 RAM
nVidia GT 430 2GB

And I want to install a DVD-Writer, a webcam and a printer in future. How can I know the power supply needed when all of these components are performing at highest possible limit and how can I know how much power supply is installed in my PC now?

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System: Windows 7 Ultimate 32-bit
Tagged: hardware tips, power consumption, power supply

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4 Answers -

0 votes

M.S. Smith

January 30, 2012

The bad news is that there’s no way to know for sure how much power these components will require. Manufacturers of peripherals normally don’t publish that information.

The good news is that they don’t publish that information because it doesn’t really matter. All the components you mentioned are going to draw minimal power. And I’d be very surprised if the printer didn’t have it own power adapter.

So this isn’t an issue you need be concerned about.

0 votes

FIDELIS

January 30, 2012

Hello, like previous comment said, it should not affect power too much when you include the hardware you mention. The webcam will only use the USB power, the printer should not matter and the DVD writer should not be much. To find out how much power you will need after everything is included you could use a power supply calculator. Here is the thermaltake power supply calculator. I already chose some of the numbers you have based in your processor, cpu, graphics card, 1 harddrive and memory. Also added the one extra USB device. It says that your system would be using around 277 watts. Visit the next link, and pick your component or edit the ones I used:

http://www.thermaltake.outervision.com/Power

Here is another power supply calculator:
http://educations.newegg.com/tool/psucalc/index.html

To find out the wattage of your current power supply, you could open the tower and see the specs for it on the side. You could also try checking the manufacturer’s site for the specs for your model and brand. Some times it tells you the wattage there.