Are you looking to purchase  a “green” laptop?  I will be in the market soon to replace my old Dell and would like to buy something environmentally friendly without losing any quality in performance.

There are many computer companies which claim their products are eco-friendly but just because they say they are doesn’t mean their products are any better for the environment than their non-green competition.   How do you know if they meet the “green” stamp of approval?

The  Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT) is a system that helps purchasers make an informed buying decision by being able to compare, evaluate, and select desktop computers, laptops, workstations, and monitors based upon their environmental attributes.

EPEAT evaluates products on 23 mandatory environmental criteria and 28 optional criteria.  In order for a product to be registered as an EPEAT product it must satisfy all 23 required standards.

Once a product meets EPEAT’s approval it is then ranked into one of three tiers according to environmental performance. All registered product must achieve the bronze status, silver complies with the 23 required criteria plus at least half of the optional criteria, and the highest ranking of gold satisfies the 23 criteria with an additional 75% of the optional criteria.   A reference table of the 51 standards can be found  here.

TOP 10 Laptops Ranking Gold in EPEAT’S Registry.

1.  Toshiba Portege R500 – PPR50U.

2. HP Compaq 2510p Notebook PC

3. HP Compaq 2710p Notebook PC

4. Toshiba Portege M700/710 PPM70U

5. Toshiba Portege M700/M710 PPM70C

6. Toshiba Tecra R10 PTRB3U

7. Toshiba Portege A600/A605 PPA60U

8. Toshiba Portege R600 PPR60U

9. Toshiba Portege M750 PPM75U

10. Apple 17-inch MacBook Pro, 2.66GHz (MB604LL)

Several other companies are taking action to reduce their carbon footprints and produce laptops that are not emitting destructive chemicals into the atmosphere.  Dell, Sony, ASUS,and  Lenovo also have products listed in EPEAT’s gold ranking database!   When you get a chance take a look to see all the variety of products available to you that are “green!”