For many years, television sets have not been equipped with a real on/off switch. However, the simple circuit described here makes it possible to galvanically disconnect the television from the mains using the remote control. This saves power and increases safety, as mains voltage spikes can no longer cause damage to the set.

According to EU legislation, a television may not consume more than 0.5 W in standard standby mode, which roughly amounts to just under 4 kWh per year. Financially, this won’t break the bank — we are talking about a few euros in electricity costs at most. But when you consider that there are more than 17 million TV sets in a relatively small country such as the Netherlands that collectively consume almost 7 MWh per year in standby, the picture suddenly looks very different. And when additional peripherals are connected to a TV (active network connections, voice control, quick start options, and the like), this “phantom consumption” only increases.

Of cour...