Power supplies, storage, servers... They are all getting greener by the minute.

D-Link, however, is turning their attention to networking gear (only natural really) with its Green Ethernet initiative. There are some clever tech tricks involved, but let's allow D-Link to explain:

Power conserved when links are idle

Even when a computer is shut down, switches often remain on and continue to consume considerable amounts of power. Through D-Link's Green Ethernet technology, the new switches can detect when a computer is turned off and will respond accordingly by powering down the corresponding port into standby mode and reducing power used for that port.

Optimized power usage based on dynamic detection of cable length

Normally, switches send full power to Ethernet cables regardless of the actual length of the cable. Through D-Link's Green Ethernet technology, the switches are able to analyze the cable's length and adjust the power accordingly. Since the cable length used by Home/SOHO users is mostly less than 20m, power consumption can be significantly reduced.

Green Ethernet technology makes its debut on the company's SOHO-flavored DGS-2200 series of desktop switches. D-Link will follow them up in November with rackmount switches, DGS-1016D (16-port) and DGS-1024 (24-port). Find more information, including a tip-filled whitepaper, over at the Green Ethernet section of their website.