Nightly unplug vs. sleep

Most nights I put my PC to sleep. Is it better for the controller to leave it plugged in but in “sleep mode”, or should I unplug it, so it’s powered off? It’s the ‘K.L. 49 Essential Mk3’.

While it may depend on individual computer power settings, but generally It’s fine to leave it plugged in while compute is sleeping. If you are not having connection issues when resuming, then no worries.

Good question. There is a list of pros and cons as long as your arm for leaving equipment turned on vs turning it off, and it seems to be one of those things that attracts passionate beliefs in each corner. Mostly, I’m firmly in the ‘turn it off’ camp,. As well as saving energy (albeit a small amount) there are also certain parts which have a finite lifespan such the LCD screen and the back-lighting. It just seems common sense to me to turn off these kind of devices to potentially lengthen the lifespan of parts which will be difficult to replace.

Some higher-powered devices have their lifespan potentially shorted by repeated daily shut downs and restarts, and objectively and demonstrably their lifespan is increased by leaving them running 24/7 (power-consumption concerns aside). But controller keyboards aren’t one of them.

Okay, thanks

Okay, thanks for the help. If the ‘K.L. Essential MK3’ controller is plugged into USB and the PC is on “Sleep” it still has some power b/c the screen will stay lit until the controller goes to sleep. If I leave it plugged in (USB), but the PC is turned-off, does that draw any power to the controller or is it the same as if it were unplugged?

It varies. Some computers still output 5V to their ‘powered’ USB sockets even if the computer is turned off. In which case yes the keyboard will still be drawing at least some power, even when it sleeps. Won’t be more than a low-powered lamp though.

Okay, thanks for the help