Anyone who can relate to the recent cell phone commercial about “butt dialing” knows how our dependence on technology can sometimes get in the way of our best intentions.

Beyond the inconvenience of dialing or answering some unintended calls, there’s an energy cost as well.

Image: Flickr/Creative Commons

I recently changed cell phones and quickly noticed that I was not getting a battery charge to last as long as I expected. That got me to pay a lot more attention to what my phone was doing when I wasn’t using it. I discovered that the holster I carry it in would often get bumped by my arm, jacket, or something else. That caused the screen to light up in preparation for activity, if it wasn’t already trying to dial “brrvdsd” or some other incoherent phone number.

Cell phones, even the latest smart phones that act more like mini mobile computers, have gotten much better on the energy consumption side. A typical phone uses about 50 watt-hours of electricity to charge. But draining that battery with unintended dialing or texting--by any body part--increases the number of times you have to recharge.

That part of the equation amounts to pennies. Unplugging the charger when it’s not in use saves about $3.50 a year and that’s a way bigger energy vampire.

Multiplied by the millions of people who own cell phones, even those pennies would add up, but there’s a hidden cost to consider. And it’s big enough to make most of us take notice.

Rechargeable batteries have a lifespan built on a number of charges. Double the amount of charging you’re doing to keep your phone running and you cut its lifespan in half. Even with the discount for signing up on a new two-year contract with my wireless provider, my new Blackberry still cost $99.

That’s real money.

Fortunately, there’s a handy fix for most of us. It’s the “lock” button on your gadget. Once I started locking the keypad on my phone, a battery charge started lasting for 2-3 days, depending on how much I called. That’s in line with what I expected based on my previous phone. The same goes for my iPod.

So THIS SPACE encourages you to discover the lock function on your electronics as the ONE THING you can do this week to save electricity and keep a little more cash in your bank account.

Your planet and your wallet will thank you.