Undervolting

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What Does Undervolting Mean?

Undervolting is a process through which voltage to computer processors and components is decreased dynamically on run-time. It is a process within dynamic voltage scaling that enables conserving electric voltage to reduce energy consumption and heat produced by computing components.

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Techopedia Explains Undervolting

Undervolting is primarily implemented in devices that have limited electrical supply and are powered by a battery, such as laptops and mobile devices. Typically, undervolting is managed through software based power management utilities. Such utilities are available by default in most operating systems. Although, undervolting increases energy efficiency and enables devices to run longer on battery, it also has performance drawbacks. The lesser quantity of voltage supplied results in a cap on processing power. Moreover, undervolting a system further than its minimal voltage threshold can result in system crashes.

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Margaret Rouse
Technology Specialist
Margaret Rouse
Technology Specialist

Margaret is an award-winning writer and educator known for her ability to explain complex technical topics to a non-technical business audience. Over the past twenty years, her IT definitions have been published by Que in an encyclopedia of technology terms and cited in articles in the New York Times, Time Magazine, USA Today, ZDNet, PC Magazine, and Discovery Magazine. She joined Techopedia in 2011. Margaret’s idea of ​​a fun day is to help IT and business professionals to learn to speak each other’s highly specialized languages.