Americans are buying more gadgets than ever before, but those gadgets are not using more energy collectively. Why not? Well, according to a new report from the research firm Fraunhofer USA and commissioned by the Consumer Electronics Association, more efficient TV technology and a switch from desktop and laptop computers to tablets delivered a sizable drop in the total energy use by gadgets in the U.S. in 2013.

That’s good news for the argument that technology and innovation can help solve some of the world’s most pressing issues, and it also shows that there’s considerable room for energy efficiency upgrades for digital devices. A similar situation was discovered with the increasing energy use of the world’s data centers. The CEA report is also an indicator that the push for energy efficient standards by government groups like Energy Star is working, to some extent.

Broken, tossed TV, courtesy of sinada /…