When plugged in, the Eton Blackout Buddy uses less than a watt despite emitting a blue glow backlight for the time. Interestingly when the radio is turned on it still uses less than a watt. In the back the sticker says that the device uses 2.4 W, but unless my readings are wrong the FR100 doesn't use that much power, which is good. I can't really say much about its anemic LED light that's supposed to act as your flashlight during a power outage, however.