iShutdown review

We review iShutdown, an iPhone remote control app that puts you in charge of your computer hardware whereever you are

If you've had an electricity bill recently or heard the power companies simultaneously reporting record profits and massive impending cost increases in the same breath, then you'll be looking around your house and office for anything and everything that can be turned off.

Over the space of a year, boiling the kettle, leaving power adaptors plugged in and having your computer equipment running continuously can add a massive chunk to your ludicrously inflated energy costs. For example, a monitor and desktop computer power supply, even when idle, is likely burning a couple of hundred watts per hour, easily adding fifty quid to your annual bill - and it's not even being used at the time.

Strangely enough, iShoutdown isn't really pegged as an energy efficiency application, but a remote control one. It gives you a few nice, simple options for switching your gear on and off wherever you are. You can hibernate, shout down, restart, suspend or wake any number of computers with a quick button press on your iPhone's screen.

Wake On LAN (WOL) is a popular feature already, which certainly isn't limited to iPhone apps. Sending a 'magic packet' across a network will be detected by a WOL-equipped computer's network card, even if the computer is turned off.

The computer then boots up, so you can access it remotely (presumably this was originally invented for the benefit of tech support types who were spending their days running up and down stairs), or simply get it ready for when you arrive at your desk. If your startup times are as steady as ours, this feature alone is worth the app's price.

Remote shut down and restart commands aren't built into computers in that same way, so installing the free iShutdown client is required for these functions. It's a very lightweight app, which runs in the background and takes absolutely no setting up at all, so it's definitely not a downside to the iPhone app.

This app detects any computers on the local network running the iShutdown client and adds them to your control list. Indeed, the computer-based client solves problems from the iPhone end, removing any set up procedures you might face when trying to find a local IP address (which can change at will).

Some tech wizardry is required on your part, however. Port forwarding, if you're using a router - and who isn't these days, especially iPhone users? - is necessary to allow iShutdown's commands to pass through your gateways and reach the host computer. You also need Apple's Bonjour client installed if you're controlling a PC.

These steps aren't massively difficult, but neither are they simple to beginners and support on the app side is a bit limited.

Once you're set up and running, however, iShutdown quickly becomes a 'first home page' app. As previously mentioned, it's not pegged as an eco-app, but that's quickly what it turns into. Nipping out for a while or finding yourself lying out in front of the telly, you can easily put your computer to sleep to save on electric gold and still have it on and ready when you return to the desk.

It's a small but surprisingly valuable feature set that any office worker or regular computer user should look into.

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