Feeling the pains of your monthly utilities a bit more in these troubled economic times? You might want to think about switching off your gaming system every so often. According to a new study issued by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), Americans are taking a huge energy hit from consoles that are left on while not in use.

"If you leave your Xbox 360 or Sony Play Station 3 on all the time, you can cut your electric bill by as much as $100 a year simply by turning it off when you are finished playing," said NRDC's Noah Horowitz. "With so many struggling in today's economy-it's important to realize there are simple steps gamers can take to lower their energy costs. And if manufacturers make future systems more energy efficient, they'll be doing the right thing for consumers' pockets, for our clean energy future, and for the environment."

According to the organization, power saving features implemented by the big three--Nintendo, Sony, and Microsoft--could save consumers some $1 billion a year, reducing greenhouse pollution by a rate equivalent to the yearly output of all the cars in San Jose, California.