The gang at Yahoo! Tech is packing comfy shoes and making lists of everything we want to check out at CES next week. Top on my list is to find out just how "green" this mega trade show will be this year.

The Consumer Electronics Association has vowed it has taken steps to reduce the carbon footprint of this 1.8 million-square-foot show by investing in renewable energy, reforestation, and energy-efficiency projects to offset 20,000 tons of show-related carbon. There also will be more recycling opportunities. And the words "green" and "energy efficient" appear more than ever among the gargantuan list of attendees and products.

So I'll be looking for products that actually deliver on the promise to reduce energy consumption at home -- a tall order at a show that draws 2,700 exhibitors and 140,000 attendees to see the latest electronics that will make years' past products obsolete and, hopefully, recyclable. On my list:

• Affordable home automatic devices and systems that truly help families cut down on energy use. Control4, for example, has put the focus on energy savings and will unveil ways it is working with electric utility companies to provide usage meters so that homeowners can cut energy usage.

• Effective devices to measure energy use of new electronics and appliances. I'll be checking out the Watts Up electricity meter that determines what a standard 120-volt AC device will cost to run.

• TVs and other home electronics that use less energy than their predecessors, not more. I'll be looking at TVs that claim to save energy without compromising picture quality.

As we adopt more technology at home, finding ways to save energy will become ever more important.