TEC is an absolutely awful choice most of the time. It's highly inefficent, requiring huge amounts of energy for a modest change in temperature. That said, the

TEC is an absolutely awful choice most of the time. It's highly inefficent, requiring huge amounts of energy for a modest change in temperature. That said, they are an absolute god send for some situations. They can be made way smaller than a compressor, so if size is your primarily concern, you can make tiny refrigerators that chew through power, but can keep a soda or medical vial cold. They're also absolutely essential when vibrations MUST be kept to a minimum. Almost all astrophotography is done with cooled cameras which must not vibrate. My astrophotography camera has a pitiful micro 4/3s sensor it can cool 35C below ambient for the low low cost of 36 watts. 36 watts to cool 1/3 of a square inch. But it doesn't vibrate!