I’m hoping this is an ok community to post this in…

I’m looking for a surge protector with battery back up for my computer. I’ve looked up a few on Amazon but some of the reviews have left me leery. There’s so much junk on Amazon I’m hoping that someone here might be able to recommend one they’ve used.

TIA!

  •  ono   ( @ono@lemmy.ca ) 
    7•1 year ago

    Uninterruptible power supply, or UPS.

    When it comes time to replace the battery, I suggest avoiding the cheap aftermarket ones. They don’t last very long.

  •  qprimed   ( @qprimed@lemmy.ml ) 
    5•1 year ago

    CyberPower CP1500AVRLCD (various version iterations) UPS units have been cheap, reliable go-to choices in many instances.

    they are stepped square-wave units, but are used quite a bit in home-lab setups and are pretty well supported by NUT if you are on linux.

    edit: I have used them for years to replace APC units. only issue has been cosmetic input voltage vs output voltage reporting mismatch via USB on very early v1 units.

  •  FlowVoid   ( @FlowVoid@midwest.social ) 
    4•1 year ago

    I bought the Cyberpower 1500 six years ago, and I have no complaints. Just last week it worked perfectly when the power went out.

    I use it to keep my NAS and router running, they will last about two hours on battery. But a desktop + monitor might have higher power requirements.

    •  sharpiemarker   ( @Sharpiemarker@feddit.de ) 
      4•1 year ago

      You brought up a good point.

      It would be helpful to know OP’s use case for the UPS. Just need enough time to save your game/work? Want to keep your modem and router running so you can have wifi while the power is out?

      Something to keep in mind is, without a massive battery and a very expensive UPS, you won’t be gaming in the dark for very long. Maybe 15 minutes max with most consumer-grade UPS. Even commercial-grade UPS only stay on long enough to gracefully shut down services. For anything more, a generator is best.

      •  LoganNineFingers   ( @LoganNineFingers@lemmy.ca ) OP
        3•1 year ago

        This is a good point. I’m mostly concerned with keeping the computer on for running Plex when I’m away. I do t care so mu h when I’m at home, it’s easy enough to turn the computer back on but when I’m on the road I have no such luxury. I don’t need the server to run, or internet or anything. It can stop working for a power outage, just when the power comes back on od like access.

        I hope no one gets upset I posted in a gaming community, the pc communities are either geared towards building or gaming and this was neither…

  •  Scary le Poo   ( @Scary_le_Poo@beehaw.org ) 
    2•1 year ago

    The problem with UPS is the fact that you have to replace the battery reasonably often. It can get quite expensive. What you might want to consider is a power conditioner. Furman makes some that are excellent and pyle Makes some great affordable ones.

    Regardless of which direction you go, don’t cheap out.

    •  TemporaryBoyfriend   ( @TemporaryBoyfriend@lemmy.ca ) 
      3•1 year ago

      Uh, no. A decent UPS is $300-500, and replacement batteries can be had for under $100, and if you keep the unit cool and clean, batteries should last 3 to 5 years.

      Also, if your UPS has 12V 7Ah batteries, you can sometimes find 12V 9Ah batteries in exactly the same form – so you get slightly longer run times after you replace the batteries the first time.