Good Uninterruptible Power Supply?

[SnowSurfer]

does anyone know of a good one that is under 100 dollars but can keep my computer running incase of a spike?

thanks

[zippyjuan]

I'd go with an Antec power supply and a surge protector.

[SnowSurfer]

yeah but when my power goes off i dont want my computer to go off..., i have an antec truepower and a surge but when my power goes off in my house...wam computer goes off...

[zippyjuan]

So you need a generator or a battery?

[bbrian]

From the title, he's looking for a UPS. For under $100 you're going to have a hard time finding a 'good' one with more than just a few minutes of uptime. For $150 CompUSA has an APC model BX1000 that is 1000VA and has up to 30+ minutes uptime depending on your power consumption. It also has Voltage Regulation support to prevent brownouts which is more common and also very damaging to electronics.
http://www.compusa.com/products/product_info.asp?product_code=298345&pfp=XSELLPRODAUTO&xsfrom=298348&xsdesc=Battery+BackUp+1500+UPS
It will also shut your pc down gracefully if the battery gets too low.. and if your bios supports it, then you could set it to come back on when power comes back.

[zippyjuan]

Sorry, I was trying to picture a standard internal power supply that would not go off when it was unplugged or interupted.

[SnowSurfer]

lol its ok zippy, i actually have a generator but bettween the time when the power goes out and the generator kicks on is about 4 seconds, not enough time for the computer to sustain power and also plenty of time for things to break. i am going to look into the apc one tmrw thanks

[PrObLy]

lol its ok zippy, i actually have a generator but bettween the time when the power goes out and the generator kicks on is about 4 seconds, not enough time for the computer to sustain power and also plenty of time for things to break. i am going to look into the apc one tmrw thanks


How often does your power go out? It sounds like this is a frequent event, in which case, get on your power company's ass!

[DarkFury]

Personally, I use the Tripp Lite Internet Office 500.

It gives me about 15 mins of runtime during an outage... and that's with my PC and 21 inch monitor connected to it.

Pretty much, when the power goes out... you just want it to stay up long enough for you to power yourself down without losing anything. And for me... this UPS has fit the bill.

BTW... did a check on pricegrabber.com and it appears that ZipZoomFly has it for $69.99 plus shipping. Pretty much, I paid about $100 when I bought mine, so this seems like a pretty good deal to me.

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/ProductDetail.jsp?ProductCode=270493&affiliate=pricegrabber

Also... this UPS acts as a surge protector and as a power conditioner... so "bad power" doesn't get to your PC. And that's a GOOD thing. :thumb:

[ski]

Best Buy / Circuit City / etc. have these on sale for $50-$70 often. It'll be a 500VA to 750VA (if you're lucky), so it'll keep you running for 20-30 minutes.

[bbrian]

Personally, I use the Tripp Lite Internet Office 500.

It gives me about 15 mins of runtime during an outage... and that's with my PC and 21 inch monitor connected to it.

Pretty much, when the power goes out... you just want it to stay up long enough for you to power yourself down without losing anything. And for me... this UPS has fit the bill.
According to Tipp Lite, that model supports:
Backup time: half load 17 minutes, full load 5 minutes
500 VA (280 watts) power capacity

At only 280 watts I would think you would be at or near full load. I'm suprised you can get 15 minutes of uptime.

To appease DF, the rest of this post is to explain why I need additional uptime. If the board would let me, I would have made it a seperate post. It is not trying to claim my suggestion is superior:

I've got a few Tripp Lite units as well, but I use the APC for my main system. We have very frequent power outages and brown-outs and I don't want my machine shutting down if at all possible. The APC even has an optional extended battery pack to get well over an hour of uptime that i am considering getting.

[SnowSurfer]

yea during the summer the power grid is so stressed that the power just goes boom, off. it sucks but theres nothing i can do, the power grid is flawed in the northeast :)

[DarkFury]

According to Tipp Lite, that model supports:
Backup time: half load 17 minutes, full load 5 minutes
500 VA (280 watts) power capacity

At only 280 watts I would think you would be at or near full load. I'm suprised you can get 15 minutes of uptime.

I've got a few Tripp Lite units as well, but I use the APC for my main system. We have very frequent power outages and brown-outs and I don't want my machine shutting down if at all possible. The APC even has an optional extended battery pack to get well over an hour of uptime that i am considering getting.Honestly, I've never had a problem with it... other than putting a new battery in it after 3 years.

I liked it so much, I bought a second one (for my HTPC and VCR downstairs).

As far as the wattage goes... I'm sure that my PC wasn't running at full rated capacity when the power went out... and even so, 5 mins is plenty of time to shut down most applications and save your work.

A UPS is not meant to run a long period of time on battery... however it just gives you the comfort that it is there in an emergency.

BTW... how much did you pay for that APC with extended battery pack. The original poster stated that he wanted to stay under $100... and your setup sounds like more than that limit. For under $100, the Tripp Lite system I suggested is very good.

[bbrian]

Honestly, I've never had a problem with it... other than putting a new battery in it after 3 years.
Nothing wrong with Tripp Lite at all.. They make good UPS'. He doesn't indicate anything about how much power he draws. If the PC isn't in a sleep mode and the monitor is actually on, it doesn't take much to pull a couple of hundred watts. A lot of people also have home networks and want their network on the UPS as well to keep their internet connection up.

As far as the wattage goes... I'm sure that my PC wasn't running at full rated capacity when the power went out... and even so, 5 mins is plenty of time to shut down most applications and save your work.
That's great if thats what your intended purpose of the UPS is. Unfortunately it is a regular occurence for my power to go out 5-15 minutes several times a week and sometimes several times in a day. I run my own email server and web server and I work from home sometimes. I don't want my PC going down at all, but the power isn't bad enough to justify a permanent generator.

A UPS is not meant to run a long period of time on battery... however it just gives you the comfort that it is there in an emergency.Depends on the UPS. I worked for a company where a generator was not an option and we had several UPS' weighing several tons that had several hours of uptime under full load and had over 24 hours under partial loads.

BTW... how much did you pay for that APC with extended battery pack. The original poster stated that he wanted to stay under $100... and your setup sounds like more than that limit. For under $100, the Tripp Lite system I suggested is very good. As I stated above, it is $150 (not including the optional pack). For under $100 you get very limited uptime and in many cases very limited protection from spikes. For $50 more he gets a lot more uptime, better spike protection, and room to grow with optional battery pack.

I know it is more than what he originally listed, but a lot of people don't know much about UPS' and don't know that this amount of power and uptime is available cheaply.

[DarkFury]

bbrian..

You get what you pay for... however, sometimes you can pay for more than you need. Either way, I don't doubt that your UPS is a fine product. APC makes some good stuff (outside of the big recall they recently had on some of their UPS systems) BTW.. you never mentioned which model you have. So which one is it?

Everyone has to do what is comfortable for them. If I had your requirements... I'd probably go with a more powerful solution myself. But for now... I'm served well by this current unit.

Maybe when it finally dies (not that the batteries cost that much to replace) I'd consider a stronger UPS... but honestly, since I don't run a webserver or keep my PCs on 24/7 I really don't have the same need.

But back to the original point... the parameters were "under $100"... and that pretty much ends the debate right there. Unless he wants to up his dollar limit.

BTW... I have an APC UPS at work. On the downside it takes up alot more deskspace than my TrippLite unit of similar power handling capability. But overall, they are still both very good units.

[SnowSurfer]

im going to look at both today (not buying yet but im looking so see their actually size in person)

i will probably order online cause...everything is basically cheaper online

[bbrian]

You get what you pay for... however, sometimes you can pay for more than you need. Either way, I don't doubt that your UPS is a fine product. APC makes some good stuff (outside of the big recall they recently had on some of their UPS systems) BTW.. you never mentioned which model you have. So which one is it?
http://www.gotapex.com/forums/showpost.php?p=888176&postcount=5

But back to the original point... the parameters were "under $100"... and that pretty much ends the debate right there. Unless he wants to up his dollar limit.
What debate? I mentioned that my suggestion was over his dollar limit. He specifically mentioned that he wanted to keep his computer 'running'. I also mentioned that it is hard to find a 'good' UPS with a reasonable amount of uptime for under $100, then I made a suggestion for one that isn't a whole lot more. Yours is a 'good' UPS, but I don't consider the uptime reasonable if you are specifically looking to keep your computer running.

BTW... I have an APC UPS at work. On the downside it takes up alot more deskspace than my TrippLite unit of similar power handling capability. But overall, they are still both very good units. The size of the UPS almost always proportional to its uptime. It's pretty difficult to shrink a lead acid battery.

I didn't mean for this to turn into some kind of competition.. I only brought it up because the APC unit I mentioned is very reasonably priced and for a UPS isn't terribly far outside of his price range. It also has features/specs that are usually found in much more expensive units.

We both provided useful information, no need to turn it into a competition or a 'debate'.


im going to look at both today (not buying yet but im looking so see their actually size in person)

i will probably order online cause...everything is basically cheaper online UPS' tend to be pretty heavy.. if you can find a place with free shipping it might be worthwhile to buy online. When I bought mine it was less than $10 cheaper online + shipping. Buying it at the store includes tax, so basically it worked out to the same price either way, so I bought it at the store.

[DarkFury]

bbrian...

Now c'mon man... You broke down my entire post above with your comments as to why your solution was "superior" to my suggestion... Yet this isn't a debate. I've told you before about "quoting me" (remember this conversation: http://www.gotapex.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77299) if you don't want it to become a debate.

Pretty much if you didn't want this to become a debate, you'd just point out your suggestion (without quoting me... which kinda says... "Hey... your suggestion is ok... but mine is probably better") and that would be that. Like I said before...within the parameters of what he was asking for... I gave him a solid performing unit. If he should choose to up his budget a little bit, then yours is clearly a better choice... however, based upon your needs (since you have frequent outages of more than 15 minutes each) then you require the additional capacity (and cost associated with it).

Personally we both have good units, so pretty much let the "budget" decide on which kind you buy. BTW.. I think APC has discontinued the XS series... cause on their website they only have the RS series listed (which is still similar to the one you have)

[bbrian]

u gotta be kidding me.
at post 13 you assumed I was somehow attacking you and started defending your suggestion and started trying to explain the 'use' of a UPS like I'm somehow an idiot for suggesting that a UPS is intended to be an alternative power source. The only mention I even made of the APC UPS in my response was because you asked me about it.

If you are trying to claim that post #11 started the 'debate' then I think you're paranoid.


I've told you before about "quoting me" (remember this conversation: http://www.gotapex.com/forums/showthread.php?t=77299) if you don't want it to become a debate.

Pretty much if you didn't want this to become a debate, you'd just point out your suggestion (without quoting me... which kinda says... "Hey... your suggestion is ok... but mine is probably better") and that would be that.
If you don't like to be quoted, maybe you shouldn't post in a forum. In what post did I claim (or infer) my suggestion to be better?


since you have frequent outages of more than 15 minutes each) then you require the additional capacity (and cost associated with it). Even with much shorter outages I need the additional capacity because I have frequent outages. I need the capacity to account for recharge time.

[Got Apex Moderator]

All right guys - please take it to PM if you're going to continue this 'discussion'.


- GAM

[DarkFury]

No prob GAM... however honestly, this is not a "heated" conflict, therefore why step in. No names were being called out and there were no generally "ugliness" that you see in the Political and other forums.

It may be just a little be early to be steppin' in... can't folks just discuss things like this in a civil manner? We are adults here... and can discuss issues without flames.

Pretty much I didn't say that this is an "attack" or take it as such, so that just further misconstrues this thread... but if it is inferred that this isn't a debate... well call a "spade a spade".

I will leave this "discussion" alone... so if bbrian wants to continue "not debating" it.. he can send me a PM :D

[bbrian]

SnowSurfer, just for your info the APC XS is not discontinued. The RS/XS are essentially the same UPS. The XS just has a few connectors and features removed/disabled to lower the price. Here are their differences:
http://nam-en.apc.com/cgi-bin/nam_en.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_sid=oDDl4kIh&p_lva=&p_faqid=2877&p_created=1054142921&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9ncmlkc29ydD0mcF9yb3dfY250PTQxJnBfc2VhcmNoX3RleHQ9JnBfc2VhcmNoX3R5cGU9MyZwX3Byb2R fbHZsMT0xNTk2JnBfcHJvZF9sdmwyPX5hbnl_JnBfcGFnZT0y&p_li=

Good luck with your purchase!