The other day, my Cyber Power uninterruptible power supply suffered a horrible death. We lost power for just a moment, but rather than supplying power to Fozzie through the loss, it shut the computer off. Then, when the power came back, the UPS would maintain power to the computer for about 3 seconds, then drop power, then bring it back for 3 seconds, then drop it. My computer kept being turned on and off — not very good for it!

So I declared this the death of my UPS. This is actually the second UPS I have had die a horrible death — the other one was a Cyber Power model as well. I’m not sure if this shows that Cyber Power is a bad brand, or that UPSes are fault-prone. It’s definitely one of the two, though.

So, I have replaced it. This time, with a good-reputation APC model. APC costs just a little more than brands like Cyber Power, but if the unit lasts longer than 2 years, it’s worth it. Already I like it more — 10 outlets rather than 6, 5 battery-backed outlets rather than 3, better software, and USB connection rather than serial.

I really find UPSes to be incredibly useful, particularly for those quick little “hiccups” of power that you get every now and then. I hope this APC unit meets my expectations!

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Posted in Fozzie by Greg Leedberg No Comments Yet