Work without interruption: five good UPS for home and office

The FSP NanoFit 600 is one of those simple and inexpensive UPSs that you buy to protect against accidental loss of important data while working on your computer. It is "built" around a 4.5 Ah battery and is designed to service equipment with a total power of up to 360 watts. However, you should not load it “to its fullest”, because at full load, UPS provides only 30 seconds of battery life (at half load - up to 5 minutes), which is enough only to quickly save documents open on your computer. Therefore, despite the abundance of connectors on the UPS case (a total of 6 pieces), it is better not to include anything more powerful than a PC with a monitor (or a monoblock) and a WiFi router power supply into three sockets with a reserve. The other three outlets simply act as surge protector, smoothing out interference in the network. They are not supplied with battery power. There are also two USB ports on the side of the case, which can be used to charge gadgets with a cord.

Of the interesting features of this uninterruptible power supply, it should be noted the presence of such functions as output voltage adjustment (it can be important for some sensitive electronic devices) and a “cold start” (it can be necessary in emergency cases). Also noteworthy is the quiet operation of the UPS. But the FSP NanoFit 600 also has a certain drawback. Inside it is not an automatic, but a fuse. At a critical current strength, it does not turn off, but burns out. Therefore, if a powerful device with a large starting current is included in this UPS (like a refrigerator or washing machine), the fuse will burn out and you will have to disassemble the UPS for minor repairs. Keep this feature in mind and don't put the FSP NanoFit 600 where something more powerful than a computer with peripherals can be plugged into it.

The Powercom WOW-500U is a very simple UPS. It has only three sockets (two with a reserve and one regular), as well as RJ-45 ports and a USB communication connector for “communicating” the device with a computer. A battery with a capacity of 3.3 Ah is enough to provide about 10 - 15 minutes of battery life for a typical office or home computer with a small monitor. Spare batteries for this UPS are commercially available and are not too expensive (about $25). All sockets have "curtains". They serve as protection from children and prevent dust from entering the case. When powered by Powercom, the WOW-500U is virtually silent, making it ideal for use in a small room. Thanks to the built-in surge protection that “absorbs” power surges, this UPS can be used where the quality of the power supply leaves much to be desired (in the country house, in the private sector or in the countryside).

This UPS has a "power saving function" (Green Mode), which means that when the load is less than 25 W, the device will automatically turn off 4 minutes after the loss of electricity. This "economy" can be turned off by some manipulation of the buttons, but this does not always work correctly. Therefore, you should not use the Powercom WOW-500U for backup power to low-power consumers, such as routers or alarms.

Powercom WOW-500U has been produced for more than 10 years, but still remains a relevant and popular device. It is inexpensive, but at the same time durable and reliable ( Powercom uninterruptible power supplies are generally very good reviews). This UPS is perfect for those who do not want to buy a "pig in a poke" and do not chase advertised new products, but prefer time-tested equipment.

The Eaton 3S 550DIN bespereboynik is equipped with six European standard sockets. Three of them are battery backed, the rest provide only interference protection. When running on battery power, the device can "pull" several consumers with a total power of up to 330 watts. If only a computer with a monitor is connected to the UPS, then the built-in battery (with a capacity of 5 Ah) will last for about 10-15 minutes - enough to safely save open documents, turn off the PC and wait out the temporary shutdown.

This UPS, despite being considered a simple "office" device, has several interesting features. Firstly, the output voltage can be adjusted(220, 230 or 240 volts to choose from). This can be important if you plan to connect equipment to an uninterruptible power supply that “does not like” voltage deviations from its passport values. In addition, the UPS has a "cold start" function for emergencies when you urgently need to turn on the computer for a couple of minutes in the absence of electricity. The case design provides easy and convenient access to the battery compartment. Therefore, when the battery wears out and loses some of its capacity (this happens after 5 - 7 years of UPS operation), it will be easy to replace it with a new battery without contacting the service.

In general, we can say that the Eaton 3S 550DIN is a good uninterruptible power supply for home and office. It has good (by the standards of a household-class UPS) characteristics, a modest and neat design, and also not the highest price. This UPS is quite capable of protecting your computer with all its peripherals from power surges and short-term power outages.

“Under the hood” of the Legrand Keor Multiplug 600VA is a fairly capacious 7 Ah battery. It provides at least 10 - 15 minutes of battery life for one workplace, consisting of a PC with a monitor and peripherals. The effective power of the UPS is 360 W, so you can connect several pieces of equipment to it at the same time. For this, 6 euro sockets are provided at once (4 of them can be powered by batteries). An automatic AVR stabilizer is built into the uninterruptible power supply, which constantly keeps the standard 230 V and suppresses power surges. Due to this feature, this UPS is better suited for networks with unstable current, which poses a certain threat to "delicate" electronics. The case also has a USB port that can be used to charge gadgets.

Among other household-class uninterruptible power supplies, the Legrand Keor Multiplug 600VA stands out, first of all, with its interesting design and white case. Therefore, you can not hide the UPS in a corner or under an office desk, but safely hoist it in a conspicuous place. Since the device is practically silent, it is advisable to buy it for use in residential premises. In addition to computer equipment, this uninterruptible power supply (as well as its slightly more expensive version with increased output power) can be trusted with the protection and maintenance of a home multimedia system. And in the field of commerce, such UPSs are used to ensure the autonomous operation of cash registers and terminals.

APC Back-UPS 650VA BE650G2-RS is a fairly large and massive (4 kg) uninterruptible power supply. Due to a very decent output power (400 W), it can simultaneously support several devices that consume electricity. For these purposes, it is equipped with many sockets. Of the eight connectors that are on the front panel, six are redundant (in the event of a power outage, they are powered by the battery). All sockets are protected against impulse noise that may occur during a thunderstorm or an accident on the line. But there is one remark to this UPS: although there are a lot of sockets for plugs, they are quite heaped. If you try to stick large adapters from consumer electronics into them, they can interfere with each other.

A removable battery with a capacity of 6.2 Ah is hidden in the bowels of the case. At full load, it provides 2.6 minutes of operation. But if only low-power consumers are connected to the UPS (like a router with a smartphone charging from the USB port built into the uninterruptible power supply), then the energy reserve will last more than half an hour. Access to the battery is simple and convenient, so everyone can handle its replacement (batteries in UPSs last 3 to 5 years, depending on the frequency of the UPS operation, and require periodic replacement). Due to the popularity of this brand and the wide distribution of APC backup uninterruptible power supplies, spare batteries for them are sold in many online stores.

The APC Back-UPS 650VA BE650G2-RS uninterruptible power supply is a good choice for a workplace in an apartment or office. But the software for it, which allows you to automatically turn off the computer in the absence of electricians or perform “fine” tuning of the UPS, exists only for Windows. Therefore, iMac fans and owners of Linux computers will have to configure the shutdown using the tools built into the operating system.