Sima Power Inverter 300 Watt 2-Outlet - $28.74 shipped from Buy.com

[FPSguy]

Get it here. Good price IMO. I have one of these and it works great. Never run out of juice while computing in the car or using your laptop for DVDs in the car.

 

[tigerbait]

looks pretty good

Sima Corp product page
This unit has 2 AC power plugs, and is rated at 300 watts continuous. The Sima SPV-3 can provide 600 watts of brief surge power. It attaches to your battery via included alligator clips, or the included cigarette adapter. The SPV3 will shut down if overheating or overloading occurs, or for a low battery voltage condition to prevent a dead battery.


$45 at amazon

 

[dchakrab]

Can you plug this in to a regular outlet to charge it, or is it 12V input only?

I'm thinking about using this as a backup power supply for emergency power in case of power outtages in india, probably in conjunction with a UPS...would that work at all, or is this totally different?

What's the difference between an inverter and a UPS system?

Thanks,

Dave.

 

[earlmred]

Originally posted by: dchakrab
Can you plug this in to a regular outlet to charge it, or is it 12V input only?

I'm thinking about using this as a backup power supply for emergency power in case of power outtages in india, probably in conjunction with a UPS...would that work at all, or is this totally different?

What's the difference between an inverter and a UPS system?

Thanks,

Dave.

An inverter converts 12VDC to 110VAC, it can't be used as a UPS, this inverter could be used with a UPS if you were building one yourself . .. but you wouldn't use it with a UPS normally. A UPS just supplies battery power to your system if the power goes out.

 

[FPSguy]

Originally posted by: dchakrab
Can you plug this in to a regular outlet to charge it, or is it 12V input only? I'm thinking about using this as a backup power supply for emergency power in case of power outtages in india, probably in conjunction with a UPS...would that work at all, or is this totally different? What's the difference between an inverter and a UPS system? Thanks, Dave.

An inverter converts DC power to AC power so you can plug things into a socket as you would do at home. This Sima inverter plugs into the cigarette lighter socket in your car (or you can connect it directly to a car battery) and gives you two plugs that you can use to plug things in while driving.

A UPS is typically a combination of a battery and an inverter except that a UPS usually plugs into a wall socket in your home. The UPS then has its own sockets that will supply power (from the battery) even if your power goes out at home.