surge protector or UPS

[srp49ers]

there seems to be a pretty big discrepancy between the joule rating on some surge protectors that
have a 1700 rating, and the APC back-UPS ES 500 that only has a 365 rating. I like the extras that a
UPS provides but i dont want to sacrifice on protection form surges. how well do you think that the
surge protection of the APC ES 500 stacks up against that of the APC Performance SurgeArrest 7

Also im am not looking to spend more than about $50. I am leaning towards getting a UPS and
i have read about AVR (automatic voltage control) that only comes with the more expensive APC models.
what does it actually do

 

[Thor86]

To be honest, you have to ask yourself what you are planning on using these for?

For most servers and mission critical systems, a UPS system makes sense because not only does it protect from power surges, it usually cleans/filters power so the systems are not effected by faulty wiring and/or brown-outs. Plus the batteries are for actual power outages.

For most home/soho usage, a regular power bar with surge protection should be enough. I highly recommend ones from APC as I have 5 of them and they all work great for all my sensitive electronics.

 

[ptw]

I would never switch back from a UPS.

In my area (Toronto) we get a LOT of brownouts (maybe once a month) and brief power failures. We also have so many computers running that we sometimes trip the breaker (not sure if this is caused by the local hydro company actually cutting back the power since they are not generating enough). The UPS has probably saved some of the components from getting destroyed by all these power irregularities. I even got a second UPS for my other computer since I decided that 20+ irregular power shut-offs in a year was not healthy for a computer.

 

[squirrel dog]

I have my belding ups plugged into a surge protector.