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Tag: Uninterruptible power supply

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How to Choose a UPS: AVR, PFC, USB Shutdown, and Battery Backup Features

Buying a UPS sounds like it should be simple. Pick a battery backup, plug in the important stuff, and stop worrying about power outages.

Unfortunately, UPS shopping gets weird quickly. Some models are meant for routers and modems. Some are better for desktops. Some are designed for active PFC power supplies. Some can tell a NAS or home server to shut down cleanly. Some have replaceable batteries. Some are basically disposable power strips with a battery inside.

The right UPS depends less on the brand name and more on what you are trying to protect.

People buying power strips don’t think that much about them. But not only are UPSes designed to protect your devices, they are designed to keep them running during a power outage. How do you pick the right combination of features and price? In a previous post, I talked about how a problem with my UPS could have caused disaster.

Quick Answer: What UPS Features Actually Matter?

The most important UPS features are enough battery capacity for your load, automatic voltage regulation, replaceable batteries, surge protection, and a USB or network data connection if you need a computer, NAS, or home server to shut down cleanly. For modern desktop PCs and some servers, you may also want a UPS designed for active PFC power supplies.

Feature Why It Matters Who Needs It Most
Enough VA/watt capacity The UPS has to handle the devices plugged into it Everyone
Automatic Voltage Regulation Helps smooth brownouts and voltage dips without switching to battery Areas with unstable power
Replaceable battery Lets you replace the battery instead of throwing out the UPS Anyone keeping a UPS for years
USB/data port Allows clean shutdown for a NAS, desktop, or home server NAS, homelab, desktop PC users
Active PFC compatibility Helps avoid problems with modern PC/server power supplies Desktops, workstations, some servers
LCD/status display Shows load, runtime, voltage, and battery condition Useful, not always essential

APC vs. CyberPower: Which UPS Brand Should You Choose?

APC and CyberPower are the two consumer UPS brands most people run into first. I have used both. Neither is perfect, and I would not make the decision on brand alone.

For basic protection, either brand can be a big improvement over plugging important equipment straight into the wall. The better question is whether the specific model has the features your setup needs: enough capacity, replaceable battery, USB shutdown support, AVR, and the right waveform/PFC support for the devices you are protecting.

In recent years, I have mostly bought CyberPower units because the feature mix has worked well for my networking equipment and homelab gear. That does not mean every CyberPower model is the right model, or that APC is wrong. It means you should compare the actual unit, not just the logo.

AVR, PFC, and Cleaner Power: What These UPS Features Mean

The UPS feature list can look like alphabet soup, but a few features are worth understanding.

  • AVR, or Automatic Voltage Regulation: AVR helps correct voltage dips or surges without immediately switching to battery. That can matter if your power flickers, sags, or runs a little unstable.
  • PFC, or Power Factor Correction: Many modern computer power supplies use active PFC. If you are protecting a desktop PC, workstation, or server, make sure the UPS is compatible with that kind of load.
  • USB or data port: This lets a NAS, desktop, or home server know when the UPS is on battery so it can shut down safely before the battery dies.
  • Replaceable battery: UPS batteries wear out. If the battery cannot be replaced, the whole unit becomes a future e-waste project.
  • LCD/status display: Not essential, but useful for seeing load, runtime, battery condition, and voltage at a glance.

Choose the UPS Based on What You Are Protecting

A router, a NAS, and a desktop gaming PC do not need the same UPS.

Use Case What Matters Most What I’d Prioritize
Router and modem Long runtime at low power draw Efficient UPS, enough outlets, simple status monitoring
NAS Clean shutdown and uptime during short outages USB data connection, replaceable battery, enough runtime
Home server Graceful shutdown and stable power USB/network shutdown, AVR, PFC compatibility
Desktop PC Avoid sudden shutdowns Enough watt capacity, PFC compatibility, AVR
Security or smart-home gear Keeping monitoring online Runtime, router/modem backup, simple alerts

If your goal is mainly to keep the internet online during an outage, see my more specific guide to the best UPS for router and modem backup.

UPS Models I’d Consider

For a fuller-featured CyberPower unit, I would look at the CyberPower CP1000PFCLED or a similar model in that family. The reason to choose this tier is not just bigger battery capacity. It is the feature set: AVR, active PFC support, replaceable battery, data port, and LCD status display.

That kind of UPS makes more sense for a desktop, homelab server, NAS setup, or anything where a clean shutdown matters.

For lighter networking gear, the CyberPower EC650LCD can make more sense. It still has useful features like an LCD screen, replaceable battery, and data port, but it is better suited to lower-power equipment such as networking devices, small accessories, or a simpler monitoring setup.

I use the less expensive model for some of my networking equipment and the fuller-featured one for my homelab server. That split is the real lesson: do not buy one UPS model for every job just because it is familiar.

My Minimum UPS Requirements

For anything I expect to keep using for years, I want at least two things:

  • A replaceable battery: UPS batteries are consumables. If the battery cannot be replaced, the UPS has a built-in expiration date.
  • A data port: If the UPS is protecting a computer, NAS, or server, it should be able to tell that device when it is running on battery so the system can shut down cleanly.

For simple router/modem backup, the data port may matter less. For a NAS or home server, it matters a lot.

AVR and PFC support are not always mandatory, but they become much more important as the equipment gets more expensive or sensitive.

UPS Backup For Home Monitoring Systems

If you are using smart-home gear to monitor a second home, vacation home, cameras, leak sensors, or smoke/CO alerts, the router and modem become part of the safety system. If the network dies, the alerts may stop reaching you.

That does not mean every sensor needs a huge UPS. It does mean your modem, router, network switch, and possibly your camera/NVR setup deserve backup power.

For the broader monitoring setup, see my guide to vacation home remote monitoring.

Choosing the Right UPS

A UPS is not just a bigger power strip. It is part battery, part surge protector, part power conditioner, and sometimes part shutdown controller.

The right choice depends on what you are protecting. A router needs runtime. A NAS needs clean shutdown. A desktop needs enough capacity and PFC compatibility. A home monitoring setup needs the network to stay online long enough to send alerts.

Buy for the job, not just the brand.

Published on March 19, 2026
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Equipping your UPS – Planning

Geek out: Power protection

Hot on the heels of discussing emergency power for mobile, it is time to discuss thoughts about Uninterruptable Power Supplies(UPS). These battery backup devices use heavy-duty batteries to power your electronics in the event of failure. When power is lost, it automatically powers using the batteries.

The first rule of UPSes is to always get ones with a removable/replaceable battery. You can get replacement batteries without much issue, although manufacturers would obviously prefer you replace the unit.

Our current favorite simple UPS for home use is the APC BE550G. This is an 8 outlet 550VA UPS. The green feature is a master outlet, which turns controlled outlets off when the master device is off. This is also a great green feature for various surge protectors.

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However, the basic UPSes may have trouble with some power supplies, so mileage may vary. The issue is voltage regulation, and pure sine waves(necessary for Active PFC power supplies). There are more expensive UPSes, and more full featured ones. There are advantages to voltage regulation and purer power, but for some devices, it doesn’t matter.

Also, there are some issues with APC. We had used Belkin for a while, but had longevity and design issues. The Belkins we had tended to put the outlets on the top, which made placement difficult. There is also Cyberpower, which some people enjoy, but we’ve never tried one. We may next time.

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This Cyberpower Unit looks promises, offering an LCD control screen with basic stats. This looks rather promising for non-computer uses.

These devices were originally marketed for computers. They were designed for safe shutdown of a computer and monitor, and things have changed. More people are using these to power other devices. In preparing for this post, we started reading reviews, and people are powering big screen TVs and other devices.

So, that is the sort of planning we want to discuss. For your cable modem, your router, etc. We have a simple 300VA UPS hooked up to our cordless telephone system, so it will work for a while in a power outage. As these devices are much lower power than a computer, many can run for hours with just a few necessary networking components hooked in.

The first step, even if you do not want to get into the wattage details, is to make an inventory of the devices you want to power. Make separate lists for extended outages, power hiccups, and voltage drops. Basically, most computers you may want to merely make a graceful shutdown, but you may want your networking gear to last for hours.

We predict, in our area, lots of people will be hiring electricians to install transfer switches for portable or permanent generators, after extended periods of power loss. But for the installation of a manual transfer switch will be close to a thousand dollars, if not more, as it requires disconnecting your house power in order to install the cutoff, and probably an adjustment of your house breaker box.

If your area isn’t prone to long power outages, you want to cover a few hours of power outage or irregular power, which is much less expensive than generators.

In the end, always buy UPSes with replaceable batteries, pick the devices that works for you, and do the advance planning.

What are your tips for planning for power loss with UPSes?

 

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Published on November 25, 2012
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The Simplest Way to Save Energy – Shutting Things Off

Cable Box
Image by _ES via Flickr

This past week, prompted by increased utility costs, we became obsessed with the idea of vampire power. Vampire power, standby power, or phantom power, whatever you wish to call it, is the power a device draws when supposedly turned off.

So, we did the research. If you like tech, and we do, you can go with a Master Control surge protector. This is where the power draw on one outlet kicks in the power to other outlets. For top of the line right now, you can go with the APC Back-UPS ES BE750G 10 Outlet 750VA Master Control.

We rushed out and bought one of these things, which marries the idea with a UPS. One of the Battery controlled outlets can have your computer plugged into it, and when the computer is on, it flicks on three of the surge controlled outlets. We’re using it for our monitor and speakers on one system, and will be adding more to the controlled outlets as soon as we crawl under the desk to audit our wires.

Now, not everyone needs such a heavy-duty item, or even power protection. As an alternative, there is the Smart Strip LCG3. There are several variations that offer different numbers of outlets and/or coaxial or modem surge protection. One of the most useful options on this surge strip is a adjustment knob to adjust the master outlet’s sensitivity. The APC UPS also has three adjustment settings.

We couldn’t wait, so we went to the store and bought the APC Power-Saving Essential Surgearrest. It is that adjustment knob we missed. On the system we tried to put it on, it didn’t accurately detect the turning on of our low-energy thin-client PC. Of course, it may not have been designed for low-power systems, and lacks the adjustment knob of the Smart Strips.

BITS Limited, the company responsible for the Smart Strips, has not only come out with a 3rd generation version of their product designed with a “greater range of sensitivity and device compatibility for low-power devices like the Dell 800 series laptops and Mac Mini computers.” Which means it would have solved our problem with the APC. They all are accepting initial orders on a USB Smart Strip, identical to the LCG3 model shown above except in addition to the power outlet, this one will switch when the USB port receives power as well.

Being as we run multiple systems and are trying to be more energy efficient, for the low-power client and its peripherals we decided to go the low-tech route. We tried to find a switch to insert between the peripheral and the outlet, but no one seems to make three-pronged plug-in switches. So, despite Underwriter’s Laboratories’ recommendations about daisy-chaining surge protectors, we took the advice we found from Smart Strips FAQ and plugged a power strip into our UPS and then on to the components in question.

This is technically safe, as long as you don’t overload the circuit. The same people think an extension cord to a surge protector is dangerous and most of us do that. Our biggest problem was of a visual nature. How do you make the switch accessible without the unsightliness of the wires coming out in all directions?

One solution is another new product, the Belkin Conserve 10-Outlet Surge Protector with Remote Switch. Sounds good in theory. A surge protector you conceal with a wireless remote to allow you to turn things on. There are also all manner of surge protectors that hide the wiring.

We, on the other hand, went low-tech. We mounted the surge protector on the wall such that the switch was visible above the desk, but the outlets were below and weren’t visible unless you peeked under. Another option we considered was mounting the strip upside-down under the desk in such a position that you can flick the switch with little effort.

If you are more electrically inclined, you can build a plug-in switch using some basic electronics since no one seems to be selling one(comment if you’ve found one).

For those on the cutting edge of tech, semiconductor maker Rohm has developed a circuit that uses no power while in standby mode. They hope to start deploying it next year. In a few years, it could make it or circuits like it could make its way into most new appliances sold, reducing or eliminating the bulk of this problem.

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Published on October 7, 2008
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