A week ago, we installed a mini UPS so we could at least maintain an internet connection during the power outages, which, as you know, have been getting worse and worse in Venezuela. Although there are other states in a worse situation than ours, we’ve also been severely affected—for days on end, we’ve had frequent power dips or voltage spikes, and power outages lasting for HOURS. This has greatly affected not only our daily lives and routines but also our work, since we work on computers, and it’s been a nightmare sitting here knowing that the power could go out at any moment and we could lose all our work. So this week I spent my time looking for a UPS for our PC. Even though we didn’t have the full budget for that expense, we decided to do some research and find decent options for our PC.
My search started online, where I did some research on my PC’s specs to figure out the ideal voltage for it, since it’s not just a matter of buying a power supply and calling it a day… It was actually pretty complicated for me to figure all this out, but finally, after watching several videos, I was able to understand more or less what my computer needed. I’m not looking for a power supply that keeps my computer running for 5 hours or anything like that—I just want it to give me enough time to close all my programs calmly and shut down my computer without it getting damaged by power surges. The options online were very limited, so today we went downtown to check out some stores in person.
We found a store that not only had what we were looking for, but also gave us great advice and offered payment plans, which really helped me out since this UPS cost a lot more than I expected—we spent $240… We bought a 1500VA, 900W UPS—specs that double my PC’s power—which can give us about 20 to 30 minutes after the power goes out to shut down the entire computer properly. We didn’t think it would be so heavy; it was really hard to carry it back home—it’s seriously SUPER HEAVY.
It has 8 outlets—more than enough for us since we only use 3. I don't know how well it works yet since, luckily, the power hasn't gone out today… I can't wait for the power to go out so I can test it (? HAHAHA.
It also has a small screen that, to be honest, I don’t really know what it’s for—I still don’t quite understand how it works, so please don’t judge me. This purchase is a pretty big expense, but a very necessary one; it’s better to pay for this than to wait for a computer component to break, which would probably end up costing more than the UPS itself.