Best UPS for Mac

Starnerg,

Unfortunately the way you stated your question it's almost impossible to answer. Can you let us know exactly what you would like a UPS to do for you. Things to consider are how many computers and peripherals you are going to connect to it, what Mac (I'm assuming you at least have an iMac) how much power each of those items draws, how long you want backup battery to provide power etc...

The reason there are so many models available is becuase everyone has different needs. APC is a reliable manufacturer and has multiple models, I'd recommend you Google them and look over some models.


Regards,

Roger

You still did not answer the question, a UPS is an uninterruptible power supply not just a surge protector. What that means is they have batteries in them that will provide power to the computer if you lose power. So if you lose power how long do you want the batteries to last, that can be anywhere from 10 minutes to hours. If you use your Mac for work and have critical information on there and leave the computer on 24/7 then hours would be much more valuable than minutes. For example if the power goes down in the middle of the night and you don't get to your computer for several more hours if you only had 10 minutes that wouldn't do a whole lot for you if you hadn't save documents prior to leaving that night. Most computers also have peripherals plugged into them such as printers, external HD, cameras, etc.. and we need to know which ones are critical for you.

See you have to think it out a little, it's kind of like buying a house or a car or a computer, you have to determine what your needs are before you can make an intelligent choice. If you walked into a real estate office and said "I want the to buy a house" any intelligent realtor would begin asking your questions about what your wants and needs are. If they just starting showing you houses that would waste your time and theirs.

OK, I agree the only critical item is the external HD.

I think this UPC would fulfill your needs and give you about 14 minutes to shut down your computer if the power failed. You can shop around and probably find it for sale for less.

No I do not use this one and you didn't say you wanted that feature. Are there any other features you would like?

It does have auto shutdown but I don't know if it works with Snow Leopard. Here is the brochure on it.

http://www.apcmedia.com/salestools/DFAH-84QQXTR0EN.pdf

Here is a review I found on it that I think answers your question:

*Back UPS and Mac--So Happy Together*
*5.0 stars*
*APC Power Saving Back-UPS ES, 10 outlet, 750VA, 120V*
*0 likes*

*Like it*
*Seems to be a great product; of course, I cannot comment on its effectiveness in the event of a power outage as I haven't experienced one since installing it. However, when connecting it up to a Mac running Mac OS X Snow Leopard, the genius and elegance of Mac OS X becomes apparent. Without having to install any drivers, the Mac instantly detects the presence of a UPS, and places a menu item for it in the menu bar at top right, and the System Preferences panel configures itself so that all settings for the UPS can be controlled easily from the System Prefs panel. What more could you ask? Maybe if it made a nice half-caf decaf latte with no whipped and shaved chocolate perhaps?*

Your welcome and thank you for the star.