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    September 1, 2010
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bezimmer's Reviews
 
APC Back-UPS XS 1300 VA Tower UPS - 1300VA/780W - 4.2 Minute Full Load - 5 x NEMA 5-15R - Battery Backup System, 5 x NEMA 5-15R - Surge-protected
 
Customer Rating
1 out of 5
1
Known Incompatibilities - but no warnings...
on September 1, 2010
Posted by: bezimmer
from Northern VA
This unit is a replacement for a smaller and older competing model I've owned for years. I bought it based entirely on the good reviews here and it's attractive features. 780W, slim design, Green features, plenty of outlets - very nice package and price. But guess what?
a) You're not allowed to put a surge protector between your device and the Back-Ups (OK, I guess)
b) You're not allowed to put an extension cord between your device and the Back-Ups (huh?)
c) You'd better try and figure out if your computer (yes, your computer) is compatible. I have a high end workstation - big national brand with four letters in its name. Apparently this PC's power supply doesn't tolerate "dirty" power - and by their own admission - APC says this Back-Ups battery power is dirty. (Nice feature for a back up system)
Forget the chat line. Useless. Forget pre-sales technical support. Won't talk to you without an exact APC model number and serial number.
So, here's the deal. All batteries produce DC current. In order to convert that to AC you need something called a rectifier. The rectifier in this Back-Ups produces an AC signal that is described as a "Stepped Approximation to a Sine Wave." Meaning it produces a bunch of little (digital) square waves to try and approximate (fake) a smooth sine wave. The degree of smoothness determines the "cleanliness" of the power. So what?
So I prepared to run a self test once I got everything running and the battery fully charged. I liked the PowerChute software-it told me my load was 325W v. the 780W capacity of the Back-Ups. Plenty of room to spare. Hit go, and the PC's power was interrupted causing it to crash. Didn't expect that. Did a test with just a lamp. Worked fine. Tried the PC twice again with smaller loads - same result. Called to see what give's and was finally told, after much non-sense that certain ****-brand coomputers had power supplies that were intolerant to dirty power and that APC was researching the problem (these computer models are top of the line and their latest and greatest).
I was offered the opportunity to buy a Smart-Ups for hundreds more. No thanks.
Customer service was awful. A real surprise for a company with an otherwise good reputation. My beef is I'm supposed to know that their "Stepped Approximated Sine Wave" is incompatible with my computer. Right. Show me the wave form and maybe I'll figure that out on my own. Face it, they use an el cheapo rectifier. Only the most critical component in that system, next to the battery. No thanks.
Even if your computer tolerates this AC signal I cannot, for a moment, believe it's good for your power supply. As Elmer would have said, "Be verwee, verwee carefuul." Hopefully Best Buy will take this back - APC said I couldn't ship it back to them. Really? Wow! Really.
What's great about it: Size, features, quiet
What's not so great: Doesn't work with known incompatible computers, cust. svc.
No, I would not recommend this to a friend.
Features
5 out of 5
5
+37points
46of 55voted this as helpful.
 
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