Labs

Uninterruptible power supplies

Trust 600VA UPS [Computer Buyer]
COMPANY: Trust	PRICE: Ł30inc VAT
RATING:	ISSUE: 199 DATE: Oct 07

Verdict: If you're thinking a UPS isn't essential, protection for £30 is hard to turn down. As long as you don't intend to stray too far from your PC, this is a useful low-cost option.

Trust's 600VA UPS is easily the cheapest UPS in the group. It's also the smallest and one of the lightest, so it won't be too obtrusive when plugged into your PC. It's rated at 600VA and 300W, which is enough for a medium-specification desktop system.

The 600VA has two sockets for battery backup and one for surge protection. The sockets are of the female IEC or kettle type, and the UPS comes with two kettle leads to power your PC and monitor. When the power fails, the 600VA bleeps intermittently to alert you. There's no PC data connection, so the unit can't save your files automatically or shut down your PC if you're not around.

The UPS lasted for 15 minutes with our PC at idle and six-and-a-half minutes under load, the second-shortest times, so you'd need to be sitting at your PC to have time to save - but then, that's when you're likely to have unsaved work.

By Chris Finnamore