An Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) Battery backup for your Gaming PC might be one thing that saves hours of unsaved progress from certain peril. No matter how great of a surge protector you have protecting your valuable Gaming PC in the event of a power outage, you just can’t predict (especially living through a Canadian winter) when the power will go out. I’ll never forget that fateful night 11 years ago that I finally had the chance to dig into Grand Theft Auto IV for a few hours and was FINALLY going to pass the bank robbery mission only to have the power go out literally as I was losing the cops. UPS Battery Backup would’ve been really helpful that night because it took me a few more attempts once I got going the next day to finish it off, but I lost a couple hours in the process.
What is UPS Battery Backup?
UPS Battery Backup is an uninterruptible power supply that gives you some breathing room in the event of a power outage. The built in surge protectors give your devices protection from an electrical short and then you have a few minutes to react, save games and shut down. Unlike a laptop, your PC won’t immediately kick over to a battery when it loses its AC power and you run the risk of losing everything. For example, if you happen to be in the middle of a game, you’ll be able to keep powered while the lights are off around you, giving you a few minutes to think fast, save your progress and shut down. No more having to worry about spending the next afternoon going back and gain all of that progress back.
Why is a UPS Battery Backup beneficial to have?
In addition to protection from power surges, a UPS Battery Backup system is important to have because it provides a stable power source to your PC in order for you to have the time to shut your system down properly. This will ensure the protection and longevity of your devices. While just about all surge protectors offer you an electronics or appliance value guarantee if they fail and your devices get wrecked, it still sucks when it happens. We nearly lost our old PC to a sudden power surge a few years ago. Thankfully, the hard drive was saved (and we were in the market for a new one anyway,) but it really struggled to work properly after that, and we had to recycle it shortly after. Had we had a backup system like this, we would’ve been able to stretch the life out a few months more and shopped for our new PC proactively instead of reactively.
Since a UPS Battery Backup is included in a Surge Protector-style setup, you can plug other devices into it too to ensure that they too have that stable power and protection.
What type of UPS Battery Backup should I buy?
The most important thing to think about is how many devices you want covered off by your backup system. If you’ve got your PC, you’ve probably got that and a lot of other devices surrounding it (ie. your modem, router, perhaps a smart home base or media server connected.) In that case, you might want to look at something like the 12 port CyberPower 950VA UPS Battery Backup (pictured at left) which splits 6 surge + battery ports and 6 straight surge ones. It also has 2 USB A+B ports and a way for you to obtain information about how well your backup system is working and keep track of any danger points or deficiencies that might exist. This particular model also has 4 ports spaced on the corners for larger plugins.
When choosing a battery backup, be sure that you pick one up that you know will confidently take care of your PC. If you have a really powerful desktop, I wouldn’t recommend picking up one of the smaller capacity (450 VA or 650 VA) backups and instead, I’d go for something larger. CyberPower also has choices that you can sit on your desk specifically dedicated to your PC. A unit like the Cyber Power 1325VA UPS Battery Backup should offer suitable protection for a really powerful gaming PC and give you about 10 minutes to react and shut down your machine without worry.
Have you picked up a UPS Battery backup for your home? What model do you use? Has it had your back yet in the event of a power outage? Tell us in the comments below!
