Many people do not realize the absolute importance of purchasing a UPS power supply for their system. UPS stands for Uninterruptible Power Supply, but it is not uncommon to hear people refer to them as UPS power supplies, despite the redundancy. It can also be confusing to newcomers because there is also a "power supply" inside your PC - but that is a device that converts A/C power into D/C power and is often measured in watts of power supplied. A UPS is often called power protection - although it really protects your computer system.

Buying only a cheap power strip from your local retail outlet can be a huge mistake that could cost you thousands of dollars. It is worth spending at least $50 or more to protect your investment. Each UPS first protects against electrical surges, spikes, and sags - the three S's of death to electronic components. Not only could your motherboard be damaged by any of these three, so could your monitor, your speakers, microphones, printers, and any other powered accessories. A quality UPS will generally offer a guarantee against these types of damages. You'll find these on power supplies by APC, Opti-UPS, and TrippLite.

Second, the UPS provides a source of pure energy even if the power goes completely out. While a power outage alone won't typically damage a computer, it is generally very inconvenient. Today's computers take up to three minutes to fully reboot, and if you were in the middle of something, it can take nearly ten minutes to be back at full productive status - all because of a 2 second power drop. For the workplace, the savings in employee productivity alone make this second feature invaluable.

An uninterruptible power supply works by filtering the electrical power coming from electric company while storing a small amount in a battery. The more money you spend on an UPS, the more battery life you buy. For a standalone desktop system with one printer, you'll want to buy a UPS that can give you at least ten minutes to shut down properly and save your work if they power doesn't come back on within a minute. Larger systems with bigger power supplies or dual monitors will want to consider models with even larger batteries. If you have frequent power outages in your area, you'll also want to think about a UPS with a larger battery.

One of the more recent features in the UPS market is the addition of USB connectivity. By attaching your UPS to your computer via a standard USB cable, your computer will give you reports of activity on the power supply. You'll be surprised to see how many times your UPS system protects your computer from harmful power spikes and surges. You'll be especially grateful for the number of times the power drops for a few seconds and you are able to continue working on your task, saving time, and often, important data that you might not have saved yet.

So, before you buy a bigger monitor, or that second hard drive, consider purchasing a UPS system first and protect your computer, your data, and your time.

Alan LeStourgeon runs the Discount Computers and Deals web site where you can find eBay auctions on computer related items such as UPS Power Supplies and Dell Desktops.