A Reliable UPS From A Name I Trust
Written: Aug 13 '04 (Updated Aug 13 '04)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Clean power for up to five minutes; configurable from a PC or MAC.
Cons: Design make the UPS cumbersome.
The Bottom Line: Final analysis: the ES 725 does what it is supposed to do—protect my computer from harmful electrical events and provide a source of emergency power; it does it well.
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| vemartin's Full Review: APC Back-UPS ES 725 Broadband (BE725BB) UPS System |
My axiom on blackout and or sporadic power outages is the same as hard drives: the question is not if it will happen, but when it will happen. And when it happens will your computer equipment be protected from those inevitable power spikes that accompany them? I have learned the hard way that the sensitive innards of my computer need to be protected from errant electrical interference, having had to replace two motherboards as a result of electrical spikes. Add to that the constant treat of data lose as a result of unplanned power outages, and it becomes clear that a robust, reliable, smart Uninterruptible Power Supply (UPS) is essential.
I have for years relied on the UPS’s from American Power Conversion (APC). The company has been making UPS systems since 1984 and is the industry leader in UPS and related technologies. From very small home systems to very large multi-battery enterprise systems, APC has something for everyone. When I built a new power desktop for myself recently, I purchased a new APC Back-UPS ES 725 UPS.
What is a UPS?
A UPS is a hardware device that is placed between a power outlet or source, and your computer, peripherals and or printer. The UPS is designed to protect the computer and related equipment from “power outages, surges, electrical noise and power spikes, by; 1). automatically switching power over to an internal battery whenever AC power is lost; 2). providing a source of clean regulated power whenever a noise is detected, and; 3). protecting the equipment attached to the UPS from spikes and surges.
Each UPS is rated as being able to handle a load (output) expressed in Volt/Amperes (VA), and watts (W). The level of equipment the UPS can handle depends on this rating. The ES 725 is designed to provide 725VA and 450W output. When planning which UPS to purchase for you needs, can must be taken to account for ALL the equipment you plan to attach to the batter backup outlets on the back of the UPS, by adding up the wattage each piece will draw. Failure to account for all of the equipment can result in overload, and thus inadequate protection for your equipment.
The Product
APC targets the Back-UPS ES 725 at advanced home and or small office user. The APC Back-UPS ES 725 is a 725VA/450W UPS designed to provide short-term emergency (battery) power to a computer, monitor, and essential peripherals in the event of a power outage or noise. According to APC product literature, the APC Back-UPS ES 725 can provide up to 11.5 minutes at half load, and approximately 6-8 minutes with a full load. This is enough time to enable you, or the system itself, to save work and shutdown the computer in an orderly fashion.
The APC Back-UPS ES 725 is equipped with four battery-powered/surge protected outlets and four regular surge protected outlets on the top of the unit, with one of the four outlets on each side spaced to provide room for those ubiquitous transformer blocks.
Like all modern UPS units the APC Back-UPS ES 725 is can also provide surge protection for a phone line (RJ-11), an Ethernet network connection (RJ-45), and coax cable (DSL). Connection for one input and output is provided for each type connection. The APC Back-UPS ES 725 also features a long 6-foot cord, a re-settable circuit breaker, LED status indicators, an audible alarm, and user-replaceable, hot-swappable battery.
The APC Back-UPS ES 725 is touted by APC as being maintenance free, and according to the company, the ES 725 also performs an automatic bi-weekly test of its internal components, including the battery. The battery is a maintenance-free, leak-proof, lead-acid battery.
Setup and Configuration
Be prepared, this UPS, like most, is heavy. And because of the design—the power receptacles are on the top of the unit as opposed to the rear—placement of the APC Back-UPS ES 725 can be tricky. But initial set up of the UPS is fairly simple. The unit—or any UPS for the matter—is shipped with the battery un-plugged, so the first step in the install process will be to plug it in. Easy to follow directions for doing so are provided on the outside of the unit. Next, plug the APC Back-UPS ES 725 into the wall and let is charge at least 6 – 12 hours before putting a load on it.
Once installed and powered up the UPS can be monitored via a USB cable (included) and APC’s proprietary PowerChute personal edition software, which can be installed on a Windows 98 or later, or MAC OS X computer. The USB cable is a hybrid: the USB port plugs into your computer, but a RJ-11 port or serial plugs into the UPS on the other end. However, once the USB cable is plugged into your computer, the OS recognizes it as a UPS and installs the necessary software to communicate with it. Then you can install PowerChute Personal Edition to monitor and configure the UPS for the type of protection you want; i.e. in the even of a power outage you can elect to have the UPS keep your computer on battery power as long as possible, or you can choose to have it shutdown the computer automatically. Since most power outages in my neighborhood last less then five minutes, I have configured the APC Back-UPS ES 725 to do an orderly shut down after five minutes on battery power.
Frankly I do not find PowerChute Personal Edition very informative or useful outside of its rudimentary functionality. Compared to other USP system I have had occasion to use—most notably Belkin, the PowerChute Personal Edition interface is pretty barebones. Granted, PowerChute Personal Edition allows you to monitor up to 24 weeks of power events but viewing the current status of the unit is limited to the following: remaining battery capacity; the status of the battery (charged or charging); how many (approximate) minutes the battery can power your system; and what kind of power event caused the last transfer to battery power. Viewing current load level, timelines, an event log, and a more detailed status report would be nice.
Testing and Use
I have attached the APC Back-UPS ES 725 with an Pentium 4 3.06GHz PC powered by an Antec 300W power supply and a VeiwSonic 17G 19-inch monitor, and HP OfficeJet d135 printer. No the printer is not essential, but it gives me peace of mind to have it protected.
After charging the battery for 12 hours, I put it in place, connected the USB and installed the PowerChute Personal Edition software. It initially indicated that I had about 45 minutes of battery backup time but I knew that could not correct; wishful thinking on the USP’s part but not correct. So in order to get a more accurate estimate of battery backup time, I simulated a power outage by unplugging the unit from the wall outlet, and let the UPS do its thing. The APC Back-UPS ES 725 can only keep the system on as long as it battery holds out, and through PowerChute Personal Edition it will dynamically update the estimated time remaining on the battery as it starts discharging.
As soon as the APC Back-UPS ES 725 was unplugged it went to battery power and I received a popup box on my screen that stating, “your battery backup is now supplying battery power to your equipment.” An (annoying but effective) audible alarm sounded and produces four beeps every 30 seconds. This alarm can be disabled via the software. After approximately 6:00 minutes, battery power had dropped to 35% and the computer went into hibernate mode.
My results were on-par with what APC has posted on their Website where they provide a runtime chart to help you decide what size UPS is best for your applications. The chart indicates that system comparable to mine with a 300W power supply should get about seven minutes of runtime.
After several hours of recharging the UPS was back to full capacity, and the estimated battery time had changed from the 45 minutes to the believable 15 minutes.
Warranty
APC backs the Back-UPS ES 725 with a 2-year repair or replace warranty and a $50,000 lifetime protection policy. The policy stipulates that APC will replace or repair your APC unit as well as your damaged computer, monitor, and any other equipment that was connected to the UPS and damaged during a power event, up to the amount of $50,000.
Conclusion
To me a UPS is a must have, and the APC Back-UPS ES 725 is a solid investment in my book. The average life of a UPS battery is approximately four years, and my ES 725 cost me $60.00 (I took advantage of APC’s trade-up program). Since installing the APC Back-UPS ES 725, I have suffered through two blackout and three noise events, all of which could have seriously damaged the computer, or the components inside. So for me the APC Back-UPS ES 725 has more then paid for itself. How much is your data worth? And I run a small business from my home; my computers are on 24/7. Data production is paramount, and I can’t afford the downtime associated with damaged equipment as a result of a power event. Purchasing the APC Back-UPS ES 725 just makes good business and personal sense.
In the final analysis the APC Back-UPS ES 725 does what it is supposed to do—protect my computer from harmful electrical events and provide a stable source of emergency power—and it does it exceedingly well. With enough power to support almost all of today’s power-hungry computers, monitors and printers, not to mention the odd peripheral the APC Back-UPS ES 725 is the idea solution for home and small office users.
Features
• Output power capacity: 725VA/450W
• Voltage input/output 120V
• Backup time: 11.8 minutes (half load), 3.3 minutes (full load)
• DB9 RS-232, USB interface port
• Audible alarms
• Automatic self test
• Building wiring fault indicator
• Hot swap batteries
• Intelligent battery management
• Lightning & surge protection (365 joules)
• Coax surge protection & RJ-45 modem/fax/DSL/10-100 Base-T protection
• Resettable circuit breaker
• Status indicator LEDs
• Includes software for unattended safe & graceful shutdown
• Includes USB cable, Velcro cord management straps & wall-mount template
• 2-year repair or replace warranty & Lifetime $50,000 Equipment Protection Policy
Specifications
• Watts: 450 Watts
• Volts: Amps 725VA
• Surge Energy Capacity: 365 Joules
• Connected Equipment Warranty: $50,000
• Outlets: 8 Nema 5-15R Outlets
• Data Line Protection: Coaxial, RJ11 Modem / RJ45 Network
Recommended:
Yes
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vemartin
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Member: Vincent
Location: Aurora, IL
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