The Wirecutter:
For many people, a UPS falls into the murky gray area between need and want. If you have a desktop computer or network-attached storage, you may need a UPS to prevent your drives from losing data in the event of a sudden power outage. And if you have digital phone service through your broadband provider, and the company skimped on your equipment by not including a battery, you may need a UPS to power your phone modem during a blackout so that you can reach emergency services. But a UPS is also handy during mundane power outages, since it allows you to pass the time on Facebook or Netflix while you wait for the juice to return.
A UPS makes sense in a lot of scenarios, but not in all of them.
A UPS is one of those unsexy things you don’t know you need until you need it. If you live in an area with spotty power or frequent weather-related outages (I live in an old apartment building that frequently has power outages for seemingly no reason), a UPS can save a lot of aggravation and frustration.
APC is bulletproof from an enterprise/prosumer standpoint. We run an army of 2200VA and 1500VA models in our racks with great support and no issues. The average person easily forgets that not only do you need one of these, but that you also need to replace them every 2 years to ensure they function as intended. Still, we’ve had a few APCs slip through the cracks that were continuing to soldier on after 7, 8 years. They make good stuff.
“The best uninterruptible power supply” I’ve found is a MacBook Pro/Air.
I used to be
In a suburb with occasional summer brownouts (and one relatively recent superstorm), I’ve been grateful to have a couple of APCs and a Tripp-Lite here.