Review on Highly Protective Power Strip: P8U2 Surge Protector with USB Charging Ports, 2630 Joules, Flat Plug, 8 Outlets by Dwight Tim

About a month ago I was offered a free APC P8U2 surge protector to review and I accepted. I've been working with computers for about 30 years. Many lessons I learned when I had my first Commodore 64 crash selling and servicing original IBM PCs and Apple Macintosh computers when they cost thousands of dollars. Computers are a collection of delicate electronics and bad things can happen when the power supply feeding them is of poor quality and unstable. At the very least, everyone needs a good surge protector. No power adapter. Overvoltage protection. Preferably one with EMI/RFI filtering, fast response time, low clipping levels, and high Joule rating. did not buy a good voltage stabilizer. And there's a misconception that it's only good for dealing with extreme events like a lightning strike. It's just not true. Every time you turn on your refrigerator, air conditioner, vacuum cleaner, hair dryer, etc.—all high-drain devices—they draw a lot of electricity. This causes first a dip and then a surge in your home electrical circuits. For example, if your computer or TV is on and not protected, they will be hit every time this happens. After all, those little bumps can cause damage. Your computer may freeze and become unstable seemingly out of nowhere. Many blame the computer, not the lack of simple electrical protection. Of course, computer crashes can be caused by many things, but a good network filter will greatly eliminate or at least reduce one possible cause. If you live in an apartment building, your situation is made worse by the fact that you may be at the mercy of many high-energy electrical devices that are completely out of your control. Physically, the APC P8U2 has an excellent design that includes many improvements. compared to conventional surge protection strips. Like a rotating power plug that makes it easier for you to manage the cord. Four widely spaced sockets for direct connection of power transformers. Sliding covers to protect unused sockets from dust and dirt. Recessed power switch, harder to turn off accidentally. In addition, the P8U2 features two protected 5V 2.5A USB outputs that combine to directly charge your phone, tablet or any other USB powered device. The P8U2 also has a built-in wiring error indicator that checks the outlet you plug it into for correct wiring polarity and grounding. But like a car, the outside appearance and features are not as important as the inside. In terms of power, I think the APC P8U2 Surge Arrest is good surge protection. The burst response time is less than 1 nanosecond, which is good. It has a pulse energy rating of 2630J, which is good. But for the clamping voltage, it has a 400V line to neutral (LN) rating, a 500V line to ground (LG) rating, and a 500V neutral to ground (NG) voltage rating. These values are too high. Better surge protectors have lower LN, LG, and NG voltage ratings. The 400V LN rating alone means that the surge protector will not trip before a 280VAC surge. You want your surge protector to operate at a much lower voltage than 280VAC, which is more than double the 120VAC rating. Ideally, look for surge protectors with an LN rating of 300V or less. While clamping voltage ratings are critical, they are not always listed in datasheets online. I looked at many models on the APC website and couldn't find one with the specified clamping voltages. They're usually listed on the back of the surge protector though - not much help if you're shopping online. For people looking for better protection than just surge protectors, I recommend a good uninterruptible power supply (UPS). I used to have APC UPSs but I currently have two CyberPower 1500VA 900W CP1500PFCLCD PFC Sine Wave UPSs. They work great, offer great protection and are affordable (for Sinewave 900W 1500VA UPS). I just changed the batteries in one I bought in 2011 and it's still working great. I generally use a combination of UPS and surge protector. I have multiple surge protectors connected to two UPS units to distribute power to multiple of my computers (which are not usually active at the same time). If you're investing a lot of money in a computer, big TV, etc., you should also invest in a good surge protector to protect that investment and your data from everyday and extreme power surges. This is just one layer of protection that everyone should have.