A Closer Look

The Smart1000LCD is basically a large box with a power cord leading off the back and a blue LCD display. The front is rather plain, but does not need to be anything more than what it is. The power cord is a very thick 14 AWG cable and well insulated. To give you a feeling of the unit's size, I placed a CD next to it on the second picture.


The rear on the UPS is where all the connections are made. At the very top is a jack for the USB communication cable, which provides status information to the PC. Below that are an RJ-11 (telephone/data) connection and a coaxial cable connection. These two are very important, as often lightning will enter a PC through these connections more than the power connections. Below are eight standard three-prong outlets, four of which are surrounded in white. These four outlets provide battery backup for the computer, monitor and other critical equipment. The other four outlets provide surge protection only, and should be used with printers and all non-critical equipment. The bottom-most outlets have an extra bit of space between them and the ones above so that larger power adapters can fit there. There are vents located at the top and bottom to help provide the necessary ventilation for the unit, which does get slightly warm.


The LCD display on the front has a blue backlight that is visible in most lighting conditions. There are two buttons above the display to power on the unit and silence any alarm if needed. The entire display can be removed and turned 90 degrees if the UPS needs to be installed on its side in a rack-mount position.


The power cable has a 90 degree plug on the end which not only allows the cable to run flat against the wall, but is angled to avoid another plug in the bottom outlet. When plugging in the power cables, the outlets are very tight, which helps provide good contact with the plugs and avoid loose connections. There may be some problems if needing to use more than two power adapters with the Smart1000LCD. I tried to install two power adapters on one side, but they blocked the rest of the outlets. The top outlet was too close to the coaxial connectors, and the third outlet was too close to the fourth outlet to have power adapters side by side. However, this is a common problem, and adapter cables (like the one shown above) can be purchased for a few dollars to add extra room. With most of the power cables plugged in, the wiring can be a bit messy. Unfortunately, there is no way to mount this under a desk like some other UPS units I've used in the past, so most of the wiring clutter will end up on top of the desk or on the floor.