UPS Uninterrupted Power Supply

I wanted to share a small battery backup I use on my mesh WiFi access points. https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256803016560815.html
This is a low cost way to add battery to 1 device vs the normal use case of many electronics at one desk or in 1 closet needing a more standard UPS.

Something like this could work for a Wyze CamXYZ https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256801245826279.html

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Not a bad idea. Those are pretty affordable single-device solutions. I couldn’t tell how much battery power the first device had. The second one says 6500 mAh which is like 162% more battery than my Pixel 5 Phone supports, so I would say that’s pretty good for a single camera. And it goes up to 2A, so it’s even good enough for a Pan Cam or V3Pro or dual OGs on a Stack kit. Basically any critical camera that you need to keep running during an outage.

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Good point! I have not fully tested them to know the full capacity yet. I have another similar unit and both have worked with my initial tests just unplugging for an hour and keeping power up during any power blips in the neighborhood :crossed_fingers:t2:

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A video titled " UPS Electrical Failure - Teardown and Analysis!", linked below, from YouTube channel “Mr Carlson’s Lab” is actual proof that APC should be avoided - hard stop!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIEM2bG8mOQ

For those who don’t wish to watch the video, the summary is Paul Carlson had a failed APC UPS. It had made very loud electrical arcing noises. He opened the unit and was surprised to find no failed components on the PCB. He then looked at the transformer that normally is one of the most robust components. He found APC had used aluminum windings and terminated (connected) wires by using solder only or solder and a poor quality crimp. One such solder-only termination mechanically failed resulting in the arcing sounds he heard.

Aluminum is far less expensive than copper so APC was trying to reduce costs by using it. Aluminum conductors are not a “no no” however they require extra steps to terminate correctly such as a higher quality crimp with a mechanical connection to the insulated wires connecting to the PCB and most importantly, antioxidant paste. Fun fact: aluminum wire was banned for home construction back in the 1970’s due to a poor choice of alloy (excessive thermal expansion) and poor termination discipline resulting in many fires!

The failed connection was under a few layers of Kapton tape (a special tape used for electrical insulation). The tape is *flame-resistant however there still is a possibility of a fire from the arcing. Arcing also could damage the sensitive equipment that you are using the UPS for!

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