On 5/16/2012 3:02 PM PT, RJK typed:

My APC Back-UPS 650, (which was the cheaper version and did not come with the RS232 lead with the wierd pin-outs - bought the lead on ebay for a few
pounds),
must be over 20 years old, (at a guess), ...never had to put a new battery
in it, ....get several short mains power outages here every winter ....never
lets me down.
...so APC every time !!!

Lucky you. My APC Back-UPS 650VA (BK650MC) did not last even five years:
2/12/2001 to 9/25/2005. It kept shutting down randomly when powered on a
few times. So I replaced it with a new APC Back-UPS XS BX1500. That one
is still kicking arse even though its battery doesn't last long with two
powerful Intel quad core desktops.
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