Gift guide: Uninterruptible power supplies

For today's Engadget Holiday Gift Guide suggestion, may we call your attention to our old friend the UPS? If your gift recipient already has a pimped-out gaming rig, righteous animation studio or day-trader's den, do him a favor and get him a good uninterruptible power supply. All it takes is one power surge to fry a frag session, melt a movie or trash a trade, and now's the time of year when snowstorms knock out power lines without warning. A good UPS can provide between several minutes and several hours of emergency power, can trigger an audible alarm that the power has gone out, and can automatically back up crucial files. If you're not sure how powerful a UPS to pick up, check out APC's UPS Selector. Even if you don't pick up one of APC's systems, it'll give you an idea of how much juice you'll need if you want to keep your giftee's home office running through an otherwise silent night.