Hindsight is 20/20. I won't make that mistake again.

We live in the lightening capital of the world and we have lost several appliances to electric surges and lightening hits. It took about 3 times to learn our lesson. After loosing our air conditioner we scampered off to the store and bought basic inexpensive surge strips for our electronics. The surge protectors did not have cable or telephone protection. One month later we had a bad thunderstorm and I heard a pop-sizzle and that was all she wrote for our router, firewall, and laptop which was plugged into my electrical surge protector. The current had traveled through our cable wires and took out the neighbor's equipment as well.

I experienced an expensive lesson on lightning which I knew but didn't believe would actually happen; it also travels through cable wires. Lightning isn’t the only reason to have one of these either. We experience noticeable power surges from the electric company all the time. Also, just turning the equipment on and off can cause electrical imbalances and result in permanent damage which can be prevented with a surge protector.

We went to several different stores to find a more appropriate surge protector before buying a replacement computer. It was difficult to find the surge protector in our local stores which included the cable protection. The retail price for this product is $60 but can be found between $30-$50. I got stuck paying $50 at an office store for this but they can be found for $20 online.

This is the Superior Series and includes the following guidelines for choosing this product as quoted from the box:

Up to 2655 Joules
Up to 250,000 Connected Equipment Warranties

Mid-level computers (any up to 1.7 GHz – Intel AMD Cyrix also Power Mac 04)

Up to 35” TVs
Audio Video Components
DSS Receivers
DSL/Cable

The gold version should be chosen if you are using with all-in-one machines, a home theater system, projection TV or 2G and faster computer. A data recovery warranty is covered. The data recovery is not included with the Superior Series.

Another feature is the high-frequency capacitor which reduces noise. (Like when you’re watching TV and someone turns on the mixer in another room and your TV scrambles.)

The shape of this is a little different than other surge protectors. Unlike a basic strip this is wider. There are 9 outlets on the protector which is more than most power strips. There are two groups of three. The remaining three are spread out more which is more useful for square bricks. The telephone input and outputs are on the top. The input and output for the cable is on the side at the end.

The surge protector’s plug which goes into the wall outlet was an angle to it. The cord is 8 inches long.

Originally I had this right under my desk and the outlets were all exposed. I was afraid I was going spill a drink or something into it. I got looking at it and found that there is a cover that slides over to protect the outlet that isn’t used. It’s very simple to slide so may keep dust and liquids out, not the child proof kind.

About the only negative I have to say is that there are so many things plugged into this now that I can’t even see the surge protector. It took up some of my foot room when it was under my desk. I have moved it but it still remains difficult to position in tights spaces such as behind the TV.

This doesn’t have an audible alarm to let you know that it’s no longer protecting which would be handy considering you can barely see the protector after you fill it up plus it’s hidden behind your appliance. Once the little glowing light goes out it means it’s no longer protecting and time for a new one.

Belkin is a good reliable name. The product has a $250,000 equipment warranty and a lifetime replacement warranty. So if the surge protector dies while doing its job from an electrical jolt they’ll replace it for free.