What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?

[NeverDie]

Now that I'm using Octopi, I need to care about such things. At the very least, I don't want the SD card to get corrupted.

[gohan]

I use a turned off UPS with a voltage regulator connected directly on the 12V battery. The battery maintainer will keep battery charged. Probably not the most energy efficient solution, but it works and it gives you hours of runtime.

[NeverDie]

There's a lot to choose from:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/18650-Pi-Partner-for-Raspberry-Pi/32824221009.html?spm=2114.10010108.1000015.2.7a6878b31vZgqA&s=p

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/UPS-power-extension-board-with-RTC-measurement-5V-output-serial-port-function-5V-3A-USB-data/32849706946.html?spm=2114.10010108.1000014.8.58672b9c3X3XTo&traffic_analysisId=recommend_3035_null_null_null&scm=1007.13338.98644.000000000000000&pvid=81b8fe3b-0458-4b06-9f5c-9bd5d88c8ffb&tpp=1

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/UGEEK-UPS-HAT-with-Battery-for-Raspberry-Pi-3-Model-B-2B-B-Raspberry-Pi-Battery/32786176030.html?spm=2114.search0104.3.37.28041b49kgJHo2&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_5_10152_10065_10151_5711320_10344_10068_10130_10324_10342_10547_10325_10343_10546_10340_10548_10341_10698_10545_10696_10084_5722520_10083_10618_10307_5711220_10059_5722620_5722920_308_5722720_5722820_100031_10103_10624_10623_10622_10621_10620,searchweb201603_32,ppcSwitch_5&algo_expid=f1da8c36-0437-4996-b1c8-266691914f00-5&algo_pvid=f1da8c36-0437-4996-b1c8-266691914f00&transAbTest=ae803_1&priceBeautifyAB=0

and that barely scratches the surface. That's why I thought I'd ask what people are actually using, and whether they like it or not.

[gohan]

I used that because I have a bunch of used UPS

[NeverDie]

Your approach does have the virtue of no lithium fire hazard.

[NeverDie]

At the moment I'm using one of these, which also contains some surge protection:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KH07WRC/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I guess all the raspberry Pi UPS's just assume you're plugged into a surge protector of some kind. So, it's worth considering the entire package.

[NeverDie]

OK, I just settled on this: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NTQYUA8/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

$25, surge protection, no lithium, and maybe (?) I'll be able to power the Pi directly from one of the UPS usb power ports.

It seems ridiculous that the Pi still doesnt have a shutdown button. Presently I have to ssl to it and do a "sudo poweroff" before unplugging it. Not exactly convenient!

[gohan]

Actually you can use a shut down script when you short a pin, you only need a voltage detector that triggers it when voltage goes below a certain value. Andreas Spiess made a video showing how to do it with a cheap battery indicator and 2 supercaps in series

[NeverDie]

It turns out that these little Borkin buttons are the easiest way to power down your Pi:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/3-5mm-Smart-Mikey-Mi-Key-Quick-Click-Button-Smart-Key-Dustproof-Plug-Earphone-Jack-For/32861089928.html?spm=a2g0s.8153825.cb0001.6.O3XqCd&scm=1007.13409.84631.0&pvid=11dce56f-ab9b-4d70-9349-4ff0bc6f4c93&tpp=1

[gohan]

but those also require a little wire mod and they are not very "automatic"

[NeverDie]

@gohan Yes on the wire mod, but what do you mean by automatic?

[gohan]

I mean that they are manual switch and will not shutdown raspberry when battery is low

[NeverDie]

@gohan Good point. Also, ideally it would have some kind of indicator to show when it has successfully finished powering down.

[Nca78]

@neverdie I have bought the last one in your list (ugeek hat) but not set up on my pi 3 yet.

You can get battery information through i2c and prepare for shutdown when battery is low as explained here
http://www.raspberrypiwiki.com/index.php/Raspi_UPS_HAT_Board

[gohan]

The super cheap way is to get this https://www.aliexpress.com/item/10W-3-7V-4-2V-Charger-5V-6V-9V-12V-Discharger-Board-DC-DC-Converter-Boost/32816412117.html

[alexsh1]

Guys, this is the best UPS for RPi3

http://www.pimodulescart.com/shop/item.aspx?itemid=50

It is compatible with many batteries including 18650 and different chemistries.

Unfortunately, firmware development is a bit slow, but hardware part is just brilliant

[gohan]

that costs more than the RPI itself

[Nca78]

@gohan said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

The super cheap way is to get this https://www.aliexpress.com/item/10W-3-7V-4-2V-Charger-5V-6V-9V-12V-Discharger-Board-DC-DC-Converter-Boost/32816412117.html

Super cheap because it's just a cheap charging ic and a cheap step up, and there's no battery protection. If you rely on battery protection of an eBay/AliExpress lipo it will be a DW01 with undervoltage protection at 2.4V, fast way to kill your battery.

[gohan]

it is written that it requires battery protection if your battery doesn't have it and they sell that too

[jamzm]

Has anyone gotten their PiModules UPS PIco to work right or for very long? And is it even compatible with a Pi 3B?

[bjacobse]

I use this setup for my RPI running Domoticz, it though requires UTP cable connection to your router, to measure if the router provides IP address or you have powerloss.
Your only cost is how big you need/want your powerbank size...

http://raspi-ups.appspot.com/en/index.jsp

[tony1tf]

Carrying on with the "Super Cheap" theme, I have successfully used two Poundshop Lithium ion batteries. They have a 5V USB input and output which can only be used one side at a time. However, connect the two batteries in parallel (+ve to +ve, and - ve to - ve), and you get 2 charger/discharge circuits, so you can power the micro USB side from a USB 5V supply, and the other USB 5V o/p to the Pi. The cheaper ones (1pound) will supply 800mA, but they also have higher power ones for a bit more, especially as they are sometimes on offer.
Tony

[gohan]

@tony1tf said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

However, connect the two batteries in parallel (+ve to +ve, and - ve to - ve),

I am not entirely sure I understand this setup...

[NeverDie]

@tony1tf Do you mean this kind of charger?
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/ESP32-ESP32S-For-Wemos-For-Raspberry-Pi-18650-Battery-Charge-Shield-Board-V3-Micro-USB-Port/32843629344.html?spm=2114.search0104.3.8.197d1137ao0RVa&ws_ab_test=searchweb0_0,searchweb201602_5_10152_10065_10151_5711320_10344_10068_10130_10324_10342_10547_10325_10343_10546_10340_10548_10341_10698_10545_10696_10084_5722520_10083_10618_10307_5711220_10059_5722620_5722920_308_5722720_5722820_100031_10103_10624_10623_10622_10621_10620,searchweb201603_36,ppcSwitch_5&algo_expid=63f9de1f-1174-45ff-a9fd-4ebff214ea1b-1&algo_pvid=63f9de1f-1174-45ff-a9fd-4ebff214ea1b&transAbTest=ae803_1&priceBeautifyAB=0

[gohan]

2A at 5V... if it works it looks a nice and compact solution

[NeverDie]

@gohan I notice that the silkscreen on the back of the PCB says "5v 4A output" and "3v 1A output", which would seem to contradict the seller's description of the lower amounts you quoted. On the other hand, maybe one is burst mode and the other is continuous?

[gohan]

anyway 2A is more than enough for a Raspberry

[rozpruwacz]

@nca78 does this Raspi UPS HAT is able to turn rpi on when power comes back ?

[benbidouille]

Designed for Rpi2 & 3, Best UPS I have found is definitively UPS PIco HV3.0B HAT Stack with Battery 450 available under below link.

http://www.pimodulescart.com/shop/item.aspx?itemid=30

It accepts most technologies of batteries and capacities, but with supplied version is good enough to manage supply of RPI3 and HDD running domoticz at least for 1h and if not sufficient will proceed with clean shutdown and automatic restart on main supply is back.

Nice industrial design, including user configurable Leds and button, relay and temperature monitoring with FAN control.

I bought one 2 month ago, and I'm very happy with it.

I have not any incentive nor interest in this product, just to highlight was quickly delivered to me, technical manual is well documented ( not chinese like) and firmware is professionally maintained with a dedicated forum also available.

[gohan]

Price is not bad compared to others, but still costs more than a pi3

[NeverDie]

@gohan said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

Price is not bad compared to others, but still costs more than a pi3

The pi is mass produced. His UPS is probably produced in small batches. i.e. it's more of a specialty item, which somewhat explains the price.

[NeverDie]

@neverdie said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

OK, I just settled on this: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00NTQYUA8/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

$25, surge protection, no lithium, and maybe (?) I'll be able to power the Pi directly from one of the UPS usb power ports.

It seems ridiculous that the Pi still doesnt have a shutdown button. Presently I have to ssl to it and do a "sudo poweroff" before unplugging it. Not exactly convenient!

I have this installed now. It turns out that the built-in USB power port is enough to power the Raspi3b running Octoprint.

[gohan]

does the usb port work also when UPS is powered off?

[NeverDie]

@gohan If I unplug it from the wall (thereby simulating a power failure), it continues to send uninterrupted power over it's built-in USB power port, if that's what you mean. i.e. power failures don't crash the Octopi.

Or did you mean what happens if I switch-off the UPS and then unplug it? i.e. is there a different (longer lasting) circuit powering it's USB power port?

[alexsh1]

@jamzm I have

[alexsh1]

@gohan You can hardly find a UPS HAT priced less than Euro 25. And the cheapest version of PiModules works well for me. I am not a fan of external UPS for RPi

[alexsh1]

@gohan said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

anyway 2A is more than enough for a Raspberry

No, I do not think it is enough. They recommend 2.5A PSU for the latest RPI. I have 3A power supply for RPi3B. 2A was not enough, but I must say I have a few bits and bobs attached to my RPi like camera or Z-wave USB module

[alexsh1]

@neverdie said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

@gohan said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

Price is not bad compared to others, but still costs more than a pi3

The pi is mass produced. His UPS is probably produced in small batches. i.e. it's more of a specialty item, which somewhat explains the price.

Yes, you are spot on. It is hard to beat the RPi price. I think Pi Zero W priced at GBP 9 here in the UK - this is less expensive than some AVR platforms and yet much more powerful.
All UPS HATs I looked at here priced around Euro 25+. This is designed for DIY users and hence produced in much smaller quantities. Additionally, things like firmware has to be written and maintained up to date. And that is a big cost as this is not an open source.

[gohan]

@alexsh1 said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

@gohan said in What's the "best" UPS for a Raspberry Pi 3B?:

anyway 2A is more than enough for a Raspberry

No, I do not think it is enough. They recommend 2.5A PSU for the latest RPI. I have 3A power supply for RPi3B. 2A was not enough, but I must say I have a few bits and bobs attached to my RPi like camera or Z-wave USB module

I did extensive measurements of the current drawn from the RPI3 and you can actually run on 1A, the extra power depends on the devices you connect to it (if you count the 4USB ports it is potentially 4x0.5A = 2A, you add the 0.7A from the RPI3 itself and you end up in the 2.5/3A range)

[sundberg84]

@gohan cpu- load ?

[gohan]

0.7A at full CPU load, while in idle it is about 0.2/0.25A

[alexsh1]

@gohan I did the same thing too. Only for my set-up. I am not interesting powering a bare RPi. 2.5A is not enough in my case - I am using 3A PSU. I suppose this is due to 20x4 screen I am running from the RPi together with other peripherals.

[NeverDie]

@alexsh1 Which power supply are you using to supply the 3A?

[rozpruwacz]

I tested the UPS PIco HV3.0B HAT Stack. On Rpi 1B and 3B. And it works perfectly maybe installation of the software is not very easy and the documentation is not very clear but i think it is worth the effort. And I got it for half the price of rpi3. Another +1 is that it has additional 3.3V ldo that can supply 150mA, should be sufficient to power the nrf24l01+ pa/lna module

[NeverDie]

Just thought I'd mention that last week we had a lightning strike that was close enough that it completely fried both my irrigation controller and also the UPS on my wife's computer. Her computer did survive it though. So, although the odds may seem remote, it does happen. How lithium batteries would react to a lightning strike is unknown to me, so that's one of the reasons why I've ruled them out for use in a UPS. Unfortunately, doing so does seem to narrow the options considerably.

[gohan]

the battery is not the problem, but how the power supply will handle the voltage spike

[alexsh1]

@neverdie for the lightning protection I use a surge protection extension lead like this

https://www.amazon.ca/Belkin-6-Outlet-Commercial-Protector-Rotating/dp/B000JV3CKA

Additionally, UPS PIco has got the following protection:

• System Protection
• Direct Raspberry Pi Hardware Reset Button via Spring Test Pin (pogo pin)
• Programmable Watch-Dog Hardware feature (Still Alive Timer)
• PPTC 2.6A fuse
• ZVD circuit on 5V GPIO connections
• Microcontroller watch-dog
• Over Temperature protection
• Over Current protection

Re PSU, this is the one I have

Raspberry Pi 3 Charger, Aukru 5V 3000mA Power Supply 3A Micro USB Charger for Raspberry Pi 3 Model B / Pi 2 Model B / B+ Plus, Banana pi https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B017YW2CKM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_o9d9AbBYH266F

[alexsh1]

@gohan said in

how the power supply will handle the voltage spike

Not a problem - a good surge protection can handle it. I have all my electronic devices including router powered through the surge protected extension lead

[siddarth sid]

This thread is old, but still consists of the best suggestions for a Raspberry Pi UPS so adding my findings here.
Despite Pi being used for a lot of battery-powered projects, it's surprising to see that a well-defined UPS is not available.
While most of the above-suggested power boards will work fine, they lack form factor and customizability. I would rather take an open-source design and tweak it to my needs than just using a off-shelf black box.

So I am planning to improvise on this design called ["DIY Raspberry Pi UPS – An Uninterrupted Power Supply to Keep your Pi Safe during Power Failure"](DIY Raspberry Pi UPS – An Uninterrupted Power Supply to Keep your Pi Safe during Power Failure)

The author has provided both schematics and PCB layout so it should be easy to tweak the desing. The board is already designed to handle 1.5A (continous) and 3A (peak current) which would suffice well for my project. Though I could really use a software on/off feature like i should be able to shift between battery power and main power through a GPIO pin. Will share the design when I am until.

Until then if anyone has found better designs or features, please update me.
Power to you guys, thanks

[zboblamont]

@siddarth-sid Perhaps irrelevant since form-factor featured in your post, but...
I put in a UPS which featured on Instructables a while back based on a MeanWell AD-55A PSU, which is still working since 2018. It's neither not neat or compact but has sailed through multiple power cuts suffered here with aplomb. Simple enough to wire up, no processing required, the SMPS does it all.
Never did get round to powering the router from it as originally intended, but ain't dead yet...
I think this links https://forum.mysensors.org/post/100533

[bjacobse]

I'm quite lazy, and use this approach and use a USB powerbank, and check if DHCP server is alive or dead (Dead= no 230V)

https://raspi-ups.appspot.com/en/index.jsp