So much for a surge protector.

[Gynin]

Had a lightning storm that killed the power off and on for about an hour didn't think anything of it. Wake up to jump on Xbox Live to get the connection error. Power cycled both the Xbox and the router, nadda. Turn on PC to make sure it's not just my ISP being lame from the storm, works perfectly. Switch ethernet cables with PC and Xbox, notice that the port on the router is showing no activity while connected to the Xbox.

Ethernet port fried? I'd say so, although looking through the webs I haven't found more than a handful of dead ethernet port cases. Think it's time to put the 2yr warranty from Best buy to use?

[Cephius]

I've never heard of a surge just frying the ethernet card before... usually if you get a big enough jolt it'll just fry the main board inside.

But yeah anyway, use that warranty.

[Shojin]

Do you surge protect your phone line/DSL connection also? I know it would probably fried the router/modem also but there is always a chance.

[Gynin]

Yea the phone line is in the protector, push comes to shove we could assume the storm had nothing to do with it and it just died, the storm being a coincidence. Tis a weird one, but with no visible damage done to the unit I figure they'll test it at the store and if for some reason it works there, then I'm going to be confused.

Edit: On a whim I decided to check out the usb slots as well, low and behold their not responding either. Time for a return.

[guartz]

Aren't surge protectors for the offchance your house gets hit by lightning?

[ASG]

On a side note are Uninterruptible Power Supplies better then surge protectors? I hear they have a better chance of saving your stuff.

[Day]

Yes, because they have a battery in them that keeps your stuff running if you lose power. We use UPS in all our retail stores because we cant afford to have a register go down hard if the power flickers out. So theres no hard power down, and UPS have surge protection built in as well.

[Bikpik]

On a side note are Uninterruptible Power Supplies better then surge protectors? I hear they have a better chance of saving your stuff.

UPS's are better because you're running on battery power, (while your battery is getting charged from the wall), so you don't have to worry about surges getting to your PC. Surge protectors are usually only good for 1 surge, then it's just an extension cord with more outlets.

Aren't surge protectors for the offchance your house gets hit by lightning?

Surge protectors are for any time your electricity may go above the 110V(for NA) that comes into your house. Most surge protectors has a little fuse in them that will "absorb" the extra voltage, but usually blows out after 1 good surge.

Your PC's power supply basically converts 110V down into the various different voltages your PC needs. But it's not smart enough to know if it's more or less voltage coming in, it still converts it by the same percentage, so when a higher voltage comes in, a higher voltage gets to your MB, which is bad.

ps. Surges can happen at anytime, not only during storms.

[Cephius]

It's not so much the battery and surge protection, it's that UPSs have voltage regulators in them, which keeps the juice flowing at a constant rate. A surge protector will help against those sudden huge surges, but if you live in an area where the power fluctuates (sometimes by +/- 10 volts or so) it can't protect against that. Computer components are incredibly sensitive, so those fluctuations can damage your equipment. A UPS will compensate for it while a surge protector cannot.

[archibaldcrane]

http://blog.prospect.org/blog/weblog/surge!.jpg
Why would you want to protect yourself anyway? It's not gonna hurt you.

[Gynin]

rofl I remember that stuff.

Ate away at your teeth faster than Mountain Dew.

[Furtwangler]

Aren't surge protectors for the offchance your house gets hit by lightning?

if your house physically gets hit by lightning and it gets into your lines it'll go right through the surge protector and you're screwed either way.

[ShinseiRyu]

I've had a netgear switch and the NICs of the computers connected to it show up dead after a lightning storm.

[Minions]

if your house physically gets hit by lightning and it gets into your lines it'll go right through the surge protector and you're screwed either way.

Gogo surge protector warranty? Pain in the ass to prove though, so gl.