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Save money (and perhaps your home) by updating your power strips during Black Friday

It’s hard to get excited about surge protectors and power strips, but you should replace them every 3-5 years, because (among other things) the joule protection rating lessens over time. And if you’re anything like I was until a few years ago, there’s a good chance you’re using a few surge protectors that are several years past their prime.

So if you want to make sure your flashy new gadgets, as well as your old ones, are protected from things like sudden power fluctuations and lighting strikes, Black Friday is a good time to update as power strips and surge protectors, like this two-pack from Anker that I’ve used for years, are often on sale.

Of course, there are reasons other than age and safety to replace an ancient surge protector. These models from Anker, apart from having 12 nicely spaced power plugs, also sport three USB charging ports. The center USB-C port maxes out at 20W, while the two USB-A ports are rated for 12W. That’s not enough to keep your laptop happy, but it’s plenty to quickly charge most smartphones.

If you don’t have the budget or the need for two surge protectors, you can pick up one for $19.99, but I always like to have a spare around for my ever-expanding gadget and power needs. As someone who experienced a lightning strike on their home about 20 years ago that fried the TV and a new printer, I always recommend staying up to date on your surge protectors. My PC and other hardware that was plugged into heavy-duty Belkin surge protectors survived unscathed.