The listing for this product is very confusing. At the time of writing this review, the product is titled: "Belkin Single Outlet SurgeCube Surge Protector, 1080 Joules", however, if you look at the section titled "from the manufacturer", it states that it is rated to handle only 885 joules. There are various customer questions asking which rating is the accurate one, and Belkin responds back that it is rated for a maximum capacity of 885 joules. Meanwhile, some customers post pictures of packaging of an 1080 joule version of the product, while other say they received a version rated for only 885 joules. To make matters more confusing, the model number of this product is listed as F9H100-CW, and Belkin's own website says that the F9H100-CW is rated for 885 joules. (google Belkin F9H100-CW and you will find the details for the product on their website).
Naturally I was confused. I bought these because of the 1080 joule rating, and only noticed this discrepancy after my order had been placed. I reached out to Belkin directly to try and understand what was going on. Here's what I discovered:
First off - my order arrived, and I received one that states it's for 1080 Joules. This was FEb 2021 in case it matters. I have posted pictures of the packaging received.
Anyway, here is the information Belkin gave me about this product: There are two version of model F9H100-CW. The original one was rated for 1080 Joules. This was manufactured in the early 2000s. Later on, this model was upgraded/updated. The newer version of F9H100-CW is rated for 885 joules. HOWEVER - here is what I'm unclear on: I'm unsure if the device itself ever actually changed in any way, or if the specs simply changed some years ago when Belkin retested them under the new UL testing standards. (Meaning - if you take one of the cubes in the 1080J packaging, and compare it to one of the ones in the 885 J packaging - are those devices actually different in some way, with different specs? Or are they exactly the same device, just with different testing results, and thus different packaging?) If the former - then indeed there are two different versions of this product, one rated at a higher Joule level. If the latter - then regardless of what your packaging says, you are getting a cube that's only rated for only 885 Joules, and that old packaging is simply outdated, and you should defer to the newer packaging instead. Currently - I do not know which of these two scenarios it is. I had two different conversations with Belkin about this product, and got a different impression from each conversation - one conversation left me with the impression that the model itself actually was upgraded/changed at some point, and thus why there's two different specs out there, while another conversation left me with the impression that the model was never re-designed and did not change in any way, it just underwent a new set of testing, and thus the specs were upgraded to reflect this. This is probably a failure on my end, and I probably just misunderstanding one of those conversations, so not claiming Belkin gave me conflicting information. Sadly, I do not have any more time to devote to researching this - so just know there are two possibilities here - one is that some versions of this product has a higher joule rating than others, another possibility is that this device is the same regardless of what your packaging says, and is only rated for 885 Joules (and that the older packaging is outdated). I'd recommend reaching out to Belkin directly if you'd like an answer to this part. [email protected]
So which version of the product will you get, if you buy this from this page? I'm not sure. I have seen various customer reviews posted about what product was received: there are reviews from folks getting the older version (where the packaging says1080 joules) - what I received as well - and there are also reviews (even as recent as 2020) of folks saying they received a product with packaging saying its rated for 885 Joules. I can only assume at this point, that if you purchase from this page, it is just chance on which one you are going to get.
Posted is the picture of the device I received in Feb 2021, as well as the specs on the back of the packaging. Again - I am uncertain if this older version I got is actually different somehow, or if it just has outdated specs, and is in reality rated for only 885 Joules. Further clarification from Belkin would be very helpful here.
good luck. Hopefully someone will update this product listing at some point so it's not displaying inconsistent information. This wastes people's time, which is incredibly valuable. Maybe update the listing, and let customers know there's two versions of this particular product (model F9H100-CW), or that the packaging was updated at some point to reflect the latest testing, and there's a chance you might get a different device/packaging if you order from here? The impression i got when I spoke to Belkin, was that they don't actually have direct control over the contents of this Amazon listing, and Amazon would need to update it. I got the impression Belkin was not aware of the issues with this page. Maybe Amazon is not aware either. I'm not sure who has the ability to update it, but hopefully at some point it will be updated. Until then, I really hope this review helps someone. Finally - if this page is ever updated, feel free to remove this review. Again, this was written in Feb 2021.
About the product by the way - sorry, I don't have anything to tell you about how well it works. I have not even opened it. I've posted this review only for the purpose of trying to clarify some of the confusion in this listing.
| Manufacturer | Belkin Inc. |
|---|---|
| Brand | Belkin |
| Item Weight | 3.2 ounces |
| Product Dimensions | 2.7 x 5.6 x 6.9 inches |
| Item model number | F9H100-CW |
| Is Discontinued By Manufacturer | No |
| Color | White |
| Number of Items | 1 |
| Size | Single Outlet |
| Manufacturer Part Number | F9H100-CW |
