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03-23-2009, 06:53 PM   #1
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International travel and power

Traveling from US to UK, what will I need to safely power a 'puter and battery charger? Power converter? Plug adapter?

03-23-2009, 07:13 PM   #2
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I needed a plug adapter form Aus to the US so I imagine you'd need one for the UK. I recon you could get an universal adapter at any electronics store with dohickies

Not sure about a power converter but.
03-24-2009, 02:06 AM   #3
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If you are going to plug in your 110 V computer to 220V you need to step-down the voltage. Don't be fooled into just buying the adapter plugs that allow your straight-pronged plug to fit into the Euro outlets, you need a power converter. Check out stores like Radio Shack, or whatever they're called now. I got one there that has the multi-prongs and steps down the voltage. Also, make sure it has the proper wattage output to properly charge your notebook.
03-24-2009, 02:49 AM   #4
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QuoteOriginally posted by Green_Manelishi Quote
Traveling from US to UK, what will I need to safely power a 'puter and battery charger? Power converter? Plug adapter?
It's 220/240V 50Hz in the UK and 110/117 60Hz in the USA (from memory). You might find that your laptop? has a slider switch to swap between voltages. If that's the case, then all you need is a plug converter.

Many (some?) battery chargers can accept both 110V and 220V power supply. Check it out.

I see your interest in Islay. When I was at Uni, my cousin, who was a year behind me, shared rooms with and became friends with someone who's father was some sort of laird there. He (the son) introduced us to Islay Mist and Laphroaig. We were corrupted

03-24-2009, 03:55 AM   #5
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QuoteOriginally posted by J.Scott Quote
If you are going to plug in your 110 V computer to 220V you need to step-down the voltage. Don't be fooled into just buying the adapter plugs that allow your straight-pronged plug to fit into the Euro outlets, you need a power converter. Check out stores like Radio Shack, or whatever they're called now. I got one there that has the multi-prongs and steps down the voltage. Also, make sure it has the proper wattage output to properly charge your notebook.
Maybe it's different in the US, but I would say don't be fooled in to buying an expensive power convertor as it's probably not required ...

I have done the reverse of this, travelling from the UK to the US (and UK to Europe) and all I've ever required is a cheap adaptor to allow me to plug in.

I don't believe HP, IBM, Sony, etc would build a different power supply for each country, it's a single unit they can ship anywhere and all they have to change is the lead.

I've only used IBM and HP laptops over the past 6 years and every one of their adaptors that I've had automatically accept either voltage and frequency without problem. If you have a look at your power supply it should state on it what it will work with, for example my current HP power supply has the following printed on it:

"Wide Range Input: 100-240v, 50-60Hz"
03-24-2009, 03:55 AM   #6
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Laptop manufacturers have power adapters to suit the different power supplies and are region specific. Your laptop will need a local voltage matched transformer being the little box between the power supply and the laptop to suit local power supply as well as a plug to the socket to suit that specific plug configuration. Your best bet is to get one to suit your specific laptop when you get to your destination. Mix and match between different laptop models even by the same manufacturer is not a good idea as different models may require varying voltages to the laptop.

Last edited by xjjohnno; 03-24-2009 at 03:59 AM. Reason: wording things worse
03-24-2009, 04:04 AM   #7
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Well you've got contradicting advice from pretty much everyone! I guess everyone just looked at what they have to see if it's compatible or not as I know that HP / IBM are worldwide power supplies, but some people are saying theirs are only for their own country.

Maybe you should let us know what the make / model of your laptop is and then maybe someone with a similar machine can speak more authoritatively.


Last edited by woodworm; 03-24-2009 at 08:03 AM. Reason: grammar
03-24-2009, 04:59 AM   #8
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Lots of replies and questionable advice here.

Every laptop I've owned or used (Toshiba, Dell, HP...) has had a power supply capable of 100-240V input. Look on the power supplies you have, and it should say what the allowed input voltages and frequencies are. If it says 100-240V, 50-60Hz you just need a plug adapter that lets you plug your gear into the UK style outlets (which are weird ones, let me tell you). My Pentax battery charger and Canon chargers are also capable of 100-240V so didn't need anything special for them either.

If you have a power supply / charger that's 100-120V range ONLY then you do need a transformer. Highly unlikely though.
03-24-2009, 05:51 AM   #9
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I just checked my Lenovo (IBM) lappy and the AC adapter says it accepts 100 - 240 VAC; 1.5 A; 50/60 HZ. So check your AC adapter; like other said you may only need the plug changer.
03-24-2009, 07:33 AM   #10
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What hardware

The 'puter is an Acer Aspire One Netbook.

The camera is Pentax K10D (which I sometimes wish was a K20 but not sure why)

Also have a Nokia cellphone with no identifying marks on it.
03-24-2009, 08:10 AM   #11
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QuoteOriginally posted by Green_Manelishi Quote
The 'puter is an Acer Aspire One Netbook.

The camera is Pentax K10D (which I sometimes wish was a K20 but not sure why)

Also have a Nokia cellphone with no identifying marks on it.
Just look at the power supplies...
03-24-2009, 08:17 AM   #12
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QuoteOriginally posted by pingflood Quote
Just look at the power supplies...
Doing that now (cripes I need a magnifying glass to read the print):

Nokia charger says 100-240 volts, 50-60 Hz

Camera battery charger is 100-240 volts, 50-60 Hz, 15-20VA, 0.2A

'Puter is 100-240V, 1.2A, 50-60Hz

So, it seems I need only a plug adapter?
03-24-2009, 08:20 AM   #13
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Correct. As long as the power supplies will support up to 220vAC you should be okay.
03-24-2009, 08:44 AM   #14
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Yep, they're like $5 or so... the UK one kind of looks like a bastard dryer plug.
03-24-2009, 08:45 AM   #15
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QuoteOriginally posted by Green_Manelishi Quote
Doing that now (cripes I need a magnifying glass to read the print):

Nokia charger says 100-240 volts, 50-60 Hz

Camera battery charger is 100-240 volts, 50-60 Hz, 15-20VA, 0.2A

'Puter is 100-240V, 1.2A, 50-60Hz

So, it seems I need only a plug adapter?

Yep. You can purchase the necessary plug adapter through Radio Shack (see here). Some electronics stores sell them as well, often for a slightly lower price. You might want to get more than one to allow more than one device to be plugged in at the same time.

stewart
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