There are two essential aspects to take note of. At the first instance, it is important to note that the electrical power specifications may vary from country to country that you are visiting. Not many countries have a electrical power specification as you have at home, and hence you should have the right adapter with you when you travel abroad. Secondly, the kind of wall mounted power outlet sockets in most of the countries, are not usually the ones that you find at home. It is entirely different, and your device power input plug may not fit into that socket at all.
The mains power voltage specifications differ from country to country. For example, the electrical and electronic devices in U.S. operate on 120 Volts AC, but the United Kingdom has a 220 volts AC outlet, which is different from the one in the United States. Secondly, your device power input plug will never fit the power outlet sockets available in the United Kingdom. Therefore, if you are traveling from home to the United Kingdom, you do not only need an adapter for your device power input plug, but a voltage converter as well, of the type which would convert the 220 Volts AC electrical power output to 110 Volts AC for your device to work properly.
It is recommended that, when-ever you plan your next visit abroad, take a look at the guide of the power outlet specifications available in the country or countries that you are visiting and prepare yourself to carry appropriate electrical accessories for those devices to work properly. There are indeed universal plug adapters available, which will comply with the power out input sockets of many countries, but the need of voltage converters cannot be ignored
A guide to international electric outlet specification is presented below:
COUNTRY VOLTAGE FREQUENCY
Afghanistan 220V 50 Hz
Albania 20V* 50 Hz
Algeria 230V 50 Hz
American Samoa 120V 60 Hz
Andorra 230V 50Hz
Angola 220V 50 Hz
Anguilla 110V 60Hz
Antigua 230V* 60 Hz
Argentina 220V 50 Hz
Armenia 220V 50 Hz
Aruba 127V* 60 Hz
Australia 230V* 50 Hz
Austria 230V 50 Hz
Azerbaijan 220V 50 Hz
Azores 220V* 50 Hz
Bahamas 120V 60 Hz
Bahrain 230V* 50 Hz*
Balearic Islands 220V 50 Hz
Bangladesh 220V 50 Hz
Barbados 115V 50 Hz
Belarus 220V 50 Hz
Belgium 230V 50 Hz
Belize 110/220V 60 Hz
Benin 220V 50 Hz
Bermuda 120V 60 Hz
Bhutan 230V 50 Hz
Bolivia 220/230V* 50 Hz
Bosnia 220V 50 Hz
Botswana 231V 50 Hz
Brazil 110/220V* 60 Hz
Brunei 240V 50 Hz
Bulgaria 230V 50 Hz
Burkina Faso 220V 50 Hz
Burundi 220V 50 Hz
Cambodia 230V 50 Hz
Cameroon 220V 50 Hz
Canada 120V 60 Hz
Canary Islands 220V 50 Hz
Cape Verde 220V 50 Hz
Cayman Islands 120V 60 Hz
Central African Republic 220V 50 Hz
Chad 220V 50Hz
Channel Islands 230V 50 Hz
Chile 220V 50 Hz
China, People's Republic of 220V 50 Hz
Colombia 110V 60Hz
Comoros 220V 50 Hz
Congo, People's Rep. of 230V 50 Hz
Congo, Dem. Rep. of (former Zaire) 220V 50 Hz
Cook Islands 240V 50 Hz
Costa Rica 120V 60 Hz
Côte d'Ivoire
(Ivory Coast) 220V 50 Hz
Croatia 230V 50Hz
Cuba 110/220V 60Hz
Cyprus 240V 50 Hz
Czech Republic 230V 50 Hz
Denmark 230V 50 Hz
Djibouti 220V 50 Hz
Dominica 230V 50 Hz
Dominican Republic 110V 60 Hz
East Timor 220V 50 Hz
Ecuador 120-127V 60 Hz
Egypt 220V 50 Hz
El Salvador 115V 60 Hz
England (See United Kingdom)
Equatorial Guinea 220V* 50 Hz
Eritrea 230V 50 Hz
Estonia 230V 50 Hz
Ethiopia 220V 50 Hz
Faeroe Islands 220V 50 Hz
Falkland Islands 240V 50 Hz
Fiji 240V 50 Hz
Finland 230V 50 Hz
France 230V 50 Hz
French Guiana 220V 50 Hz
Gaza 230V 50 Hz
Gabon 220V 50 Hz
Gambia 230V 50 Hz
Germany 230V 50 Hz
Ghana 230V 50 Hz
Gibraltar 240V 50 Hz
Great Britain (See United Kingdom)
Greece 220V 50 Hz
Greenland 220V 50 Hz
Grenada (Windward Is.) 230V 50 Hz
Guadeloupe 230V 50 Hz
Guam 110V 60Hz
Guatemala 120V 60 Hz
Guinea 220V 50 Hz
Guinea-Bissau 220V 50 Hz
Guyana 240V* 60 Hz*
Haiti 110V 60 Hz
Honduras 110V 60 Hz
Hong Kong 220V* 50 Hz
Hungary 230V 50 Hz
Iceland 220V 50 Hz
India 230V 50 Hz
Indonesia 127/230V* 50 Hz
Iran 230V 50 Hz
Iraq 230V 50 Hz
Ireland (Eire) 230 50 Hz
Isle of Man 240V 50 Hz
Israel 230V 50 Hz
Italy 230V 50 Hz
Ivory Coast (See Côte d'Ivoire)
Jamaica 110V 50 Hz
Japan 100V 50/60 Hz*
Jordan 230V 50 Hz
Kenya 240V 50 Hz
Kazakhstan 220V 50 Hz
Kiribati 240V 50 Hz
Korea, South 220V 60 Hz
Kuwait 240V 50 Hz
Laos 230V 50 Hz
Latvia 220V 50 Hz
Lebanon 110/220V 50 Hz
Lesotho 220V 50 Hz
Liberia 120V 60 Hz
Libya 127V* 50 Hz
Lithuania 220V 50 Hz
Liechtenstein 230V 50 Hz
Luxembourg 220V 50 Hz
Macau 220V 50 Hz
Macedonia 220V 50 Hz
Madagascar 220V 50 Hz
Madeira 220V 50 Hz
Malawi 230V 50 Hz
Malaysia 240V 50 Hz
Maldives 230V 50 Hz
Mali 220V 50 Hz
Malta 240V 50 Hz
Martinique 220V 50 Hz
Mauritania 220V 50 Hz
Mauritius 230V 50 Hz
Mexico 127V 60 Hz
Micronesia (Federal States of) 120V 60 Hz
Monaco 127/220V 50 Hz
Mongolia 230V
Montserrat (Leeward Is.) 230V 60 Hz
Morocco 127/220V* 50 Hz
Mozambique 220V 50 Hz
Myanmar (formerly Burma) 230V 50 Hz
Namibia 220V 50 Hz
Nauru 240V 50 Hz
Nepal 230V 50 Hz
Netherlands 230V 50 Hz
Netherlands Antilles 127/220V* 50 Hz
New Caledonia 220V 50 Hz
New Zealand 230V 50 Hz
Nicaragua 120V 60 Hz
Niger 220V 50 Hz
Nigeria 240V 50 Hz
Northern Ireland (see United Kingdom)
Norway 230V 50 Hz
Okinawa 100V* 60 Hz
Oman 240V* 50 Hz
Pakistan 230V 50 Hz
Palmyra Atoll 120V 60Hz
Panama 110V* 60 Hz
Papua New Guinea 240V 50 Hz
Paraguay 220V 50 Hz
Peru 220V* 60 Hz*
Philippines 220V 60 Hz
Poland 230V 50 Hz
Portugal 230V 50 Hz
Puerto Rico 120V 60 Hz
Qatar 240V 50 Hz
Réunion Island 220V 50Hz
Romania 230V 50 Hz
Russian Federation 220V 50 Hz
Rwanda 230V 50 Hz
St. Kitts and Nevis (Leeward Is.) 230V 60 Hz
St. Lucia (Windward Is.) 240V 50 Hz
St. Vincent (Windward Is.) 230V 50 Hz
Saudi Arabia 127/220V 60 Hz
Scotland (See United Kingdom)
Senegal 230V 50 Hz
Serbia-Montenegro 220V 50 Hz
Seychelles 240V 50 Hz
Sierra Leone 230V 50 Hz
Singapore 230V 50 Hz
Slovak Republic 230V 50 Hz
Slovenia 220V 50 Hz
Somalia 220V* 50 Hz
South Africa 220/230V* 50 Hz
Spain 230V 50 Hz
Sri Lanka 230V 50 Hz
Sudan 230V 50 Hz
Suriname 127V 60 Hz
Swaziland 230V 50 Hz
Sweden 230V 50 Hz
Switzerland 230V 50 Hz
Syria 220V 50 Hz
Tahiti 110/220V 60 Hz
Tajikistan 220V 50 Hz
Taiwan 110V 60 Hz
Tanzania 230V 50 Hz
Thailand 220V 50 Hz
Togo 220V* 50 Hz
Tonga 240V 50 Hz
Trinidad & Tobago 115V 60 Hz
Tunisia 230V 50 Hz
Turkey 230V 50 Hz
Turkmenistan 220V 50 Hz
Uganda 240V 50 Hz
Ukraine 220V 50 Hz
United Arab Emirates 220V* 50 Hz
United Kingdom 230V* 50 Hz
United States of America 120V 60 Hz
Uruguay 220V 50 Hz
Uzbekistan 220V 50 Hz
Vanuatu 230V 50 Hz
Venezuela 120V 60 Hz
Vietnam 127/220V* 50 Hz
Virgin Islands (British and U.S.) 115V 60 Hz
Wales (See United Kingdom)
Western Samoa 230V 50 Hz
Yemen, Rep. of 220/230V 50 Hz
Yugoslavia (Former) 220V 50 Hz
Zambia 230V 50 Hz
Zimbabwe 220V 50 Hz
Primary sources: Electric Current Abroad (1998 edition), U.S. Department of Commerce, National Technical Information Service; World Electricity Supplies and Electrical Plugs; an International Survey, (both 1993), British Standards Institute. Additionally, since this table was first posted in late 1995, numerous revisions have (and continue to be) made as a result of personal observations or reports from other travelers.
For further references please visit http://www.mindlogic.com/VOLT_ADPT.shtml
Now, it is not the question of having the right adapter with you when you visit abroad. You must be also concerned with the electrical power specification that is available in the country of your visit. Looking at the guide above, it is clearly understood that your electrical and electronic devices will require not only plug adapters but also a built-in or separate voltage converter. If you are planning a visit to the United Kingdom, you will need a device which converts the electrical power of 230 Volts Alternating Current (AC) to 110 Volts AC before you can apply that power to your equipment.. These converters need to be of the right specification of providing the right output alternating current and the frequency as well for your equipment to work correctly.
If you need to charge your digital camera in Beijing, you will need an adapter which lets you plug in your charger on the wall socket. That's not all. Beijing has an electrical power output of 220 Volts AC with 50 Hz frequency and your charger can only accept an input voltage of 120 Volts AC and 60Hz. Hz, which is the short form of Hertz, is the number of cycles the alternating voltage goes through one cycle. This AC output voltage is normally a sine-wave, alternating between a positive and a negative level. This is a smooth variation with time as the other variant, and completion of one such cycle in one second is termed as 1Hz. Therefore, a 110 Volt AC of 60 Hz has 60 cycles in one second.
Remaining on the aspect of charging your digital camera in Beijing, you do not only need a plug adapter but also the right voltage converter, which will give you a 120 Volts AC, 60 Hz output from an input of 220 Volts AC of 50 Hz, which is the standard electrical power in China. The converted AC voltage applied to your charger produces a much lower Direct Current (DC) voltage output to your digital camera, for charging the camera's re-chargeable battery. Application of the direct 220 Volts AC output, without a converter will not only destroy the charger unit but may also damage your digital camera, if it is plugged into the charger,
Therefore, when you travel abroad, it is desirable that you check the electrical power specification of the country or countries that you are visiting. At the same time you should determine the plug adapter that you would be wanting. For this purpose you may like to visit http://www.mindlogic.com/VOLT_ADPT.shtml for more information.
Voltage converters are available in different specifications, which mainly depend upon the purpose of its application. For example, a voltage converter for your digital camera recharging unit will be much smaller than the one you would need to turn on your iron, if you have one with you. The varying sizes of such converters depend upon the kind of alternating current or wattage that you would require to either turn on the charger or the iron. The wattage along with the specification of input and output voltages are generally specified on the body of the converter units that you are buying.
There are adapters available which cater for multi-voltage operation. For example, the adapter itself will give you an option to be switched from 110 Volts AC output to 230 volts AC output. This is done through a toggle, at times appearing as a screw head on the converter body itself. But then again you may need a plug adapter to plug this mini-converter in the electrical power source available in the country that you are visiting. In certain countries the electrical power may have surges. Surges are high frequency levels of very high voltages, suddenly appearing at the output of the power source for a fraction of a millisecond or even micro-second. There are such adapters which are available with surge protection. Please bear in mind, thunderstorms can produce these electrical surges which may damage your equipment.
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