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Best brand of international power adapters?

Best brand of international power adapters?

Old Feb 10, 2019, 12:45 am
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Best brand of international power adapters?

What is the highest quality brand of international power adapters based on your actual experience?
Any must-have features I should look for?
Any brands to stay away from?

I need a new Type G adapter for UK, Hong Kong and Singapore. (I'm actually going only to Hong Kong and Singapore on next trip.)
Searching turned up very few recent threads on this here except for one in 2017:

Originally Posted by pseudoswede
I now only use the schuko power adapters.
When I searched for Schuko power adapters they all seemed to be Euro style. However, this brand came up as though it was a brand of Schuko
https://www.amazon.com/OREI-Travel-Adapter-Surge-Protection/dp/B00JQX2PJ6/ref=sr_1_34?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1549783521&sr=1-34&keywords=schuko+power+adapter#customerReviews https://www.amazon.com/OREI-Travel-Adapter-Surge-Protection/dp/B00JQX2PJ6/ref=sr_1_34?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1549783521&sr=1-34&keywords=schuko+power+adapter#customerReviews
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Old Feb 10, 2019, 1:15 am
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Schuko is the German name for the grounded plug (type F) used in about half of Continental Europe, not a brand name. What I believe pseudoswede was referring to is that there are a lot of really low-quality, sometimes dangerous ungrounded (Europlug/type C) adapters for the Continent out there.

If you're just looking for a plug adapter, the type G adapters tend to be better quality and priced to match vs. the super-cheap fire hazard Europlug adapters. The
"Ceptics" ones on Amazon "Ceptics" ones on Amazon
with the blue lettering are pretty much the standard design and work fine. On principle, I'd avoid anything that doesn't have the half-insulated hot/neutral pins--if the manufacturer was too cheap to do those right, what else did they do wrong? Luckily those seem rare, even from the Chinese eBay sellers.
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Last edited by der_saeufer; Feb 10, 2019 at 2:59 pm Reason: fix typo. Europlug is type C.
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Old Feb 10, 2019, 9:16 am
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Originally Posted by der_saeufer
The "Ceptics" ones on Amazon with the blue lettering are pretty much the standard design and work fine.
Agree. Have bought this brand via Amazon, and the quality is good.
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Old Feb 10, 2019, 2:05 pm
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Originally Posted by der_saeufer
Schuko is the German name for the grounded plug (type F) used in about half of Continental Europe, not a brand name.
Thank you! Now I understand why I was confused by looking for the brand.

Originally Posted by der_saeufer
The "Ceptics" ones on Amazon with the blue lettering are pretty much the standard design and work fine. On principle, I'd avoid anything that doesn't have the half-insulated hot/neutral pins--if the manufacturer was too cheap to do those right, what else did they do wrong? Luckily those seem rare, even from the Chinese eBay sellers.
Thank you for the rec der_saeufer and Craig6z.

Just out of curiousity, how could I spot one that does not have the "half-insulated hot/neutral pins" ?
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Old Feb 10, 2019, 2:09 pm
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I thought we had an entire wiki for this question at Power Outlet Shape Adapter Advice
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Old Feb 10, 2019, 2:56 pm
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Originally Posted by MareLuce
Just out of curiousity, how could I spot one that does not have the "half-insulated hot/neutral pins" ?
Look at the photos--notice how the longer top (earth aka ground) pin is bare metal but the other two (hot and neutral) have a coating for half their length? That's a safety measure that makes it very difficult to shock yourself when plugging in or unplugging a device. It's required by the standard, so any adapter that doesn't have it is by definition low quality. Even my $1 Chinese eBay adapters have them.

Originally Posted by chx1975
I thought we had an entire wiki for this question at Power Outlet Shape Adapter Advice
We do, but that wiki mostly covers the "universal" adapters rather than the single-purpose ones the OP asked about. Some good info in the thread though.

As an aside, I hardly even use adapters anymore; I have a collection of power cords for my laptop and just charge other stuff off the laptop. Just as cheap, but even lighter and one less failure point.
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Old Feb 10, 2019, 3:38 pm
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Originally Posted by der_saeufer
Look at the photos--notice how the longer top (earth aka ground) pin is bare metal but the other two (hot and neutral) have a coating for half their length? That's a safety measure that makes it very difficult to shock yourself when plugging in or unplugging a device. It's required by the standard, so any adapter that doesn't have it is by definition low quality. Even my $1 Chinese eBay adapters have them.



We do, but that wiki mostly covers the "universal" adapters rather than the single-purpose ones the OP asked about. Some good info in the thread though.

As an aside, I hardly even use adapters anymore; I have a collection of power cords for my laptop and just charge other stuff off the laptop. Just as cheap, but even lighter and one less failure point.
I also have two extra figure-8 power cords, UK and EU, which I can plug into an Anker multi-port USB hub. I carry a small, extra adapter in case one of my travel companions needs it, but I've not used it myself in years.
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Old Feb 10, 2019, 4:34 pm
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I also did the "charge from laptop" tactic and in turn charge the laptop from the Mu One w/ its international heads. It worked but I am glad I will have the Maru & Masa to have some extra USB C ports for (much) speedier charging. Also the One Mix Yoga 2S doesn't charge from 5V which makes this tricky. I also did the figure eight replacement or , when such was required, the mickey mouse cable replacement which is even better because those plug shape adapters are big and unwieldy.
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Old Feb 10, 2019, 6:20 pm
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I also usually carry figure-8 and the relevant Apple duck head plugs if I'm traveling for a longer period or with others. If I'm packing light then I might bring 1 USB-C, 1 USB-A 2 port charger, and a folding adapter. I'll probably upgrade to a GaN 2 port USB-C charger when I see one I like under 7 oz.

I also like WonPro adapters WAD series with the extra NEMA plug on top so I don't necessarily lose an outlet https://www.wonpro.com/en/product-c3...eceptacle.html (for those occasions where the single outlet is also where the only lamp is plugged in) and the one with a switch for use with an immersion coil https://www.wonpro.com/en/product-c3...er-switch.html https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/20110852-post11.html
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Old Feb 11, 2019, 2:33 am
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Question

Originally Posted by lwildernorva
I also have two extra figure-8 power cords, UK and EU, which I can [...]
What do you mean by figure-8 power cords?
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Old Feb 11, 2019, 2:47 am
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Originally Posted by MareLuce
What do you mean by figure-8 power cords?
Amazon Amazon
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Old Feb 11, 2019, 4:29 am
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No idea where the OP is from, but the UK, HK and Singapore all use the same type of plug so only need for one. Talk of Euro adapters for European plugs is irrelevant.
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Old Feb 11, 2019, 5:09 am
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Originally Posted by der_saeufer
I hardly even use adapters anymore; I have a collection of power cords for my laptop and just charge other stuff off the laptop. Just as cheap, but even lighter and one less failure point.
I have dedicated power cords for NA, Europe, UK and India/South Africa and they are much better than using an adapter. I continue to carry and use adapters because charging devices from the laptop often takes more time and is not always convenient if you are on the go and need a quick charge.

I've been very happy with the adapters sold by Austin House.
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Old Feb 11, 2019, 7:55 am
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Originally Posted by MareLuce
What do you mean by figure-8 power cords?
As LondonElite helpfully posted the illustration, I'll just add that the Anker USB unit,
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Anker-Charger-PowerPort-Charging-Multi-Port-Black/dp/B00VTI8K9K/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1549896173&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=anker+usb https://www.amazon.co.uk/Anker-Charger-PowerPort-Charging-Multi-Port-Black/dp/B00VTI8K9K/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=aps&ie=UTF8&qid=1549896173&sr=1-1-catcorr&keywords=anker+usb
(the sixth photo on the left of the Amazon page shows the rear, figure-8 design), uses that type of power cord and allows me to place the USB block on a nightstand or a desk in UK (or if I'm on the Continent, EU) hotel rooms, many of which contain only one or two electrical outlets, sometimes in really inconvenient locations, like behind the bed.
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Old Feb 12, 2019, 2:17 pm
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Originally Posted by der_saeufer
Schuko is the German name for the grounded plug (type F) used in about half of Continental Europe, not a brand name. What I believe pseudoswede was referring to is that there are a lot of really low-quality, sometimes dangerous ungrounded (Europlug/type C) adapters for the Continent out there.
Thank you for explaining it better than I could have.

I have tried a few type C adapters while in Sweden, but they never seem to fit snug--it's like the pins are often 0.5mm too narrow. I never have that issue with type F adapters. I have a bag full of type F adapters that stay in Sweden, and I always carry 3-4 in my backpack for the family while we travel.
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