In which my charger fails, and I track down another
| original date | 2024-01-26 19:00 utc |
|---|---|
| retroactively published | 2024-03-05 16:33 utc |
| topics | tech; Peru |
As any traveller knows altogether too well, there are several different types of “standard” electrical plugs around the world. There are many web sites that purport to explain the different standards and that offer color-coded maps showing what plugs are used in what countries — but the information is highly contradictory and, in the case of Peru at any rate, incorrect.
Wikipedia offers perhaps the most comprehensive explanation, but it, too, is incomplete.
What I’ve found in my modern apartment in Lima is two different types of outlets, both of which deliver the 220v/50Hz power that is the most common standard outside of North America.
One type, that I basically haven’t used, seems to be an Italian Type L standard. I have adapters that let me use this type of outlet, but I can use the other type without any adapter, and that is usually a preferable approach.
The other type seems to be a Thai “dual socket” Type O socket that allows for both Europlugs and American NEMA I (Type A) plugs. Brief experimentation with my Europlug adapter shows that, as is apparently common for TypeO sockets, the connection is very loose, and the plug wants to fall out. Type A (“American”) plugs fit fairly securely, but it’s important to remember that the power delivered is 220v/50Hz, not North American 110v/60Hz.
In theory, every item I brought with me that wants electricity (nothing, in fact, other than USB and laptop charging bricks) can handle both 110v/60Hz and 220v/50Hz. I was trying to minimize both weight and volume in my luggage, so for all of my various devices, I brought nothing other than a 20-watt USB‑C Apple charging brick and a brand-new Ugreen 100w Nexode Pro 3‑port charger.
The Apple product works great. I was dismayed when plugging in the Ugreen, however, that I’d get a brief moment of power followed by … nothing. This was going to be my main charging solution (Type A connector, theoretically handles both 110 and 220v), so its inability to deliver power caused a great deal of trouble over the last few days.
Once I’d recovered enough from the flu to go out and about a bit, therefore, I walked to the Larcomar mall, built into the ocean-facing cliff-face of Miraflores to purchase a replacement for the Ugreen.
Uggh. All the American retail chains you might expect in Indianapolis or Tulsa were there, with scarcely a South American retailer among them. But I did find the iShop I was looking for. There wasn’t a single multi-port USB‑C charger there without USB‑A ports too, and there were no GaN-type chargers (faster, smaller, and a little lighter than older chargers). But I bought a decent Belkin charger and brought it home.
Problems solved. And sufficient unto my days, now, is the electricity thereof.