110v Canon battery chargers on 220v

divamum

Hi all -

Heading to the UK in January - first time with this much gear! :wink Do US Canon battery chargers self-adjust to voltage like current laptops, or do I need a transformer? I'm not sure yet if I'll be taking the 7d or the XSi (without the grip it's nice and light), and I'm still hoping Santa just might bring me an s95...

Thanks in advance for info/advice (and/or where to look up the appropriate details/procedures) :thumb

Richard

divamum wrote: »

Hi all -

Heading to the UK in January - first time with this much gear! Do US Canon battery chargers self-adjust to voltage like current laptops, or do I need a transformer? I'm not sure yet if I'll be taking the 7d or the XSi (without the grip it's nice and light), and I'm still hoping Santa just might bring me an s95...

Thanks in advance for info/advice (and/or where to look up the appropriate details/procedures)

Almost all power supplies for electronics these days are self-adjusting. I know my 50D model is, but you should check Canon's specs just to be sure. You shouldn't need a transformer, but power plugs differ a lot, so you will need an adapter. Any decent hardware store should have one, both in the US and the UK.

divamum

Plug adapters no probs - have plenty. Just want to make sure I don't fry anything!!!

colourbox

Look at the back of your charger and see what it says. I just turned over my Rebel and 7D chargers and they both say "100-240 volts" on the back. That means they only need an adapter overseas, not a transformer. Come to think of it, I have charged my Canon batteries overseas...

People ask this about laptops too. Always read the small text on the adapter, I don't know if it's a law or anything but at least for US models they always seem to list the supported voltage range.

Dan7312

Label on the back of the charger that came with my 7D says 100-240V 50-60 cycle. So you should be safe even if you decide to stop off in Japan on your way back...

divamum wrote: »

Hi all -

Heading to the UK in January - first time with this much gear! Do US Canon battery chargers self-adjust to voltage like current laptops, or do I need a transformer? I'm not sure yet if I'll be taking the 7d or the XSi (without the grip it's nice and light), and I'm still hoping Santa just might bring me an s95...

Thanks in advance for info/advice (and/or where to look up the appropriate details/procedures)

divamum

Well DUH - didn't even think of that (talk about missing the obvious, huh?!) ~dutifully goes off to read labels~

ETA: sure enough, they all seem to be 100-240v, as is the LaCrosse AA charger. Excellent!

BradfordBenn

I will say that even though they are Universal Voltages, there is one accessory that is great to bring along. I bring a power strip and one adapter plug to plug the power strip into the local outlet. I learned the hard way on a biz trip that I have more things to pug in than I thought. I really like the Monster Cable Outlets to go. It has good form factor and the outlets are far enough apart I can get my chargers in there. Don't let the name Monster Cable scare you. It is not overpriced.

divamum

I bring a power strip and one adapter plug to plug the power strip into the local outlet.

So simple and so TOTALLY something I wouldn't have thought of. That may count as Tip of the Year!

(I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the idea that all of my stuff is now American, so I have to adapt it at all - I'm used to this the other way around!)

BradfordBenn

divamum wrote: »

So simple and so TOTALLY something I wouldn't have thought of. That may count as Tip of the Year!

(I'm still trying to wrap my mind around the idea that all of my stuff is now American, so I have to adapt it at all - I'm used to this the other way around!)

Glad to help.

colourbox

BradfordBenn wrote: »

I will say that even though they are Universal Voltages, there is one accessory that is great to bring along. I bring a power strip and one adapter plug

Ok, well what I learned the hard way when I brought my US surge-protected mini travel power strip overseas, I never bothered to check and notice that it was not 100-240V, and so it promptly blew up as soon as I plugged it into the adapter in the 240V socket. (Nothing else was damaged since of course, the mission of the power strip is to "take one for the team" when encountering what it defines as a surge, in this case double 120V.) Make sure you are bringing a 240V compatible power strip or just pick one up when you get to the other side.

divamum

Well yet another "duh - that's so obvious - why didn't I think of that?!" point. Thanks! I can either use a transformer for the strip itself and let the assorted chargers and appliances adjust accordingly to whatever they get (I seem to recall that 240>120 step-down transformers are seldom 100% accurate) or just get one there. Fortunately, we're well supplied with everything and now I know that it isn't anything like the big deal it used to be since so many electronics are self-adjusting, I can wing it on a case by case basis.

Great info from all - hopefully this will be helpful to somebody else in the future, too!

cmason

yep made same mistake, so the answer is to get a strip without the surge protection bit, or just get a 3-way pluggy thing (thats what I have)

colourbox wrote: »

Ok, well what I learned the hard way when I brought my US surge-protected mini travel power strip overseas, I never bothered to check and notice that it was not 100-240V, and so it promptly blew up as soon as I plugged it into the adapter in the 240V socket. (Nothing else was damaged since of course, the mission of the power strip is to "take one for the team" when encountering what it defines as a surge, in this case double 120V.) Make sure you are bringing a 240V compatible power strip or just pick one up when you get to the other side.

divamum

To clarify, Cmason: an ordinary, NON powersurge 120v extension cord/strip will cope with a plug-adapter only (ie no transformer)?

cmason

divamum wrote: »

To clarify, Cmason: an ordinary, NON powersurge 120v extension cord/strip will cope with a plug-adapter only (ie no transformer)?

yes, something like this...or actually, even better might be one of these. I ruined the Belkin version of this, but this one is rated for 240v

http://www.amazon.com/Monster-MP-OTG400-BK-Outlets/dp/B000F9YN2M/ref=sr_1_11?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1293160202&sr=1-11

BradfordBenn

I can vouch for the Monster Outlets to Go working at multiple voltages without a problem. I have used them up to 277VAC and down to 100VAC no problem. It is not a surge suppressor as mentioned it is just a well formed power strip.