US charger

jogdish

Hi,
I have a samsung galaxy note 8 ( tablet ), but it has a US charger plug. The charger is a 2 pin plug with a hole for the usb connector.

I have a similar 3 pin plug that came with my amazon kindle - is it safe to use this?
Also i have a 2 pin -> 3 pin convertor ( cheap thing ) would that be safe to use?

Overheal

Yes USB is a universal interface, the Galaxy cable will work on the Kindle brick.

SpaceTime

Using US plugs with 230V isn't generally a good idea. They've no protection on the pins to prevent you touching them when they're live. Irish and Euro plugs and sockets all either have plastic on part of the pin, or recessed sockets so you can't touch the live pins.

They don't do that in the US and you can get a very, very nasty shock by touching the live pin, or worse - both pins while plugging in/out.

Bad idea to use US plugs here as a long by term solution.

Overheal

SpaceTime wrote: »

Using US plugs with 230V isn't generally a good idea. They've no protection on the pins to prevent you touching them when they're live. Irish and Euro plugs and sockets all either have plastic on part of the pin, or recessed sockets so you can't touch the live pins.

They don't do that in the US and you can get a very, very nasty shock by touching the live pin, or worse - both pins while plugging in/out.

Bad idea to use US plugs here as a long by term solution.

I can not sit here and tell you that I didn't once have sparks fly up and over a mattress one time from something that was plugged in while butted up right next to the bed.... but in general terms, if we're all adults here, you're not all that likely to get shocked or die of electrocution.

Now, contrast this "MERIKA" thinking, with Irish thinking. My late stepmother died of other, accidental causes, but before she did there was a funny incident with some cord stuck in the wall. I wish I could recall the details for you, but she thought it was the BEST way to tackle the problem with a kitchen knife.

NEEDLESS to say, we lost power, and the dryness of our pants. If it were in an american socket sure yeah she'd have been dead - sooner. The only difference between euro stupidity and american stupidity is we are smart enough to kill off the lower percentile IQ..

Sir Arthur Daley

Overheal wrote: »

I can not sit here and tell you that I didn't once have sparks fly up and over a mattress one time from something that was plugged in while butted up right next to the bed.... but in general terms, if we're all adults here, you're not all that likely to get shocked or die of electrocution.

Good to have assurance that 230 volts is non lethal.

SpaceTime

Sir Arthur Daley wrote: »

Good to have assurance that 230 volts is non lethal.

It's very lethal if you're unlucky enough to have the current flow across your chest. You're protected by RCDs (in modern installations, older wiring doesn't necessarily have them), finger protection designs and good earthing.

Irish and British plug are fairly idiot proof and very child safe - every socket is shuttered to prevent objects being pushed in by kids. That's not always the case on in most continental countries (although it's being phased in) and it's never the case in the US.

American sockets and plugs simply aren't designed with safety in mind and they're also a MUCH older design than ours. They assume 110V is less lethal (which it is) but it still can kill and injure.

Using US plugs with European 230V isn't a good ideal.

Overheal

Sir Arthur Daley wrote: »

Good to have assurance that 230 volts is non lethal.

It's PLENTY lethal, she was just lucky, the ground wire and the fuse saved her ass.

SpaceTime

Overheal wrote: »

It's PLENTY lethal, she was just lucky, the ground wire and the fuse saved her ass.

The RCD would save you. The ground wire only prevents the bodies of metal appliances from becoming accidentally live should they have a fault and speeds up fault detection by causing the fuse to blow by providing an easy path back to earth.

A fuse only protects against overloads and fire. It has no purpose in personal protection whatsoever.

The RCD basically compares live and neutral and if there's a difference of more than 30mA it immediately trips. The US uses GFCIs which have a slightly different rating and timing calculation, but the basic level of protection is actually rather similar.

Anything over about 30mA will potentially stop your heart!

What happens is the AC at 50Hz or 60Hz causes muscles to contract by overriding nerve signals. If that runs through your chest, head or certain nerves you're basically in very very BIG trouble.

The smallest fuse for a plug is 3amps, that's 3000mA. All it's there for is to prevent the flex/cable that runs from the plug to the appliance from overloading if there's a short circuit.

The household wiring has 16amp, 20amp or 32amp circuit breakers or fuses feeding the sockets. Their only purpose is to prevent the house wiring from overloading and going on fire.

The plug fuse is only required in Ireland and Britain because we allow 32 amp circuits. So, you have to down fuse the cables on appliances or they'd risk fire. That isn't any issue in Europe or the US as they only have 15/16A (or 20 sometimes) circuits.

So, basically if you've only got fuses, you can be electrocuted quite easily.

Apart from the risk of electrocution, it can also cause very nasty and deep burns.

So, rule of thumb : don't get electrocuted !!

Overheal

SpaceTime wrote: »

So, rule of thumb : don't get electrocuted !!

Words to live by :cool: