Photo [PPDIGITAL/Flickr]
Every gadget you own needs some kind of mains power. Even if you don’t hook it straight up to the wall, there will be some kind of battery charger involved. Finding enough outlets in your own home can be a chore, but at least all the plugs fit all the outlets. I was reminded of this on a recent jaunt to the UK, home of possibly the most paranoid electrical designs in the world. The first lesson was that you need to take your adapter with you. Almost nobody you visit will have adapters to fit their own country’s sockets. Why would they? All their plugs fit.
Photo [Wikipedia/Public Domain]
The second realization was that there is a second tier for electrical connections. While the World’s wall holes vary, there are a few international standards, exemplified by the Kettle Lead, or IEC connector (seen above) and its close cousins, the two-pin C7 and C8 connectors.
You find these everywhere, from games consoles to tape recorder to laptops and, of course, kettles. Even Apple uses a modified form on its notebook power supplies (if you have an old yo-yo style iBook mains adapter then it’s likely you’ve replaced the notoriously breakable Apple AC cable with a whittled-down C7).
Because these are so common, almost every house has a few spares, meaning that you can hook up to the local supply, even if it temporarily makes you white power brick look less pretty than Cupertino intended.
Britain
Photo [Docklandsboy/Flickr]
Aside from the practicalities of international portability, the differences in design are themselves fascinating and often reflect the national character of the host country. The most extreme example is Britain. In this joyless nation the average citizen can’t be trusted to think for himself. For this reason, standard 240v mains sockets can never be found in a bathroom (and bathroom lights are activated with a ceiling mounted pull-cord). When you get into drier areas of the house, the madness continues. Every UK socket has an Earth (or Ground) pin, and the three prong design means that the plug can only go in one way. You can still squeeze a two-pin plug in there, but it wobbles in a way that would strike fear into the most carefree Englishman.
It doesn’t stop there. Each and every socket has its own power switch. Even some power strips come with individual breakers. If you don’t think that the UK government interferes in every tiny part of its citizens lives, then consider a public service film that was shown there back in the seventies. In it, homeowners are warned to not only switch all appliances off at the wall before going to bed, but to unplug them, too. Failure to do so would result in electrical fires and death, joyfully illustrated by the scaremongering TV spot.
Other countries are more lackadaisical in their approach. In Spain, you’ll find mains power inches from the kitchen and bathroom sinks, with no way of isolating them. Some appliances requiring a Ground line can’t be fitted into groundless sockets, but that’s as far as the safety goes. For frequent travelers, it becomes clear quickly that people are very similar all around the World. It is these little, unnoticed and mundane, every-day pieces of public design that are one of the constant surprises for the globetrotter.
China
Photo [kenner116/Flickr]
Australia
Photo [Alikai/Flickr]
South Africa
Photo [Joi/Flickr]
Chile
Photo [César Rincón/Flickr]
Mexico
Photo [ZeroOne/Flickr]
Denmark
Photo [plindberg/Flickr]
Please point us to any more Creative Commons pictures, or tell us about any weird power cord conventions in the comments.
Further reading
Domestic AC power plugs and sockets [Wikipedia]
The Navigon 2100 Max 
