220 or 120?

[etilit]

why do you have 220 in Europe? man bf sent me a hd with music and you guys have silly points to plug in...and 220? cant you get it down to 120 volts?

after all...were in an energy crisis lol

 

[Tjerk12]

Seen from energy aspects 220 volt is better than 110 volt. To get the same (engine) power you need less current in the 220 situation. And that means less energy waist (heat loss). That is the reason why energy is transported from the power plants to the cities under high voltage conditions (10.000 volt).
Normally in America everything is bigger. So this time the power waist, but it would have been smarter to have chosen for the voltage.

 

[gb2000ie]

Those little power blocks on modern electronic devices deal with the voltage differences around the world, if you read them, they generally say they will operate between 100 and 240 volts, and 50 and 60 hertz. This was a big problem in the past, but it really shouldn't be now.

As for us needing to cut down to save energy, you need to brush up on your physics! The lower the voltage the more energy is lost in transmission, by using only 110 volts Americans are WASTING gigawatts of power every minute! This is why power is transmitted over long distances at VERY high voltages. Bigger numbers are not always less efficient

B.

 

[s1568]

Yes, I agree 240 volts are more efficent, than 110 volts.