New ridiculous Chinese mains adapter

[paulears]

This must rate as the most pointless adaptor ever!

 

I guess the factory took the detail sizes from the UK 13A plug spec, and figured that there was no need for the earth connection, so designed this - totally unaware of the mechanical need for the earth pin!

[adam2]

What a daft product. It would fit some MK sockets that use equal pressure on the live and neutral pins to open the shutters, but as has been said it wont work with most sockets. If one did get a socket to accept it, still dangerous as no fuse.

[ImagineerTom]

It wouldn't work in the uk but there's several places in the world that use the "uk shape" plug/socket but without the mechanical earth shutter action - for example huge chunks of the middle east & asia where the default socket is a weird multi-way socket that takes about a dozen different styles of plug would have no problem with these

[kerry davies]

Unfair Paul. Why not show the hammer that comes with it to get it into the socket outlet?

[paulears]

I should send it to Clive - never seen this daft thing before!

[Brian]

This must rate as the most pointless adaptor ever!

 

And dangerous.

[alistermorton]

Yeah, but at least the pins are shrouded :-^

[adam2]

It wouldn't work in the uk but there's several places in the world that use the "uk shape" plug/socket but without the mechanical earth shutter action - for example huge chunks of the middle east & asia where the default socket is a weird multi-way socket that takes about a dozen different styles of plug would have no problem with these

 

 

True, but most of those multiway sockets would directly take the two pin American plug for which the dodgy adaptor is intended., thereby rendering the adaptor needless.

 

 

 

 

[sleah]

I should send it to Clive - never seen this daft thing before!

 

I was just thinking it's the kind of thing that gets BigClive and John Ward all excited. I can just visualise a JW video overloading it... :D

[ImagineerTom]

It wouldn't work in the uk but there's several places in the world that use the "uk shape" plug/socket but without the mechanical earth shutter action - for example huge chunks of the middle east & asia where the default socket is a weird multi-way socket that takes about a dozen different styles of plug would have no problem with these

 

 

True, but most of those multiway sockets would directly take the two pin American plug for which the dodgy adaptor is intended., thereby rendering the adaptor needless.

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry bad punctuation - in Bahrain & Saudi every hotel & office I've been in has used a plug socket that looks like a UK plug but without the shutters. When I've been in various asian countries the "absolutely everything fits" socket was fairly normal except in hong kong where again the "uk style but without the good bits" shape seemed to be the norm. So whilst this is a useless adapter for some countries there's a market of 30-40million people where this could be vaguely useful if a rather imperfect choice.

 

 

Oh and according to IEC the "uk style" plug is used in a lot of countries but they specifically highlight that the UK has the added shutters which implies all the other countries don't. https://www.iec.ch/worldplugs/typeG.htm

Edited February 26, 2020 by ImagineerTom

[gyro_gearloose]

Oh, I don't know. I've got some 4 way extension cables these would fit. I'd just need to open the shutter by putting a normal plug in backwards, with its live and neutral pins hanging in the breeze.... :)

 

While its by no means the biggest problem with these adaptors, there doesn't seem to be space to fit a fuse.

[sandall]

Oh, I don't know. I've got some 4 way extension cables these would fit. I'd just need to open the shutter by putting a normal plug in backwards, with its live and neutral pins hanging in the breeze.... :)

You mean you don't have a collection of earth pins salvaged from smashed plugtops, for sorting out acts that arrive with 2-pin plugs on all their gear?

[Seano]

Perfectly usable to charge your phone in any of the cafes, shops or hotels where they've thoughtfully put a little plastic "safety" device in the socket you can just whip out and shove back in upside-down. :)

[bigclive]

I should send it to Clive - never seen this daft thing before!

 

It's been around for a while and may even have appeared on kickstarter.

One manifestation has a "key" that goes into the earth receptacle to open the safety shutters.