what the heck? is it charging faster?

[newrmdmike]

so i'm in thailand, and the outlets are 220v, where they are 120 in the states.

i plug my battery charger in and i could swear it charges faster . . . i don't know much about electricity, can someone tell me if this is possible, true or if i'm losing my mind?

 

[Peniole]

I don't see how since your adapter converts to DC power at a set voltage and set amps.

 

[tataencu]

theoretically it could be possible because it overpowers your charger. but if your charger was built for 120V then it should be long before it goes into flames, your batteries blow or it just stops working.

 

[smyth]

well, here's the thing. Thailand and other developing countries have electrical standards that are lacking or even unregulated.

If you're socket looks like this:

you should be very wary. Since this socket accepts both 120v and 220v appliances, it is possible that your charger will be getting a higher dose of electricity than 120v. Therefore, it is possible that you could be getting a slightly higher voltage, which is no that big of a deal, seen as the appliances are built to stand slight variations in voltage. (probably ~10v) Given that information, I suppose it might be possible that your battery would charge quicker.

 

[jon_k]

well, here's the thing. Thailand and other developing countries have electrical standards that are lacking or even unregulated.

If you're socket looks like this:

Gee, I'd really watch out for an outlet like that. I'd only plug an appliance in if it had a switch to switch between 110 and 220. Imagine plugging your desktop computer in to 220vAC when the power supply is set to 110vAC. Poof!

Likewise, if your plugging your battery charger directly in to an outlet like that, I hope your charger has a switch to go between 110 and 220. Batteries are made to charge at a certain rate, going past that or overcharging can damage the battery, make it expode, and other bad things. If your using a converter to make the outlet into a US style, it's likely regulated power and safe (and your batteries should not charge any faster.)

 

[Peniole]

Most decent battery chargers I've seen, including my camera battery charger, my laptop charger...etc. all have 110-240v ratings, they assume you might be traveling using a "travel" battery charger. He would have fried his charger and batteries if it was a 110v only.

 

[Johnboy2978]

When I went to Italy and Malta, I bought some converters here in the states before leaving. The first time I used the charger w/ the converter, it completely burned up and smoked my charger. My batteries were fine (and charged quickly ) but the charger had to be thrown away. Thankfully, I had a charger instead of charging it through the camera. I too would be wary when dealing w/ foreign electricty and US electronics.

 

[newrmdmike]

the electricity is definatly screwy here, some 220 appliances run hot . . . bad stuff in the wires here. BUT, the charger says it accepts both 110 and 220 . . so i've been plugging it in, no probs yet.

but it really does seem to charge faster . . . i'll time it and see how it compares with someone elses d200 batteries.

 

[newrmdmike]

oh, and thats exactly what all the outlets here look like. and i realize some things only work with 110, and have converters for those itemss, but the back of the charger says 100-240 is ok

 

[Alex_B]

every modern charger should accept 120 and 240V automatically and even tings in between. Only if it gets way above, then there should be a problem.
The charger itself should not charge considerably faster, since it is electronically regulated to give the same voltage and amps to the batteries, independently of the voltage input from the outer world.

I do realise though, that with my (Canon) batteries, the time they need to charge from empty to full varies greatly ... with the same external voltage applied.

 

[shingfan]

technically....the charger is charing the battery at fixed DC voltage & current output no matter what the input voltage is (110 or 220)....so it shouldnt make any difference on the charging time.....you are probably thinking too much

 

[newrmdmike]

probably . . . . i would have thought it would have a fixed output . . . but it charged from dead to full in like 1 hr or less.

 

[Mike_E]

Electricity being tied to the universal constant "C" only moves at one speed.

However, you may be in a place where time moves slower and it appears that the electricity is moving faster by comparison.

enjoy your stay!

mike

 

[shingfan]

maybe is problem with the charger....since you are now using it at a different potential......maybe it is misbehaving....haha....but as far as the actual charging of the battery..........charing 1 hour at 110 or 1 hour at 220 shouldnt made any difference....you probably will notice that the battery also die faster with that one hour charge....(ignore the battery indicator of the charger)......also maybe the battery is losing life over time....many possibilities.......anyhow....have a nice trip and take great photos

 

[AUZambo]

Be careful...it's been mentioned a few times I think, but you can short out the charger with those crazy European outlets.

I have a buzzed head which I do myself. I just went to Italy for 2 weeks and took my clippers with me. They got turned on somehow during the flight over there and ran the battery down. I plugged them into an outlet with my converter one morning. When I got back to my room that afternoon I saw the charging light was off so I assumed my clippers were charged. I started cutting my hair and the clippers ran out of juice after the first cut. The high voltage screwed up the charger after a short period and I was left with a line in my head for the remainder of the trip.

Fortunately the clippers are cheap to replace....that may not be true for your charger if it gets messed up.