International Power/Video/Radio Standards: By: Colin A. McGregor Copyright: Colin A. McGregor A while back I worked in the TV department of a large Canadian retail chain, and on a semi-regular basis I would run into questions like the following: I want to buy this movie on video tape, and send it to a relative in <>, will there be a problem?" or I plan to visit <>, and I want to use my <>, will there be any problems?" Except for a few obvious nations such as the U.S.A., the best we were able to offer is "I don't know." or "I'm not sure". For the past while, I have attempted to get the answer to these questions, and they are surprisingly hard to find. What follows is the best set of answers I was able to put together. If you are aware of any problems with this write-up please let me know either via internet at: colin.mcgregor@canrem.com or via conventional mail, Colin A. McGregor, 151 Roehampton Ave., Toronto, Ontario, M4P 1P9, Canada. Electrical Power Standards: When travelling abroad there are three questions that have to be dealt with, the type of plug, the voltage and the frequency (in hertz or Hz). I will explain and deal with each of these in turn. Plugs: When you plug an appliance into the wall, you expect to see at the end of the appliances power cord two thin flat parallel blades. Depending on the appliance you may see a thick round pin mid way between, somewhat out of line of the two flat blades. The wall outlet will of course be designed to accept this sort of plug. But, this arrangement is hardly a worldwide standard, there are eight other plug/socket arrangements in use world wide. Fortunately, of the problems facing international travellers this is the least serious. Many stores sell adaptors that snap onto the end of a Canadian appliance's power cord that will allow them to plug into almost any of the other standards quite easily. A package of adaptors that will handle all of the standards is less than $20, and is small enough to be very easily packed. Do not assume however that as soon as you can plug the appliance into a wall outlet that your all set, in fact under some situations this is a sure way of destroying an appliance, so please keep reading. Power: Worldwide standards for power run from 100 volts (in Japan) to a high of 250 volts (some parts of South Africa). Canadian appliances will not have trouble with anything between 110 and 120 volts. Most Canadian appliances will not have trouble dealing with voltages between 100 volts and 130 volts. There are a few appliances (such as some electric razors, some hair dryers, some irons, and a few computers) that can deal with (or have a switch that allows them to deal with) 220 and/or 240 volts without trouble. If your not sure how wide a range your appliance can handle, check with the manufacturer. Keep in mind that SOME countries have different voltages in different parts of the country (in some cities you can find different voltages in different parts of the same city!). So do double check what voltage you are dealing with each time you change location. An example of this is Italy, northern Italy (like most of Europe) is 220 volts, southern Italy is 110 to 127 volts, with the dividing line running through Rome. If you plug an appliance into a voltage source it was not designed for the appliance either will not work, or (more likely) be damaged or destroyed. Now, if someone really does want to take an appliance abroad that was not designed to deal with 240 volts then they may still be in luck. Many stores sell transformers that will transform 240 volts into 120 volts (and 220 volts into 110 volts (in other words the transformers drop the voltage in half)). These transformers are available in two versions, one is for small appliances of up to 50 watts (radios, razors, etc.), the other (using a different internal design) is for appliances of up to 1500 watts (hairdryers, hotplates, etc.). Both types of transformer are under $30 each and are small enough to be easily packed. Frequency: In Canada the power coming out of an electrical outlets goes in one direction, then it stops, goes in the other direction, stops and then repeats the cycle over and over again. This flipping goes on 60 times per second and is called known as 60 Hertz (Hz) power. In much of the world the standard is 50 Hz power. Many electric motors use this 60 times a second switch to control their speed. For many appliances going to 50 Hz not a real problem (who cares if the motor in their hair dryer or razor is a bit slower, it will still do the job). Problems do occur with appliances such as clocks and tape recorders (where running at 5/6 normal speed will make the equipment effectively useless!). SOME electronic equipment (such as some digital clocks, and some computers) use the 60 times a second change to govern internal operations, and will not run or work properly at 50 Hz. As well, electrical transformers will run somewhat hotter at 50 Hz than at 60 Hz, there are horror stories of people setting up poorly designed 60 Hz electronic equipment in hot 50 Hz climates and then finding the transformers melting out of the equipment. To be sure the equipment will work in a 50 Hz area, check to see if the unit says something like "50 Hz - 60 Hz", or check with the manufacturer. As with voltage you will find a few counties were the frequency varies depending on where you are in the country. For example northern Japan (north of Mt. Fuji) is 50 Hz, southern Japan (south of Mt. Fuji) is 60 Hz. Unlike voltage there are no simple/cheap ways of getting around differences in frequency. If you MUST use a 60 Hz only appliance in a 50 Hz country you have three options, none are pleasant. The first option is to replace the part(s) that are causing the problem(s) (motors, transformers, and/or electronic parts), this requires someone knowledgeable about the appliance, and suitable parts must be available. Another option is to get a device that converts 50 Hz power to 60 Hz power, the only commercial units that do this are large, heavy, and expensive. The third approach is to generate the power you need from scratch with a portable generator, an expensive, messy but workable option. In other words, as a rule it would be cheaper to get a new appliance (or appliances) rather than attempting to get around frequency problems. A final note from the strange file is that in some parts of rural Australia (and in a few other corners of the world) they use direct current (D.C.) instead of the alternating current used everywhere else in the world. Direct current is poison as far as almost all electrical appliances in current use around the world. Almost any equipment with a motor, and any equipment with a transformer will either just not work, or be destroyed by being attached to a direct current power source. The only "typical" equipment that can be attached to D.C. power without trouble are things like heaters (that do not have fans), and electric non-florescent lights. The small number (and it is a very small number) of electrical products that can run on D.C. power will have a sign on the item that reads something like "D.C. - A.C.". Video Standards: All the world's colour TV standards use the same concept, transmit the black & white picture and on a separate signal send the information to colour that black & white picture. The black & white picture is described with a letter (B, D, G, H, K, L, M, N, and V), the standard for Canada is the M system. There are three different systems for adding colour to a TV picture (NTSC, PAL, and SECAM), the standard in use in Canada is NTSC. In other words if you want to send (or get) a video tape from someone using "NTSC-M" there will not be any problem. Things do get a bit strange around the edges. Consider for a moment a country like Thailand, they do have TV transmitters that broadcast using the M system, but the colour signal is encoded using the PAL system. If you played a PAL-M tape on an NTSC-M VCR you would get a black and white picture. However, the reverse would not work, you could not get a useable picture from a NTSC-B video tape on an NTSC-M VCR. As well, yes, some counties do have different standards depending on where you are in the country (and in some countries the standards overlap). If you MUST see a video tape that was recorded in a different standard there are four options, none of them great. There are firms that specialize in converting video tapes from one standard to another. These services are not cheap, but if you only have a small number of video tapes to convert they are a lot cheaper than doing the conversion yourself. As well, keep in mind that these companies can only convert material that you have copyright on, or are in the public domain (so, you can have them convert things like your kids birthday party, or your wedding, but not things like the latest movie). You can find a number of firms that do conversion in the "Yellow Pages" under "Video-Production". If you can see yourself getting a lot of video tapes from ONE country and just need to deal with just one video standard, the easiest way to deal with things might be just to get a TV and VCR from that country. This does carry the potential problem of power differences (noted above). If you can deal with power differences this is a workable solution, but if anyone at the other end wants to receive video tapes from you they will need a similar NTSC-M TV and VCR combination. As well keep in mind that Canadian distributers of foreign made products are reluctant or will refuse to service equipment designed for other parts of the world, so if anything goes wrong you may be faced with shipping the item out of Canada to be repaired. Another way to get around the standards dilemma is to get a multi- standard TV and VCR. These machines will at the flick of a switch go from one video standard to another. They do not convert the signal, but they do let you play video tapes from anywhere. There are a few shops in Canada that do handle multi-standard TVs and VCRs, but as none of these machines are being handles by the Canadian distributers of these brands, if anything goes wrong with the equipment, you are dependant on the store that sold you the machine. The last option is the best if you need to do a lot of conversion, get a machine that can convert between standards. The cheapest machine that I am aware of that can do this is the Panasonic AG-W1 for about $3,500. This machine is available from Panasonic Canada, and it can be special order through many large department stores. With two machines like this you can convert from any standard to any standard. Or, this machine and a standard NTSC-M VCR and you can convert any video tape to/from NTSC-M. Best of all, since this machine is handled via Panasonic Canada it has the full factory warranty, and you can get the machine serviced in Canada. Two notes for people who would like to take a TV set with them while traveling. Some countries (the U.K. for example) require that you pay a yearly licence fee in order to own a TV. If you don't pay the fee you could (depending on the country) be looking at losing the T.V., and/or a fine. So, to avoid problems while traveling, check to see what (if any) licences are required in order to own a TV. Another trap for travels relates to frequency assignments. Canada and Japan are both NTSC-M nations, so you should be able to take you T.V. from Canada and use it in Japan right? Wrong! The frequencies assigned to the channels are different between Canada and Japan. Depending on how far you can adjust the fine tunning on your T.V. (or how far you T.V.'s automatic fine tune can adjust) you may be able to get some Japanese stations in Japan, but it is almost certain that you will not be able to get all of them. Radio: Before we leave the subject of international standards all together, there are two potential traps connected with taking radios outside North America, traps that can affect even radios that were just designed for running on batteries. The first is channel spacing. In North America AM radio stations are separated by multiples of 10 kHz, in Europe (and most of the rest of the world) the standard is 9 kHz. For owners of regular dial radios, this is not a problem. For owners of AM/FM radios with a digital display there will probably be a problem. The digital radios are pre-set to look for radio stations at 540 kHz, then 550 kHz, then 560 kHz, etc. In Europe the sequence goes 558 kHz, 567 kHz, 576 kHz, etc.. A few digital AM/FM radios have a switch (usually in an inconspicuous spot, like the battery compartment) allowing you to select between North American and non-North American channel spacing. If the digital radio does not have this switch then you may well find yourself unable to tune into any local radio stations when you go abroad. The other potential trap only concerns shortwave radio owners travelling to Germany. German radio regulations forbid anyone from owning a shortwave radio that can tune in above 26.1 MHz. This is a possible problem because some of the top line shortwave radios that we carry (at selected stores) can tune in between 26.1 MHz and 30 MHz. Apparently German customs officials almost never hassle tourists with portable shortwave radios, but be warned that there is a potential problem here. Table Guide: A quick guide to how the Video/Power chart is set up. When I could not locate information on a particular country, I left the spot blank. Nation: Unfortunately a possible bone of contention, given that some nations are in land disputes, and have internal disputes of various types. If you have any questions about the names that I have used, please contact me via the feedback form at the end of this book, and if there is a consciences for change here, I will update future versions of this list. Voltage/Frequency: As noted earlier, the voltage and frequency in a number of countries varies depending on where you are. Plug: My information for this section came from The A.R.R.L. Operating Manual, editor: Steve Ford WB8IMY. The plugs listed are: A- Canadian/U.S.A. 2 blade plug. Two thin flat parallel blades. B- Canadian/U.S.A. 3 blade plug. Two thin flat parallel blades, with a thick round grounding pin. C- Standard in most of Europe. Two thick round pins. D- Similar to the European standard, but with three thick round pins. E- Similar to the European standard, but with a grounding pin sticking out from the outlet. F- Similar to the European standard but with grounding contacts on the edge of the outlet. G- Standard in the U.K.. Three thick rectangular pins H- Australia/New Zealand 2 blade plug. Two thin flat blades mounted at a 45 degree angle. I- Australia/New Zealand 3 blade plug. Two thin flat blades mounted at a 45 degree angle with the third pin mounted below the widest part of the two pins. J- The reverse of "I". Two flat blades mounted at a 45 degree angle with the third pin mounted below the narrowest point of the two pins. Video: My source for this column came from World Radio TV Handbook, 1992 Edition, editor: Andrew G. Sennitt. This book lists what type(s) of TV transmitters are set up in a given country. The book does not list what sort(s) of VCRs are in use in a given country. This could be a problem in border areas, if the person you are sending videos to is watching TV from the other side of the border. As well, you will see some countries do not have any TV transmitters (best guess here would be to see what the neighbouring country(s) use). References: World Radio TV Handbook, 1992 Edition, editor: Andrew G. Sennitt, 1992, Billboard Publications, New York, NY. The A.R.R.L. Operating Manual, Fourth Edition, editor: Steve Ford WB8IMY, 1991, The American Radio Relay League, Inc.,Newington, CT., ISBN: 0-87259-032-1 Pan Am's World Guide, Editor: Maureen A. Hickey, 1982, McGraw Hill, New York, NY, ISBN: 0-07-048433-3 International Standards List: Nation: Voltage/Frequency: Plug: Video: Afghanistan 220v/50Hz D PAL/SECAM-B Albania PAL-B&G Algeria 220v/50 Hz (110-115v) C & D PAL-B Andorra 125v/50 Hz Angola 220v/50Hz C PAL-I Antigua & Barbuda 220v/60Hz (120v/60Hz) NTSC-M Argentina 220v/60Hz C & G PAL-N Aruba 110-130v/50Hz (60Hz) NTSC-M Australia 240v/50Hz (DC) I PAL-B Austria 220v/50Hz F PAL-B&G Azores (Portugal) 220v/50Hz C & D PAL-B Bahamas 120v/60Hz A & B NTSC-M Bahrain 230v/50Hz D & G Balearic Islands (Spain) 110-120v/50Hz Bangladesh 220v/50Hz C & D PAL-B Barbados 110v/50Hz A & B NTSC-M Belgium 220v/50Hz (130v) C & E PAL-B&H Belize 110v/60Hz A & B NTSC-M Benin 220v/50Hz D SECAM-K Bermuda 115v/60Hz A, B, G, & I NTSC-M Bhutan Bolivia 220v/50Hz (110v) A, B, C, & F NTSC-M&N Botswana 220v/50Hz D & G SECAM-K Brazil 110v/60Hz (220-127v) A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H,I,J PAL-M Brunei Darussalam 110,127,220v/50,60Hz PAL-B Bulgaria 220v/50Hz C & F SECAM-D&K Burkina Faso 220v/50Hz C SECAM-K Burma - See: Myanmar Burundi 220v/50Hz C, E, & F SECAM-K Cambodia (ex: Kampuchea) 120,208,220v/50Hz SECAM-M Cameroon 110-220v/50Hz C & E PAL-B Canada 115v/60Hz A & B NTSC-M Canary Islands (Spain) 125v/50Hz (220v) C & E PAL-B&G Cape Verde 220v/50Hz C & F Central African Republic 220v/50Hz C Chad 220v/50Hz D, E, & F SECAM-D Channel Islands (U.K.) 240v/50Hz C & G Chile 220v/50Hz C NTSC-M China, People's Republic of 220v/50Hz C & J PAL-D Chistmas Island (Austrailia) 220v/50Hz Cocos Islands (Austrailia) Colombia 110v/60Hz (150v) A & C NTSC-M Comoros 220v/50Hz Comm. of Independent States (ex USSR) 220v/50Hz (127v) C & I SECAM-D&K Congo 220v/50Hz C SECAM-D Cook Islands 220v/50Hz PAL-B Costa Rica 110v/60Hz A,D,I, & J NTSC-M Cuba 110v/60Hz NTSC-M Cyprus 240v/50Hz G SECAM-B&G Nation: Voltage: Plug: Video: Czechoslovakia 220v/50Hz E SECAM-D&K Denmark 220v/50Hz C PAL-B Diego Garcia (U.K.) 110v/60Hz NTSC-M Djibouti 220v/50Hz C & E SECAM-V Dominca, Commonwealth of 220-240v/50Hz G NTSC-M Dominican Republic 110v/60Hz A & J NTSC-M Easter Island (Chile) Ecuador 110v/60Hz A & C NTSC-M Egypt 220v/50Hz (110-120v) C SECAM-B El Salvadore 110v/50Hz A,B,G,I, & J NTSC-M Equatorial Guinea 220v/50Hz C SECAM-B Estonia SECAM-D&K Ethiopia 220v/60Hz C, D, & F PAL-B Falkland Islands (U.K.) PAL-I Faroe Islands (Denmark) 220v/50Hz C PAL-B&G Fiji 240v/50Hz I NTSC-M Finland 220v/60Hz C & F PAL-B&G France 220v/50Hz C SECAM-L Gabon 220v/50Hz C & E SECAM-K Galapagos Islands (Ecuador) NTSC-M Gambia 230v/50Hz G Germany 220v/50Hz F & C PAL-B/SECAM-G Ghana 240v/50Hz C, D, & G PAL-B Gibraltar (U.K.) 240-250v/50Hz C & G PAL-B&G Gilbert Is. - See: Kiribati Greece 220v/50Hz C, D, & F SECAM-B&G Greenland (Denmark) 220v/50Hz (110v/50Hz) C PAL-B (NTSC-M) Grenada 230v/50Hz C, D, & G NTSC-M Guadeloupe 220v/50Hz C, D, & E SECAM-K Guam (U.S.A.) 120v/60Hz A & B NTSC-M Guatemala 110v/60Hz A & I NTSC-M Guiana (France) 220v/50Hz (110v) SECAM-K Guinea 220v/50Hz C & E PAL-K Guinea-Bissau 220v/50Hz C, D, & F Guyana 110v/60Hz A, B, C, D, & G NTSC-M Hati 110v/50Hz A, B, I, & J NTSC-M Honduras 110v/60Hz (220v) A & B NTSC-M Hong Kong (U.K.) 200v-220v/50Hz D PAL-I Hungary 220v/50Hz C SECAM-D&K Iceland 220v/50Hz C & F PAL-B&G India 220v/50Hz C & D PAL-B Indonesia 220v/50Hz C, E, & F PAL-B Iran 220v/50Hz SECAM-B Iraq 220v/50Hz C, D, & G SECAM-B Ireland 220v/50Hz F & G PAL-I Isle of Man (U.K.) 240v/50Hz C & G Israel 220v/50Hz C, D, & J PAL-B&G Italy 220v/50Hz (110-127v) C & F PAL-B&G Ivory Coast 220v/50Hz C SECAM-K Jamaica 110v/50Hz A & B NTSC-M Japan 100v/50Hz (60Hz) A NTSC-M Nation: Voltage: Plug: Video: Jordan 220v/50Hz C, F, & G PAL-B&G Kampuchea - See: Cambodia Kenya 220v/50Hz D & G PAL-B Kiribati (ex: Gilbert Is.) 240v/50Hz Korea, North PAL-D&K Korea, South 110v/60Hz A & F NTSC-M Kuwait 240v/50Hz C, D, & G PAL-B&G Laos 127v/50Hz A & C PAL-M Latvia SECAM-D&K Lebanon 190v/50Hz (110v) C SECAM-B&G Lesotho 240v/50Hz C PAL-I Liberia 120v/60Hz A & G PAL-B Libya 127-130v/50Hz D PAL-B Licechtenstein 220v/50Hz Lithuania SECAM-D&K Lord Howe Island (Austrailia) 240v/?Hz Luxembourg 220v/50Hz (110v) C & F PAL/SECAM-B,L&G Macau (Portugal) 110v/50Hz C & D PAL-I Madagascar 127v/50Hz (220v) C & E SECAM-K Madeira (Portugal) 220v/50Hz C & D SECAM-K Malawi 230v/50Hz G Malaysia 220v/50Hz G PAL-B Maldives 230v/50Hz D PAL-B Mali 220v/50Hz C & E SECAM-K Malta 240v/50Hz G PAL-B Marshall Islands 110v/60Hz Martinique 240v/50Hz C, D, & E PAL-B Mauritania 200v/50Hz C SECAM-B Mauritius 240v/50Hz SECAM-B Mayotte (France) ?v/50Hz SECAM-B Mexico 127v/60Hz A SECAM-K Micronesia 110v/60Hz NTSC-M Monaco 220v/60Hz C, D, E, & F NTSC-M Mongolia 220v/50Hz SECAM&PAL-L&G Monserrat 220-230v/60Hz A, B & G SECAM-D Morocco 110-120v/60Hz C, D, E, & F NTSC-M Mozambique 110-120v/50Hz C & F SECAM-B Myanmar (ex: Burma) 230v/50Hz D & G PAL-B Namibia 220v/50Hz D PAL-I Nauru 220v/50Hz PAL-I Nepal 220v/50Hz D Netherlands 220v/50Hz C & F PAL-B Netherlands Antilles 127,220v/50,60Hz A, B, C, D, & F NTSC-M New Caledonia (France) 220v/50Hz SECAM-K New Hebrides - See: Vanuatu New Zealand 230v/50Hz I PAL-B Nicaragua 230v/50Hz A NTSC-M Niger 220v/50Hz C SECAM-K Nigeria 220v/50Hz D & G PAL-B&G Niue Island (N.Z. Dependency) 220v/50Hz Norway 220v/50Hz C & F PAL-B&G Nation: Voltage: Plug: Video: Oman 220v/50Hz D & G PAL-B&G Pakistan 220-240v/50Hz C & D PAL-B Palau 220v/60Hz NTSC-M Panama 110v/60Hz A & B NTSC-M Papua New Guina 240v/50Hz H & I PAL-B&G Paraguay 220v/50Hz C PAL-N Peru 220v/60Hz A NTSC-M Philippines 220v/60Hz A,B,C,D, & J NTSC-M Poland 220v/50Hz C, E, & F SECAM-D&K Polynesia (France) 220v/50Hz SECAM-K Portugal 210-220v/50Hz (110v) C & D PAL-B&G Puerto Rico (U.S.A.) 115v/60Hz A & B NTSC-M Qatar 240v/50Hz D & G PAL-B Reunion 220v/50Hz SECAM-K Romania 220v/50Hz C & F PAL-D&K Rwanda 220v/50Hz D & G Saint Kitts-Nevis 230v/60Hz D & G NTSC-M Saint Lucia 230v/50Hz G NTSC-M Saint Vincent & the Grenadines 230v/50Hz G NTSC-M Samoa, Americam 120v/60Hz (230v) A, B, F, & I NTSC-M San Marino San Tome and Principe 220v/50Hz Saudi Arabia 127-220v/60Hz (50Hz) A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H,I,J SECAM&PAL-B&G Senegal 220v/50Hz (110v) C & F SECAM-K Seychelles 240v/50Hz D & G PAL-B Sierra Leone 230v/50Hz D & G PAL-B Singapore 230v/50Hz D & G PAL-B Solomon Islands 240v/50Hz Somalia 230v/50Hz C & D PAL-B South Africa 220-230v/50Hz (250v) D PAL-I Spain 110-120v/50Hz (220v) C & E PAL-B&G Sri Lanka 230-240v/50Hz D PAL-B St. Pierre & Miquelon (France) 220v/50Hz SECAM-K Sudan 240v/50Hz C, F, & G PAL-B Suriname 110-220v/50Hz C & F PAL-B Swaziland 110-115v/60Hz D NTSC-M Sweden 220v/50Hz C & F PAL-B&G Switzerland 220v/50Hz C & F PAL-B&G Syria 200v/50Hz (115v) C PAL-B&G Tahiti 127v/60Hz A SECAM-B & PAL-G Taiwan 110v/60Hz A,B,H,I, & J NTSC-M Tanzania 240v/50Hz (60Hz) D & G PAL-B Thailand 220v/50Hz A & C PAL-B&M Togo 204v/50Hz C & E SECAM-K Tonga 240v/50Hz C & E Trinidad and Tobago 110v/60Hz A, B, D, G, & I NTSC-M Tunisia 220v/50Hz (110-115v) C SECAM-B&G Turky 220v/50Hz (110v) C PAL-B Tuvalu U.S.S.R. (see Commonwealth of...) Uganda 240v/50Hz G PAL-B Nation: Voltage: Plug: Video: United Arab Emirates 220v/50Hz D & G PAL-B&G United Kingdom 220v/50Hz C & G PAL-I United States of America 115v/60Hz A & B NTSC-M Uraguay 220v/50Hz C & I PAL-N Vanuatu (ex: New Hebrides) 220-240v/? Hz Vatican City Venezuela 110v/60Hz I & J NTSC-M Vietnam NTSC/SECAM-M Virgin Islands (U.K.) 115-210v/60Hz NTSC-M Virgin Islands (U.S.A.) 120v/60Hz A & B NTSC-M Wake Island (U.S.A.) 110v/60Hz Western Somoa 240v/50Hz Yeman 230v/50Hz A, C, & D NTSC/PAL-B Yugoslavia 220v/50Hz C & F PAL-B&H Zaire 220v/50Hz E SECAM-K Zambia 220v/50Hz G PAL-B Zimbabwe 230v/50Hz D & G PAL-B