As a child, I remember playing with battery-powered toys and never having enough money to buy new batteries when the old ones ran out. Ever since then, I’ve had a slightly unhealthy fascination with power adapters.
Recently, I looked at power accessories from the likes of Anker and Rolling Square; this month I decided to see what power accessory brand Ceptics has for the globetrotter who needs to power laptops, phones, tablets, digital music players and even a hair dryer.
Traveling with technology is easier today than it used to be. Many products are now multi-voltage and will work anywhere with just a physical outlet adapter. However, there are still devices restricted to 110V or with different power prongs. If that sounds familiar, read on to see what products are available to make life on the road with gadgets a little easier.
The Ceptics 2000W Travel Voltage Converter has three U.S. power outlets for appliances with two or three prongs. This converter can transform higher voltages — up to 250V — down to 110V, making it suitable for use with American, Canadian and Japanese gadgets when traveling in places like Europe.
The Ceptics voltage converter also has one USB-C and three USB-A ports. The USB-C port is QC-enabled for fast charging compatible devices. The three USB-A ports can be used to charge and power smartphones, tablets, iPhones, iPads and more.
The 2000W travel voltage converter also includes a special power outlet for use with hair dryers or stylers. If you have a 110V hair dryer and want to take it to Europe, this is the device for you.
However, a word of warning: the 2000W outlet only works with hair dryers controlled by a mechanical button or knob. It’s not compatible with devices that have a digital temperature control and auto shut off, such as Dyson Supersonic or Shark Flexstyle devices.
The other two power outlets on the Ceptics 2000W travel voltage converter can handle appliances up to 200W and are compatible with both two- and three-prong earthed plugs.
The converter comes with power outlet adapters for plugging into a range of power outlets such as the E.U. two-pin, Shuko, U.K. and Australian. It may be quite a bulky unit, but it’s possibly the only one you’d need if traveling overseas with U.S. electrical devices.
The Ceptics 2000W Travel Voltage Converter is available from Ceptics.com and is priced at $69.99 / £53.
If you don’t want or need a step-down conversion offered by the Ceptics 2000W travel voltage converter, then the Ceptics 70W, 5-in-1 International Travel Plug could be the answer.
With the ability to charge up to five devices at once, this device has two USB-A ports with 12W, 5V/2.4A and a USB-C port outputting up to 70W, up to 20V, with a maximum of 3.5A. This makes it suitable for charging or powering a laptop. It also has a USB-C retractable cable for charging any USB-C gadget.
As well as offering retractable international power prongs for plugging into most wall outlets, it has a pass-through socket suitable for most types of power plugs. The travel plug also has a built-in replaceable 10A fuse and even a spare.
The Ceptics 70W, 5-in-1 International Travel Plug is available from Ceptics.com and Amazon priced at $44.99 / £34.
If 70W feels a little underpowered for your needs, Ceptics also produces a 140W Universal Travel Adapter that’s also compatible with Type A, C, G and I power outlets. That means it can work in 200 countries around the world.
Like the 70W travel adapter, this model is not a power transformer. It will work with all AC devices that have input voltages ranging from 100 to 250V. However, if you are in a country with a 230V power system and your device only handles 110V, it’s not going to end well.
This is a more muscular travel adapter and can output up to 140W, which means it’s suitable for power-hungry laptops while also able to charge tablets and smartphones. Like the 70W version, this one has an AC pass-through socket that can accept devices with most types of power fittings.
When it comes to USB outputs, the 140W Universal Travel Adapter has one USB-A and three USB-C ports with a total power budget of 140W. It also has a handy two-prong U.S./Japan mains power outlet on one side.
Pricing and Availability:
The 140W Universal Travel Adapter is available from Ceptics.com priced at £68.
Compact And Pocket Sized
For those people traveling around the U.S. and other countries that have the same electrical outlets, Ceptics makes a 65W USB-C Ultra Compact Charger. This compact multi-voltage device features the standard Type E plug used in the U.S. and has two USB-C and one USB-A outputs.
This tiny charger is small enough to fit in a pocket and is compatible with Quick Charge 3.0 and Power Delivery PD protocols so it can charge devices up to 30% faster than a basic charger. It’s available in black and white finishes.
The Ceptics 65W USB-C Ultra Compact Charger is available from Ceptics.com and Amazon priced at $12.99 / £12.
For those people with more demanding power needs, Ceptics also produces the 65W World Travel NANFUSE-WS Adapter. With three USB ports and PD 3.0 compatibility, this GaN-based charger comes with a slew of international power adapters to fit just about every type of power outlet.
The outlet adapters can slot directly onto the power brick or they can be used with a supplied mains cable, which is useful in hotel rooms where the power outlet is tucked away in an inaccessible place, as is often the case.
The Ceptics 65W World Travel NANFUSE-WS adapter is available from Ceptics.com and Amazon priced at $34.99 / £46.
Finally, Ceptics also produces every type of passive power adapter imaginable. For example, if you’re traveling in Ecuador with your Australian hair dryer, Ceptics will have something suitable. Ceptics.com is one of the most comprehensive websites I’ve come across for travel and power solutions and is aimed at the digital nomad who needs to keep powered up wherever they happen to be on the planet.