sorry this post is kind of long…would appreciate it greatly if you read it and replied if you knew the answers though…
thanks a lot…
i heard that when u take electrical stuff to pakistan from the US all you have to buy is that voltage convertor thingie, its a small cheap socket like device that u just hook ur machine into and then hook that thing into the main socket…
we took an HP PC to Pakistan from the US earlier this yr tho for using at home, and it was connected to the electricity supply at our house in pak, and to a stabiliser too…worked fine for a month but recently wo URR gaya… like there was smoke and stuff and a burning smell and the motherboard’s gone…lol..
i am taking some electrical appliances with me to pakistan and most importantly my laptop and i wanted to avoid this situation from happenning again
so i just wanted to know what i needed to do for that…like which appliances exactly i should get from here [usa] before going to pakistan?
usually in the usa the plug pins are flat…so am taking several of those socket type thingies which u can put in the flat ones and then their pins are the circular ones that can be plugged into sockets in pak…
then i am taking some of those voltage convertor thingies..that i was talking bout in the beginning of the post…
voltage stabilisers *? should i get these from here too or should i get them from pak? they are easily avlbl in pak from what i know…
also some ppl said that some of the equipment i am taking eg maptop can prolly be directly used in pak without having to change the voltage…how do i check…? like what should it say on the equipments? whats the voltage in usa and what is it in pak?
hmmm i think thats all my questions for now…might be back with some more later…
thanks a lot in advance for info and replies
salams
irem
*Bazar mods, if this is the wrong forum, plz feel free to move the thread… **
A couple of things... if you can return those square socket/round socket adapters, then do that. They cost $4.99 here and are much cheaper in Pak; and very easily available.
Re: voltage. Most electrical equipment, especially laptop adaptors are universal. Meaning they can take both 110v or 220v. Look at your adaptor and see if this is what is written on it (Typically they write Voltage 110~240v on it). If it is true, then you don't need to worry about voltage or getting another voltage convertor in Pakistan. I have sent a few laptops and PDA's to Pakistan and they all work fine without a voltage adaptor.
For bigger items or those which do not have a universal adaptor, you will need to use a voltage adaptor to step-down 220v into 110v. If its a smaller wattage device, the convertor is easily available in most mobile phone shops in Pakistan. Last year, they were costing about Rs 150. If its a higher wattage device, then you should search around for an appropriate convertor. Check from the manufacturer too, as to what they recommend.
Re: voltage stabilizer... that is a problem in Pakistan, that the voltage fluctuates a lot. This is not a problem only for US products, so it is advisable to put a stabilizer before every valuable electronic gadget. Especially if you live in an area where fluctuation is frequent or where a lot of people do patang-baazi. :)
Look at your power supply.. for the AC voltage it requires.
Mine says 100 - 240 ~ 1.4A 50-60Hz and it works fine in Pakistan (Although made for the US).
[thumb=D]ltvoltage1.JPG[/thumb]
I am pretty sure yers will be something similar to that. Some bigger appliences , like PCs or printers, have a switch to change them from 110 to 220 and vv.
Instead of stabilisers the new thing in Pakistan is personal UPSs. They seem to work much better at protecting you computer equipment. Cost few thousand bucks there.
The flat to round thingies are readily available in pakistan :p
who—me thanks a lot :k: Yup it says 100-240 V on my laptop adapter too…Thats good news then I don’t have to get anything additional for it
Faisal bhai thats a ton for the info I didn’t know they were avlbl in Pak too, I’ll return them at the store then…thanks!!!
who–me and Faisal bhai should I bother getting the UPS / stabiliser here or should I just wait to get it from Pakistan? Are there good ones avlbl in Pak? Sorry I don’t know anything abt this stuff
UPS/Stabilizer? Buy it in Pakistan. Yahan say kiya dho ke lai jaana.. waisay bhi, if you buy in Pakistan, it will work better, also it will have some repair/after sales service available. Don't even think about buying these things from here.
Laptops shouldn't be a problem at all. Almost 95% work in Pak (I've personally tried Compaq, Thinkpad and Sony, they all worked great, including their modems).
The only thing is technical support. Dell has pretty good coverage there, atleast in Karachi. My sister bought a Dell laptop from here and a few months ago the screen blew and it was easy for support there to replace it for them.
i’m in pakistan now and haven’t connected my laptop yet coz i heard some stories abt ppl’s laptops burning up etc
so i just wanted to make sure k apart from the flat to round pin convertor thingie for the sockets what additional things i needed before i connect it
i have the 110-240 V adapter that came with it already…to ensure tho that my laptop is safe from harm caused by electricity fluctuations etc do i now need
a) nothing
or
b) stabiliser
or
c) UPS
?
would appreciate it if u could plz reply from experience ie if u or ur friends r using or have used a laptop in pak
who—me thanks for the info and no hehe i wont come after u
i was talking to a gentleman who works as an engineer here jus now and he was also telling me i am being paraNOID :o and i jus can conect my laptop without any protective devices at all…not even stabiliser or UPS or anyfin
so i think mein bismillah ker k bas laganay lagi hoon aaj apna laptop wooo hooooooo this is a relief dang i’ve been missing using my poor sohny
all you need is a surge protector (APC , in aus we can get them for as low as $60 with 2-3 electrical ports and a phone port) so incase voltage goes high or low you wont fry your LAp Top power supply.
UPS : Un-interupted Power Supply, i.e. in case of electricall cutoff it will alow your computer to keep running for some time (dependson model) , thus lettign you saving your works and safley shutitgn down the computer and unless your computer is 24 x 7 turned on and or you live in really bad area (lots of loadsheding). not realy usefull.
but then how many ppl in pak really use these things for home use = may be 1% or less.
[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by Khanzada: *
ups ke bare faiday hain...is se apna royal fan bhi chala lena light jaane par!
[/QUOTE]
Only in Karachi or Australia... that people talking about Royal fan in November. Idher tau jacketein chall rahee hein. :-)
like there was smoke and stuff and a burning smell and the motherboard’s gone…lol.. 
should i get these from here too or should i get them from pak? they are easily avlbl in pak from what i know…
I didn’t know they were avlbl in Pak too, I’ll return them at the store then…thanks!!!
