Will US bought laptop work in Europe?

Discussion in 'Computer Science & Culture' started by tablariddim, Dec 4, 2007.

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  1. tablariddim forexU2 Valued Senior Member

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    I plan on getting a Sony SZ650 from the US for half its European price, I know it sounds like a stupid question, but assuming the power adapter is set to correct voltage, would there be any fundamental difference in useability? The only thing I've found that might cause a problem is playability of local dvd's or computer games, but i've read that there are ways to 'fix' that.

    Does anyone have any useful info?
     
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  3. S.A.M. uniquely dreadful Valued Senior Member

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    I use my laptop everywhere (PowerBook G4).

    I've never had any problems, although I use adaptors and don't play computer games on it.
     
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  5. tablariddim forexU2 Valued Senior Member

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    I've read that newer optical drives can limit the playability of DVD's to certain regions.
     
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  7. nietzschefan Thread Killer Valued Senior Member

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    No support. Ship to U.S if it breaks. Might be power adaptability issues.
     
  8. tablariddim forexU2 Valued Senior Member

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    I haven't bought it yet.

    Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image!

     
  9. MacGyver1968 Fixin' Shit that Ain't Broke Valued Senior Member

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    I don't see why it shouldn't work, as long as you use the correct power supply. Plugging in a 110v power supply into a 220v outlet will smoke quicker than me in an Amsterdam coffee shop.
     
  10. Stryder Keeper of "good" ideas. Valued Senior Member

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    I'm currently using a Toshiba [P105-S9339 It's different from the ones available from the European Toshiba site. Anyhow, It was purchased while I was in the states, when I got back to the UK all I did was replace the two pinned cable that connected to the powersupply for a English 3-pin. Thats all I needed to do, no other changes were necessary. (Mass production of a powerpack in this instance made sense to deal with 100-240v inputs)

    Obviously with any Laptop you purchase (or electronics products in general) the concern is always going to be how the power supply deals with different connections and/or voltage.

    The only other things you need to change then is:
    Language settings for your OS and programs you use (Especially preloads)
    Ignoring offers for certain US ISP's (Since their software won't be much use in Europe)

    As nietzschefan mentioned obviously Support is all US related, although most of the main Manufacturers can have an Extra Warrantee you can purchase for dealing with fixes/replacements 'When Abroad'. Of course once you add all that on, you might as well have bought it in Europe.

    Anyhow the cost is probably down due to Core 2 Quad's coming on the market place.
     
  11. draqon Banned Banned

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    just buy a power adapter
     
  12. cosmictraveler Be kind to yourself always. Valued Senior Member

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    Different countries have different plugs that you plug into the wall outlet.

    Get the three types if your going to travel all over Europe along with the

    power converter. I was there and some places have WIFI available in the

    better hotels. So put that into your laptop before you travel also.
     
  13. leopold Valued Senior Member

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    yes.
    the primary difference between european and US power grids is the frequency.
    the US operates at 60 hertz, the european at 50.
    this shouldn't pose much of a problem except for transformer powered equipment. power supplies designed for the US would be slightly less effecient in europe causing a corresponding increase in heat. this only applies to transformer equipment at heavy current drain.
     
  14. river-wind Valued Senior Member

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    The power adapter is the big issue, but DVD region encoding is another.


    A US DVD drive will not play an European disc due to artificial region encoding limitations. The US and Canada are region 1, and Europe is Region 2. You can change the region encoding on your DVD drive to allow for European discs to play, but then US disks won't work - you'll have to change it back to region 1(USA) for that. You can only change the region encoding 3 times, so choose wisely.


    I recommend searching the internet for an application that will set the region encoding on the drive to "universal". It's kind of not allowed, so you'll have to search around - make sure it's specifically for your model of DVD drive.

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DVD_region_code
     
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