Will an US-bought Clip+ (compatible with 110V) explode in the UK (240V)?

Usually, electrical devices should not be used with other than the voltage for which they were intended without a transformer/ power converter.  Does this principle apply rigidly to the Clip+ (and its standard-issue charger), or is it designed to cope with a wider range of power sources around the world (e.g. 110 to 240v), without burning out?

The Clip+ works on USB as its power source. USB is a worldwide standard. It is 5 volts. Some USB wall chargers or the front USB ports on a pc don’t put out enough amperage to charge the Clip+ though. I guess it needs a USB power source that is at least 500 milliamps to properly charge the battery? If the milliamperage is too low, the player won’t be damaged, it just won’t charge properly.

Make sure a  USB wall charger you buy will handle the current your AC power is. Of course you don’t need to use a wall charger, and can just charge your player via a computer USB port.

Thanks, that’s most encouraging!

However…

Assuming I won’t be using a computer to charge the Clip+, does this mean that wall chargers bought anywhere will work anywhere?..  Or would customers need somehow to obtain wall chargers (or converters) appropriate to the power output of the country they happen to find themselves in? 

It depends on the charger. Some are designed to work with any AC input, some aren’t. But even if you have a universal charger, you still may need an adapter for the plug itself. You can find “travel kits” that include a range of plug adapters.

Here is a quick lesson… USB is universal; 5.5 volts DC everywhere, every computer.  In the UK, Australia and many other places the AC wall voltage is 240 volts.  In the USA and Canada wall voltage is 110 volts.  Basically the wall chargers lower the voltage and convert it to DC.  The transformer works on AC to lower the voltage, a rectifier then converts the lowered voltage to DC.  Some power supplies can handle any AC voltage and still put out the correct DC output.

So if you buy a Clip plus in the US for overseas use, the USB cable will charge fine, its the wall charger that may not work.  One more thing is that the wall plugs themselves won’t work, sort of a round plug in a square hole thing, the configuration is different.  Some computer companies provide the various plugs and the power supplies can be switched to the correct voltage of the location on this “round blue ball” where you wish to plug the device in.

The one thing the clip+ offers is a common USB connector, so a cell phone charger in the 240 lands that has the same USB plug will probably work to charge your device.  Just check the DC voltage to be sure, but as I said USB is universal.

USB is 5.5 V?  or 5 V?

4.4V to 5.25V for USB 2.0, 4.75V to 5.25V for USB 1.x according to Wikipedia :slight_smile: