Should I get a surge protector for my netbook

Hi all,

Im going to Rishikesh soon, and I've been reading this forum so I can inform myself on what kind of protection to get to prevent burnouts. Am I right in assuming that I should get a voltage regulator/stabilizer? In addition to that, should I also be using a surge protector as well or would it be unnecessary if I have a voltage regulator? And I also read that even with the surge protector, it should only be used to charge the laptop. And then to use the laptop, unplug it from the wall and use it on battery power.

Any other insight would be much appreciated. Also, should a surge protector be used for other appliances like shaver, battery charger, etc.

Namaste

That should read:

Also, should a voltage stabilizer be used for other appliances like shaver, battery charger, etc.

In the way too distant past someone said to me that the two devices serve different functions..

I bought one (which one, I don't know(if there is a difference during my last 6 months in Varanasi (this was during monsoon, when electricity is sketchy, at best). I simply bought mine in India, where I could ask what device I needed for the job I was trying to do.

Welcome to IndiaMike morris0n!

Get a surge protector! Voltage regulator/stabilizer will depend on what you plan to plug in - we've never needed one so can't advise on this. Very important though is a surge protector for your dual voltage electricals.

See our reply here and look at the rest of that thread. Also take a look at the link in our reply - it will give you lots more information.

power adapters and more

distaff

I am not sure about this - but this is what I think.

If your laptop is connected and not 100% charged (i.e. the battery is in charging mode) - then it's drawing power from the battery and not the mains - so if there are power surges which cannot be handled, at worst it will affect the charger and not the laptop.

So may be making sure you disconnect your charger at around 95% will protect your laptop

If you're connected, you're vulnerable. And ya gotta get connected at some point to get to 95% charge.

Most of the electronic/computer devices these days are dual voltage. So if the power requirements read something like 100V-240V, you don't need a power stabilizer/voltage regulator/surge protector.

Mostly true. But, if someone stays in an illegal structure, or dodgy place, it is most likely that people have also illegally tapped the electricity from nearby source. In that case there is no conditioning of power; so a very high (X2) spike can occur.

My crufty lil macbook has been nine times to India, and a dozen times to places flakier and KOW, its still doing fine I carry plug adaptor for various plug types.

I have an el-cheapo pen shaped tester to check if the ground is really ground

Does that imply that legal connections in India usually have conditioned power?



How does it do that?! Can it somehow tell the difference between a real ground and a floating (unconnected) conductor (rather common in India)? I thought such devices only indicate if a conductor is "live" or not!
.

No. It just means that the legal connections in the places I have stayed do.

True, I did mean that the ground is not actually "live" which is all one can check without a multimeter like device.