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Travel & What is a "power cable" which is mentioned in this Dell Knowledge Base document?
I am planning to travel to Hong Kong (HK)& perhaps stay there for the summer. So I have researched what I need to do in order to use my Inspiron 8600 in Hong Kong.
The power requirement in HK is 220V & 50Hz. After reading numerous posts on here with keywords "travel" & "oversea", it seemed the AC adapter (rated 110-240V & 50-60Hz) that came with my Inspiron 8600 should be able to handle the HK power requirement. So I thought all I needed was a plug adapter.
But when I did a search within Dell Knowledge Base, the document indicated that I would also need a "power cable" besides a plug adapter. Following is a link to the "Dell Knowledge Base document":
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?dn=1055420
So I called Dell tech support. Then I emailed Dell tech support & forwarded them the above link. The email tech support told me that a power cable is the cable that connects the AC adapter to the electrical outlet. Then I asked where I could get a power cable that can handle 220V as opposed to 115V. The tech support guy told me that Dell doesn't sell power cable separately, & he told me that I needed to purchase another AC adapter which has the power cable that's rated to handle 220V. So I had him placed the order.
The new AC adapter arrived 2 days later & cost $60. When I check out the power cable that comes with this new AC adapter, it looks exactly like the power cable that came with my laptop. In fact, this new AC adapter is a 90 watt power adapter instead of the original 65 watt AC adapter which came with
my laptop.
So here are my questions:
1. What is a power cable?
2. What is the advantage of using a 90 watt AC adapter versus a 65 watt AC adapter?
3. Do I really need a power cable in order to use Inspiron 8600 in HK? I have seen a lot of people here including a few Dell moderators posted that a plug adapter is the only thing that 's needed.
Any opinions & suggestions are appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Andy
The power requirement in HK is 220V & 50Hz. After reading numerous posts on here with keywords "travel" & "oversea", it seemed the AC adapter (rated 110-240V & 50-60Hz) that came with my Inspiron 8600 should be able to handle the HK power requirement. So I thought all I needed was a plug adapter.
But when I did a search within Dell Knowledge Base, the document indicated that I would also need a "power cable" besides a plug adapter. Following is a link to the "Dell Knowledge Base document":
http://support.dell.com/us/en/kb/document.asp?dn=1055420
So I called Dell tech support. Then I emailed Dell tech support & forwarded them the above link. The email tech support told me that a power cable is the cable that connects the AC adapter to the electrical outlet. Then I asked where I could get a power cable that can handle 220V as opposed to 115V. The tech support guy told me that Dell doesn't sell power cable separately, & he told me that I needed to purchase another AC adapter which has the power cable that's rated to handle 220V. So I had him placed the order.
The new AC adapter arrived 2 days later & cost $60. When I check out the power cable that comes with this new AC adapter, it looks exactly like the power cable that came with my laptop. In fact, this new AC adapter is a 90 watt power adapter instead of the original 65 watt AC adapter which came with
my laptop.
So here are my questions:
1. What is a power cable?
2. What is the advantage of using a 90 watt AC adapter versus a 65 watt AC adapter?
3. Do I really need a power cable in order to use Inspiron 8600 in HK? I have seen a lot of people here including a few Dell moderators posted that a plug adapter is the only thing that 's needed.
Any opinions & suggestions are appreciated. Thanks in advance!
Andy
mattcowger
2.6K Posts
0
March 25th, 2004 22:00
Answers:
1) Its the piece that goes from the wall to the power brick.
2) The 90w version supposedly charges faster. In my experience this is true.
3) The plug adapter is all you need.
Mandrake99
139 Posts
0
March 26th, 2004 05:00