Buying a DSLR in the US

countryjimbo

Hi,

I'm planning on buying a DSLR in B&H NY and I'm concerned that the power supply for the charger will not be suitable for Ireland. I'm sure I'll be able to get an adapter to get it plugged in but will it the power supply be able to work with 220v. I'd appreciate feedback from anyone who has experience of this.

Regards,
Jim.

rymus

Of course the plug that comes with it will be 2 pin US type, but should have a figure 8 connector on the other end that goes into the camera charger. It should simply be a case of swapping the power cord with a UK type 3 pin plug with a figure 8 connector on the other end. I've done it a few times both with travelling back and forth to the US and Canada and buying electronics from both.

Just check that the charger will accept 110 and 240V. Most will without problems.

Oh and welcome to boards

B0rG

mine 30D came with cheaper version of adaptor which doesn't have the mains wire - there is only american type socket hanging out of it. I had a european to uk adaptor so it wasn't a problem.

TJM

Be sure you take some sample photos there and then and blow them up on a monitor to check for stuck / hot pixels on the sensor. Use a dark even background (but don't shoot with the lens cap on). JPEG mode will show them better than RAW. Otherwise you're left having to have the camera repaired / replaced long distance.

countryjimbo

TJM wrote:

Be sure you take some sample photos there and then and blow them up on a monitor to check for stuck / hot pixels on the sensor. Use a dark even background (but don't shoot with the lens cap on).

Thanks for the advise, will problems be obvious or should I be looking for something specific? Sorry if this is a noddy question!

Ruu_Old

See if you can get some sort of an international warranty or something like that, peace of mind.

TJM

countryjimbo wrote:

Thanks for the advise, will problems be obvious or should I be looking for something specific? Sorry if this is a noddy question!

Examples here:
http://forums.dpreview.com/forums/readflat.asp?forum=1036&thread=20915411

I'd disagree with those comments that it's nothing to worry about. It's very noticeable on my camera and a pain to remove if you shoot in JPG. I've never had it before on a consumer point and shoot and I think it's unacceptable in an expensive dslr.

tab126

I bought my DSLR in the US and have been charging in Ireland since I got here. Same goes for my dinky P&S digital and laptop. Pretty much everything sold in the US of value is capable of European voltages. You just need the super-cheap plug converter (less expensive than swapping cords). Oh, and your batteries will charge MUCH faster in europe than they would in the US. Just make sure the charger is marked as rymus said.... ~110-240V.

countryjimbo

I just got a Sony A100 from B&H, the charger can switch 110/220 and the lead is the figure 8 as Rymus advised. No problems charging.

Also the battery is the same as my Sony Camcorder (Trv33) which means that I should be able to use this charger for my camcorder (haven't tried it yet). This is a real bonus as the only way I have of charging the camcorder batteries is to plug the whole camera in, which takes it out of commision.

The camcorder batteries will also fit the DSLR but there are a number of warnings in the manual about not using these batteries. Not sure why but won't chance it.

Thanks for the advise.

Now to start experimenting in the world of DSLR's .....

Ruu_Old

Don't forget to post up a couple of pictures and let us know how you get on.

TJM

countryjimbo wrote:

The camcorder batteries will also fit the DSLR but there are a number of warnings in the manual about not using these batteries. Not sure why but won't chance it.

DSLRs can be very sensitive to input voltage. Especially with rechargeable CRV3 (Lithium) you can easily fry the electrics if the output is higher than spec.