Adapter or converter for iPhone 5s

Cynthia, I used a simple plug adapter to charge my new iPhone 5s, as well as my iPad, throughout Italy just this May. No problems, so charge away.

You don't need a power converter. You simply need a plug adapter.

Donna

Cynthia,

I'm surprised that the "experts" at Apple didn't have the correct answer. So much for the training they get.

You'll only need an inexpensive two-pin Euro Plug Adapter to charge your iPhone 5S in Europe. You can confirm this by looking for the words "Input Voltage" on your Charger. If this states "Input 100-240 VAC, 50/60 Hz" then you're good to go with just a Plug Adapter.

You DO NOT need or want a Voltage Converter, since there are two conversion principles and using the wrong one can damage your Charger.

I'd suggest packing at least two Plug Adaptors, since they're small and easy to misplace. If you'll also be travelling in England, you'll need a different style of Adaptor.

You'll also need to give some thought to the matter of data roaming, since the charges can be HUGE.

Just an adapter. I was in Europe for most of last summer and that's all I used - the iPhone lived!

Small adapter plug. I buy one for each appliance (iPhone, iPad) and keep them attached to the charger cord. Each one goes into a small ziplock bag, have never misplaced them.

Thanks so much all of you. You confirmed my belief that all I needed was an adapter for the plug. After all, that little square power adapter does say "input 110-240, output 5v." When plugging expensive electronics into twice the voltage, though, it certainly doesn't hurt to double and triple check!

As for phone charges, I have T-mobile. Lucky for me they just changed their policies regarding overseas use--unlimited texting and data, though phone calls $0.20 / minute.

Cynthia,

You're fortunate to have T-Mobile, as they seem to have the most reasonable international roaming rates of all the cell networks. One point to note however is that I believe only 2G data is provided at the cheaper rates. If you want 3G or faster, that will be additional cost.

I just ordered a charger with 5 USB plugs built in. I ordered it from amazon.ca, and it is apparently about the size of a deck of playing cards. Input is 110-240V, so it's fine for Italy and works for all Apple and Android devices.

momto3, note that a generic USB charger may not have sufficient current output to charge an Ipad. It might keep the Ipad going while plugged in, but will not be able to do much for the battery. To put that another way, an Apple Ipad charger (cube) is a non-standard USB device, even though it uses the same output connector. For that reason, I also don't use the Ipad cube for anything else. BTW, I bought an aftermarket (non-Apple) USB charger with a "special" high-current output for Ipads, but it doesn't actually work for that job.

There have been a number of stories in the UK of fires caused by non approved aftermarket generic power supplies for Apple products. These weren't tourists plugging in the wrong voltage, these were British residents trying to avoid the high Apple prices.

Apple has started a recall of all these even though they had nothing to do with the making, and lost by the making of them, and replacing them with a free Apple one.

Be careful with the purchasing of power supplies. The small adapter for 100-240 power supplies is not the issue, it is the aftermarket supplies themselves.

Thanks, all.