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Comment by 4dregress | Hacker News Reader

Our plugs in the UK are by far the best design.

I used to think this, but I've been in the US just long enough to start rethinking it. The one thing I still prefer though is that each outlet has an off switch, no need to unplug your cable. Also, three prong cables are 90 degrees offset so it's easier to fit behind furniture.

They’re a great caltrop design. In my experience they’re too large and this causes problems with lead management.

I would agree the plugs are well designed, but it’s also a space pen when you needed a pencil. Using that massive plug and 240V to charge a phone or power a light bulb is just comical.

The US system sensibly uses 110-120V for most uses and then 240V where it really matters.

Well, you don't need to use that 'massive' plug to charge your phone....usb sockets are a thing. And the lights in my house don't have any plugs on them.

And... the plug really isn't that big at all.

IMO they're completely overengineered. There's nothing useful they can do that schuko can't. (the built-in fuse and fixed polarity aren't useful)

Fuses in plugs protect powerstrips (their cables) from being overloaded, e.g. using a powerstrip adequate only for a few lights to run a heater.

E.g. [1] is a "Max 10A" power strip, so the cable would heat and potentially melt if a 15-16A load is connected.

[1] https://www.silvan.dk/produkt/stikdaase-m-ledning-4-udtag-u_...

Where Schuko is common, we just put fuses inside powerstrips themselves, often integrated with e.g. lightning protection.

Those "max 10A" power strips usually have a breaker integrated into their switch that keeps them to their nameplate rating.

At least in France,those sorts of 10A power strips are not sold I'm pretty sure. (in reputable stores). Especially not a design like that where to allows to plug devices that need an earth into it. Id almost suspect that your link is also a china special that somehow doesn't have safety certification..

But in France, the 16A shuko outlets are on a max 20A breaker, which means you can still overload a 16A power strip, but I guess there's enough margin there that the regulator considers that to be OK.

Although at least at my work we had someone come in and replace all the power strips with ones that have a 16A resettable breaker thing built in. So maybe I'm commercial spaces it's different.

The website I liked to is the second (?) largest DIY shop in Denmark.

Here's the larger one: https://www.bauhaus.dk/stikdase-u-jord-4r-10a-5-m-hvid

With an earth: (Danish plug) https://www.bauhaus.dk/stikdase-m-jord-3r-10a-5-m-hvid

they are, except connectors are extremely bulky, but at least they are compatible with EU outlets as I learned in Malaysia, all you need is pen

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