So if you buy anything in China be careful of the polarity. Even more so if you are Australian because the plugs are the same.
Thanks for the 'heads up' Fareastdriver. However the Australian/NZ standard wall socket or GPO has the two V pins at the top of the installation and the earth pin at the bottom. It explains why an increasing number of plugpacks I see these days are "upside down" in respect of what is normal in these here parts, and therefore often can't be used in power points mounted on the skirting boards in Australian installations. Frankly from a safety point of view, I think the Chinese standard is to be preferred in some situations. However I don't see us changing any time soon, even if others were to ever be convinced.
Wikipedia has the full story on wiring conventions for power plugs at:
AC power plugs and sockets - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
As you can see, there are many ideas about which is best. It reminds me of what a friend of mine remarked in another forum on another matter a few days back: "
That's the good thing about standards - there are so many to choose from ..."
As always, care is needed when working with these things, and from this example we can see again that it's a good idea to check these things out thoroughly when using strange plugs in a system which is foreign to their place of manufacture or intended usage.
Thanks again for bringing it to our notice.
Regards,
FOR