Was hoping I could without it putting some strain on the battery or something. If not I'm sure a USB 3DS charger would do the trick but I wanted to see if I'd be fine with a standard US 3DS charger.
You can freely charge any 3DS with any 3DS charger, the output voltage is exactly the same, however keep in mind that nominal input voltage of the US charger is 110 V - you'll have to use a converter or you'll break the charger.
You must've used a charger without a converter or it was a coincidence, the output voltage of those chargers is exactly the same and there's no danger of damaging the system as long as the input voltage is correct.In my experience using a uk 3ds charger 240v on a american 110v 3ds blows the internal fuses in the 3ds.
I think however that the other way round (which you plan to do ) is perfectly fine, using a 110v charger on a 240v 3ds.
Interestingly 3rd party chargers in the uk charge both 3ds fine as the chargers are multi voltage but the official nintendo one is not.
I seriously doubt rip-it-up's claim. I have a spare 110V 3DS charger lying around and I personally connected it to a 220V power source. Nothing happened. My US 3DS XL did not blow up. The charging light simply didn't turn on. Then I connected my 220V charger and it started charging. These chargers seem to feature electronic cut-offs internally when they are connected to a power source that they are not designed to handle.You must've used a charger without a converter or it was a coincidence, the output voltage of those chargers is exactly the same and there's no danger of damaging the system as long as the input voltage is correct.
Pretty much, yeah. It might've been a terrible coincidence or a one in a million case, chargers have built-in fuses in case they are connected to incompatible mains, it's a fire safety measure.I seriously doubt rip-it-up's claim. I have a spare 110V 3DS charger lying around and I personally connected it to a 220V power source. Nothing happened. My US 3DS XL did not blow up. The charging light simply didn't turn on. Then I connected my 220V charger and it started charging. These chargers seem to feature electronic cut-offs internally when they are connected to a power source that they are not designed to handle.
Small correction but otherwise you are right. A 110V appliance when plugged into a 220V socket will burn, but only if it doesn't have an in-built protection circuit. For example, laptop chargers can be used anywhere in the world because they are designed to handle all combinations of 110V/220V and 50Hz/60Hz. 3DS chargers will work only in their region, but will not burn if plugged-in in a different region. Cheap electronics most probably will burn out.In my countries we have cities that use 220V and cities that use 127V, from experience I can tell:
- If you turn a charger designed for 127V in a 220V outlet it will burn after one minute or two. It may even damage whatever is plugged to the charger. (chargers often have very poor protection circuits)
- If you turn a charger designed for 220V in a 127V outlet it will most likely not work properly but won't burn. (doesn't mean it won't damage your 3DS, but it will do it slowly)
Also, Europe uses 50Hz frequency while the USA uses 60Hz. I have no idea what happens if you plug something in the incorrect frequency, but I imagine it will cause distortion in the output signal.
Always use the correct charger designed for your country. Even if it does works, it will damage the lifetime of your 3ds in the long term because the output current will be incorrect.
Have you tried charging another US 3DS with the uk 240v 50hz official nintendo charger? Maybe the charger is screwed up?While I believe what your saying is correct on a technical level. When I used a uk 240v 50hz official nintendo charger on a american 3ds in a uk outlet, I blew the internal fuse of the 3ds.
I actually had to replace the fuse inside the 3ds twice because i used a a uk charger on it twice by mistake,
Granted its probably a fault with this 3ds I have, but unofficial charger which say 100v-240v 50-60hz charge the 3ds fine after i replaced the fuse in the 3ds.
I actually repair 3ds consoles in my spare time and i have around 30 in my house now, now most of them are pal ones so charging is a non issue for me. but i was just expressing from my experience and I only used 3rd party chargers to charge ntsc console now, Just incase.
chris