8

I have a US Xbox 360 (E series, for inquiring minds). From what I've read on Microsoft's site, the 360 does NOT have a universal switching supply, but rather a 100-127V supply for US consoles (and presumably Japan, Canada, etc), and 220-240V supply for other countries using the appropriate voltage.

I'm looking at using a 220-110 step-down converter but have three concerns:

1) Power in Beijing is 220V/50Hz, correct? Will the Xbox 360 power supply care about the 50Hz/60Hz difference?

2) Will a 200W converter be sufficient? That should give 67% built-in overhead (the E series power supply is rated at 120W) but I want to be sure.

3) I will be staying in an apartment (not a motel/hotel); do most homes/apartments in Beijing have a universal outlet like this, or only the AU/CN type outlets like this? Most converters I can find online that are grounded (the 360 power supply complains if it's not properly grounded, and I feel more comfortable having such a setup properly grounded anyways) have either a US/NEMA plug or a Euro/Schuko plug and I need to know whether I might need an outlet adapter.

Has anyone successfully used a US console in a 220V/50Hz country with a converter? I know the games are region-specific, but will have US games with me so that's not a concern.

Improve this question

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
6

I had a similar but not identical issue with a French Wii U in Japan - it also uses an external, non-switching supply, but as France is 220V and Japan is 100V I needed a step up transformer. To take your questions:

  1. Yes, Beijing is 220V 50Hz. No, the frequency difference won't cause any issues (this only really affects timing circuits)
  2. 200W is plenty as the 360 isn't a surging device.
  3. Perhaps need a resident to step in here, but Wikipedia states most outlets support both US NEMA and AU plugs simultaneously, with some also supporting Europlugs.

That all said, I guess you could buy an Xbox 360 220-240V / 50Hz PSU and just use that - maybe from Hong Kong? Or the UK?

Note that Xbox Live is a bit of a pain when going abroad. You'll likely need to change your account region.

Improve this answer
1
  • Thanks! I'll probably end up looking for an HK-compatible Xbox360 power supply once I'm there, that seems to be the safest route. I'm not really worried about Xbox Live (don't play online much) so I'll deal with that if it presents itself as a problem.
    – Doktor J
    Feb 11, 2014 at 17:51
5

In addition to codinghands's answer, for point 3, my experience in Guangdong suggest the outlets are usually universal. Anyway, a travel adapter should solve the outlet problem for you.

As a side note, console games have been banned in China since the 2000s until 2013. People in China had managed to play on imported consoles with appropriate PSU and adapter sold in some local stores without a problem in that decade. You should not have much difficulties using your Xbox as well.

Improve this answer

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .