Have you ever wondered what the term 'AC adapter' means? You've probably heard it mentioned a few times and may have been left scratching your head. Well, in fact, it is something that majority of us use every day.
An AC adapter is a black box that lies between an electric outlet and a piece of electronic equipment. The most common term used to describe it is a laptop charger or power adapter. Most of the time, they get stuffed into your bag, tripped over, dropped, wound too tightly or sat on. However, without them, your favourite electronic device wouldn't exist, and you wouldn't have access to the wonderful things you have now.
How do AC adapters work?
Your AC adapter can be defined as an external power supply that typically runs off a battery or has no power source. It uses electricity to achieve this - you may come across units like amps, watts and volts. For example, a laptop runs off a rechargeable battery, so it requires what is called a laptop charger. A laptop charger is plugged into an external power outlet at one end and into the laptop at the other, supplying it with a power supply that charges the battery.
How it controls power:
There are two different types of power outlets, 'alternating current', between 110V and 240V, and 'direct current', requiring 20V. Alternating current switches from positive to negative 50 times a second, while direct current is linear in nature, with one positive and one negative current, like a battery. A device is needed to reduce the power from the outlet to better suit the level of power your device needs, and not damage the electrical circuits inside your battery or hardware. This is called an AC adapter, most commonly known as a laptop charger.
How can I identify an AC adapter?
AC adapters have a number of different marks that you can use for identification, such as output wattage, part numbers or model numbers. However, the input and output value, along with the connector that links your device and AC adapter, are unique to that particular charger. A laptop charger is unique to the brand and model of the laptop, varying in these features.
Benefits of the AC adapter:
More mobile
AC adapters are becoming more revolutionised in the electronics industry. Take the laptop charger, for example. No longer are they big and bulky, but rather smaller, more portable, and not as heavy.
Easy to replace
Because the battery and AC adapter are easily changed and the AC adapter is external to the inner workings of your laptop, they can be easily and cheaply replaced if they get damaged or broken, without the need to pull apart your laptop.
Quieter
AC adapters, or laptop chargers, are quieter than traditional computer power as they don't have any moving, humming parts and fans. If you need an AC adapter, laptop charger or other laptop accessories, don't hesitate to get in touch with us at Laptop Plus today to see how we can help.
