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To buy or not
to buy?
That is the question facing any international
traveler in
an electrical store.
For many products, all you have to worry about is voltage and hertz.
For some things, however, the problems are more difficult. |
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Televisions are especially
complicated pieces of equipment. As well as voltage and
power frequency, there are the following problems:
| Broadcasting systems |
| There are 14 different broadcasting
systems in use around the world. They are known by letters of the
alphabet. The US system is known by the letter "M" for
example, while the British system is given the letter "I".
TVs will only receive broadcasts they are designed to receive. So
an I set will not show broadcasts in the M system. |
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| Color systems |
| There are three different technologies
by which color TVs turn signals into color images. They are known
by the abbreviations NTSC (developed in the US), SECAM (developed
in France), and PAL (developed in Germany). NTSC, SECAM and
PAL are mutually incompatible. So, for example, a PAL TV will not
show NTSC broadcasts in color. These systems also apply to video
recordings (see below). Japan uses the NTSC standard. |
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| Channels |
Different countries use different
channel frequencies for broadcasts. TVs will only receive the channels
they are designed to receive.
If that wasn't enough of a headache, there are several different
incompatible systems for stereo broadcasts, too. |
What does all this mean in practice? A TV made for Japan
will only work in Japan. Despite the growing unity of the European Union,
a standard-model TV bought in the UK will not work in France, a TV bought
in France will not work in Germany, and a TV bought in Germany will not
work in the UK. That's why many Europeans own multi-system TVs - models
that are designed to receive stations in a range of systems and frequencies
from broadcasters outside their home country.
 You
can find a list of broadcasting systems, color systems and frequencies
at Worldwide Power & Broadcasting Information.
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Video presents the same problems
as TV.
| Broadcasting
systems/Channels |
If you want to record
programs in a given country, the broadcasting system,
color system and receiving channels of the VCR
tuner must match that country. Even if you just
want to watch recorded tapes, the VCR and TV must
match the color system of the tape. That applies
to commercial recordings, too.
So if you buy your favorite movies on tape in Japan, then take them
home to Australia, for example, all you will see are wavy lines. |
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| Color systems |
| Blank VHS videotapes
can be used in any VHS recorder. But the recording
speeds of PAL, SECAM and NTSC are different, so
recording times are also different. A 120-minute
NTSC tape will not record for two hours on a PAL
VCR, for example. It's best to buy tapes that fit
your local system. |
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| RF signal |
| You also have to
be careful to match the RF signal of the VCR and
the TV. Things should be OK if your TV has separate
audio and video inputs. |
You
can find a list of broadcasting systems, color systems
and frequencies at Worldwide Power & Broadcasting
Information.
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DVD Video players and discs are
designed for use in one of six regions. This licensing
system was designed to protect the copyright of distribution
companies. The regional code appears on the product. For
playback, the regional code of the player and the disc
must be the same.
 Regional
Codes
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Code
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Example Countries/Regions |
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1
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U.S., Canada, U.S.
Territories |
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2
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Japan, Europe,
South Africa,
and Middle East (including Egypt) |
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3
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Southeast Asia
and East Asia
(including Hong Kong) |
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4
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Australia, New
Zealand, Pacific Islands,
Central America,Mexico, South America,
and the Caribbean |
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5
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Eastern Europe
(Former Soviet Union),
Indian subcontinent, Africa,
North Korea, and Mongolia |
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6
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China |
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7
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Reserved |
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8
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Special international
venues
(airplanes, cruise ships, etc.) |
This means for example that a DVD Video disc bought in the US will not
work in a DVD player made for the Japanese market. Things are further complicated
by the color system problem. Japan and western Europe are both in the regional
code 2 zone, but a Japanese NTSC DVD disc will not work in a French SECAM
DVD player.
DVDs are small and easy to carry, so you might think they make the perfect
souvenir for the family back home. But please read everything carefully
before you buy, otherwise you may be disappointed.
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Radio presents some of the same
problems as TV. Apart from voltage, you have to worry about
broadcasting wavelengths and frequencies.
There are four wavelength bands: short wave (SW), medium wave (MW), long
wave (LW) and frequency modulation (FM).
Some radios have AM (amplitude modulation), which is more or less the same
as MW. Most countries broadcast on SW, MW and FM, some broadcast on all
four (especially in Europe). But that doesn't mean you can use one radio
anywhere.
Countries use different frequency bands. For example, for FM broadcasts,
Japan uses the frequency band from 76 megahertz to 90 megahertz. In contrast,
the US uses 87.5 megahertz to 108 megahertz. So if you buy a Japanese-model
FM radio and take it to the USA, you will miss all the stations that broadcast
from 90 to 108 MHz.
See Worldwide
Power & Broadcasting Information for details.
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