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Dave In Ireland

Technical Details for Moving to Europe, Chapter 22

A reader comments with updated information on
telephones, television, light bulbs, and other electrical items.


HOW TO EUROPE: The Complete Travelers Handbook

John Bermont — Chef du Site

The entire book is published free on-line at www.enjoy-europe.com by photographer and author John Bermont, yours truly, with help from my daughter Stephanie.
25-September-2014 update.

Carpe diem. Vivere bene! Gratia Deo.

Introduction

I've received thousands of emails since begining this web site 17 years ago. Most have been questions, some have been compliments, some have cussed my stupidity, and then this arrived. It is a master work regarding improvements in the daily life of Europeans. This gets technical way beyond my experience so I present it as is. I will eventually incorporate all this information in my regular pages but that will take some time. In the interest of expediency I am quoting the entire email. It is from "Dave in Ireland." Dave works in the television industry.

The major point in Dave's email is something that I have overlooked in my site in discussing moving to Europe. That is the matter of television, digital TV to be more exact. There are several paragraphs on television, using the good old fashined analog broadcast system. As we all know, but not mentioned on my site, the USA went to digital TV about 10 years ago. Therefore NTSC analog broadcasting is history. Also not mentioned on enjoy-europe.com is the fact that Europe also went digital. Therefore PAL, SECAM, and other European analog TV broadcast systems are history. The new US and EU digital broadcast systems are explained in Dave's email.

If you are considering moving your TV to Europe this is critical information.

Here is the full text of Dave's email.

Email from "Dave in Ireland" 10 June 2014

Hi John,

Great blog, lots of useful info for people moving between continents! Just thought I'd give you a little more up-to-date information on a few technical things in Europe.

TV

Television broadcasting systems in Europe and the United States & Canada have switched from analogue to digital. That means NTSC, PAL and SECAM are no more. However, they've managed to maintain parallel and incompatible standards.

All European countries now use DVB-T for terrestrial broadcast television. The DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting) standards are a set of open standards that are developed by a European consortium of various standards bodies and driven by the ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute) and EBU (European Broadcasting Union).

DVB-T = Terrestrial (over the air via an antenna)

DVB-C = Cable

DVB-S = Satellite

DVB-H = Handheld (not really very widely used by anyone)

The United States and Canada use ATSC (Advanced Television Systems Committee standards) which has replaced NTSC.

Unfortunately DVB-T and ATSC are completely incompatible.

There's even a different number of lines, which is kind of a carry over from the old systems. DVB-T uses 576i (567 lines interlaced) as the most basic standard definition while ATSC retained 480i (480 lines interlaced) as the most basic standard def.

European HD, much like in the US is either 720 or 1080 lines and can be interlaced or progressively scanned.

There are also a few country-specific implementations of DVB-T depending on when the systems were built out. Some countries use MPEG2 streams for standard definition and MPEG4 streams for HD television. While others, like Ireland and the Nordic countries just use MPEG4 for everything. All this means is that older European digital TVs won't be able to see signals in those countries. However, almost all newer models can work on either flavour as they need MPEG4 to receive HD.

To make matters even more 'fun', Japan went is own route and uses ISDB and China is using it's own DTMB. However, because DVB-T is an open set of standards, it's being adopted very widely beyond Europe and most countries that formerly used PAL seem to have adopted it.

RADIO

Analog

FM: In all of Western Europe FM radio is broadcast on 87.5-108.0 MHz (slightly more frequencies than the US which is 87.8-107.9 MHz. but in reality makes very little difference). Some Eastern European countries may still use the old Eastern Bloc assignments 65-74 MHz which means you might need a local radio to pick up stations.

AM: European countries use two different bands: Medium Wave (MW) is similar to US AM broadcasts and uses 526.5 kHz to 1606.5 kHz (US: 535 kHz to 1705 kHz). They also use Long Wave (LW) 153 to 279 kHz - For example BBC Radio 4 can be found on 198kHz and RTE Radio 1 (Ireland) on 252kHz.

In general AM broadcasting in Europe is considered pretty obsolete and historic at this stage.

Digital

Most European countries have DAB (Digital Audio Broadcasting) on air. This requires a DAB or DAB+ compatible device to receive them. They usually provide a wider range of channels than you'd find on FM and possibly text-based information services.

Online

If you're from the US, I'd suggest looking at Tune In Radio or something like that as you can find thousands of radio stations online these days and really you shouldn't need to resort to tuning in the old fashioned way if you want to hear radio. Almost every station in the world is available.

Telephones

DTMF / Tone Dialling is universally available in Europe and has been around since the 1970s. By the 1990s it would have been universally available. There are no electromechanical public central offices/exchanges in use at all anywhere in the EU at this stage. There may well have been one or two local crossbar switches still hanging around in some countries into the late 1990s though.

Quite a few European countries have always used US-style RJ11 phone connectors e.g. Ireland, Spain, Portugal and quite a few others. So, a US phone will simply plug in. Many others use their own connectors, but RJ11 plugs on the other end of the cable, so it's usually just a case of sticking in a local phone cable or buying a cheap adaptor. RJ11 has sort of become the de facto international standard for these things.

Some countries also had a preference for ISDN (100% digital service) for telephones. You may find that in some homes and most definitely in hotels and offices that the phone lines may not be analog at all and connect using RJ45 connectors (like ethernet plugs). You'd need to buy an ISDN phone for these.

Also in recent years there's been a huge switch away from traditional telephone services similar to what's happening in the US and elsewhere. You may find that your phone line is provided by VoIP or a cable provider and this may not be able to work with old pulse dial phones at all or may even require a special IP-phone if there's no analog interface.

All of the above would apply to faxes too.

I wouldn't really think that phones and faxes are that much more expensive in Europe either. Prices of these things have dropped enormously over the past couple of decades.

More importantly these days : Mobile Phones / Smart Phones.

In general European standards are pretty ubiquitous and most modern smartphones will support at least most of the European GSM (2G), UMTS (3G) and LTE (4G) bands. If you're planning to relocate to Europe permanently, you might want to verify that your phone supports all of your chosen carriers' bands as if you're missing some you may have reduced coverage in some areas, even though your phone might generally work.

I'd also STRONGLY suggest that you buy a local Euro-plug or UK/Ireland charger (they're quite cheap) rather than using cumbersome and possibly dangerous adaptors to use US chargers. You can pick up phone chargers at almost any electronics store, mobile phone shop and even many supermarkets.

Calling home

Check out the smaller pre-pay operators, e.g. some supermarkets operate their own brand cellular brands. Some of these are very, very cheap for calling overseas and can be ideal for North American or others who need to be able to call home.

In general pre-pay data bundles (in most but not every EU country) are very competitive these days and probably cheaper than the US. So, shop around is all I could advise you and bear in mind that there are often smaller networks or virtual networks that may be a huge amount cheaper than the major players. So, a bit of Googling can be quite important!

European Broadband

It's quite comparable to the US. ADSL, ADSL2+ and cable broadband are quite widely available. Fibre to kerb and fibre to home services are also becoming quite widespread too.

Speeds and availability are pretty comparable with the US and Canada and the usual issues apply in rural areas i.e. if you're living off-grid somewhere, you might struggle to get ADSL.

Mobile Boadband

You can pick up a mobile broadband dongle quite easily in most (but not all) EU countries. Some are cheaper than others depending on how competitive the market is. These can be a handy alternative to using wifi hotpsots if you're travelling, particularly in places like Ireland or the Nordic countries where you might want to go driving and exploring remote areas.

Again: shop around and research online as the market's constantly evolving!

OTHER STUFF

Light Bulbs

UK, Ireland and France are different to most of Europe! The British, Irish and French use bayonet light bulbs traditionally. In Britain and Ireland in particular they are very much the standard although both "BC" and "ES" bulbs are available. In France, they generally only apply to older installations, but they are still quite common.

It's not a big deal, but it's worth noting if you ever try to 'screw in' a light bulb in Britain or Ireland as they are installed by pushing the bulb in and making a 1/4 turn.

Voltage

Standard voltage in Europe is 230V 50Hz

The 220V and 240V specifications are no longer used. However appliances that are rated for 220V, 240V or 220-240V will work perfectly. I don't think there's really any need to give a lot more information about this as it just confuses people unnecessarily. The simplest explanation is in Europe it's always 230V 50Hz.

Plugs/Sockets

They're not as chaotic and complicated as many sites make out.

The vast majority of EU countries all use the same system. There are just a few odd ball countries and the two islands that drive on the opposite side of the road where you wouldn't really expect to find the same plugs and sockets anyway :)

The de facto standard is the CEE 7 family of plugs and sockets. There are two types of modern grounded sockets CEE 7/4 (German style with scraping side contacts at the top and bottom of the socket for the ground) and CEE 7/5 (French style with a grounding pin protruding from the socket). Both types of socket outlet are recessed to make it impossible to touch the pins and they are both 100% compatible with all the same plugs. So, for all intents and purposes the two sockets are equivalent and the slight difference in design is irrelevant in almost all cases. They're just a quick of parallel development in the old days.

Plugs:

CEE 7/7 - Grounded 16 amp plug (has both scraping top/bottom contacts and a receiving hole for the French ground pin) - You'll find this on heavy appliances like washing machines, kettles, coffee machines and anything that needs a grounding connection or has a metal body)

CEE 7/17 - Ungrounded 16amp plug (often used on heavier appliances like hairdryers, vacuums etc that do not need a ground as they're double-insulated plastic bodies)

CEE 7/16 - This is a flat ungrounded plug intended for use on small appliances only. Maximum rating 2.5 amps. This fits all types of European sockets and also many obsolete socket outlets too. (Except the UK and Ireland). - These are commonly found on things like mobile phone chargers, small televisions, radios, electronics, lamps, etc

The quirky countries:

UK, Ireland, Cyprus and Malta use a British system called BS1363. This is completely incompatible with the normal European plug/socket system and uses 3 rectangular pins. Plugs are rated 13amps and contain a fuse (13amps for large appliances, and it can be 10 or 3 amps for small appliances). There are no 2-pin plugs and even ungrounded items must have a 3rd pin as it's required to open the safety shutters on the outlet. All outlets in the UK and Ireland are identical and non-grounded outlets do not exist; they were banned in the 1920s.

NB: the UK and Ireland also ban the use of normal outlets in the bathroom. The only type of outlet found in a British or Irish bathroom is a special shaver socket that is connected via an isolating transformer (this removes the potential difference to ground and eliminates shock risk). They will accept 2-pin British shaver/toothbrush plugs as well as European 2.5 amp plugs and often 2 pin US plugs too. However, they are limited to 0.2amps. So, if you plug in a US or EU appliance like a curling iron or a hairdryer you'll cause the outlet to cut the power and possibly even blow a physical fuse. So, unless you want to annoy the hotel manager, don't do that!

Light switches are also banned in UK and Irish bathrooms, so if you're looking for them they're usually located outside the bathroom next to the door.

Other countries:

Italy, Denmark and Switzerland use their own systems. These use the same 2 round pin for line and neutral as most of the rest of Europe, but complete the earth with a 3rd pin instead. These are only compatible with the CEE 7/16 type plug and some may accept the CEE 7/17 16 amp plugs. WARNING: If you use them with grounded European plugs, they may fit but not complete the grounding connection!

Using standard 16 amp European plugs with old (obsolete) flat Swiss sockets is very dangerous as the pins are not kept away from your fingers!

Other strange outlets you may encounter (all obsolete):

Non-grounded socket outlets that are encountered are basically obsolete and indicative of very old wiring. These would be flat (no recess) and may in some cases not accept the wider pins of modern 16amp plugs. These should be used with extreme caution as they may not be designed to carry more than 10 amps (the pins don't fit for a reason!)

Be very careful of using these kinds of outlets particularly in parts of Eastern Europe / Russia and parts of Southern Europe as they may be 10amp or less. Absolutely do not force any pins into a socket if they seem a very tight fit, they're most likely intended not to fit for a reason!

Safety systems:

RCDs / GFCIs : Most European countries require RCD protection on *all* outlets. These rules came into effect in some countries earlier than in others. This is done at the distribution board/panel and not usually on each individual outlet. Older wiring may not have this protection, so if you are in an older building with what look like obsolete outlets, be careful!

If you plug in a wet iron, kettle or coffee maker you may find that all the outlets in the room or even your entire house will switch off until the RCD is reset.

Conclusion:

Anyway, I just thought I'd give you a little more up-to-date techie info!

If you're acknowledging me on the blog, just say "Dave in Ireland". I'd rather you don't publish my whole email address and last name.

I work in the broadcasting sector, hence all the info on TV etc :)

All the best, Dave

RELATED PAGES

The following pages on enjoy-europe.com have further information on using electrical items in Europe. There are some difference between my observations and those of Dave In Ireland. I suggest that you follow Dave's advice. He is more up to date, in the industry, and lives in Europe.

Electric Converters in Europe: Why You Should NOT Pack One.

Electricity in Europe: Voltage, Frequency, Plugs, Adapters, Converters.

Moving to Europe: Things to Know Before You Go.

Living in Europe: Travel to the Max as an Expatriate.

Last Call: Travel Prep and Pack Lists for Europe.

NOTE TO READERS

I welcome questions and comments. If you have any concerns about your trip to Europe that have not been covered well enough on my web site please do not hesitate to write and ask. When you write please include relevant details.

I do not open attachments. Please include all of your data in the body of your email. I will reply in a day or two.

Do not forget to smell the hyacinths. Scroll through the Table of Contents of How To Europe: The Complete Travelers Handbook and read all 30 chapters, FREE on line. Good deal! You'll probably find the answers you seek, and some you didn't know you needed.

My email address is [email protected].

Have a good trip!

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