japanese-plug-adapters.txt    Copyright 2014 - 2017 David R. Woodsmall

"The voltage in Japan is 100 Volt, which is different from North America (120V),
Central Europe (230V) and most other regions of the world. Japanese electrical
plugs have two, non-polarized pins (means both :blades: are the same width -
polarized plugs have one blade wider than the other, so they can only be 
inserted into a P)olarized outlet, and only inserted in one way.
Japanese plugs WILL fit into North American outlets.

Japanese power outlets are identical to ungrounded (2-pin) North American
outlets (which are now illegal int eh USA). While most Japanese outlets
these days are polarized (one slot is slightly wider than the other),
it is possible to encounter non-polarized outlets in some places.

Some North American equipment will work fine in Japan without an adapter and
vice versa, however, certain equipment, especially equipment  involving heating
(e.g. hair dryers), may not work properly or even get damaged.

If you intend to purchase electronic appliances in Japan for use outside of Japan,
you are advised to look for equipment specifically made for oversea tourists.

The frequency of electric current is 50 Hertz in Eastern Japan (including Tokyo,
Yokohama, Tohoku, Hokkaido) and 60 Hertz in Western Japan  (including Nagoya,
Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima, Shikoku, Kyushu); however, most equipment is not
affected by this frequency difference. A possible exception are timing devices
such as clocks." - http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2225.html

I, David Woodsmall, am somewhat concerned about USA electronics running on
100 volts - this may be too low. I will look into it.

Also, it sounds as though a USA 3-wire to 2-way adapter may be needed in some cases.

And, perhaps, some 2-wire adapter to remove the USA polarized plug and make it
an old-USA-style 2-wire plug (both plug blades would be the same narrow width
[a plorized plug has one blade wider than the other, so it can only be plugged
into an outlet one way}.

In SUMMARY, a simple 3-way to 2-way USA plug adapter with the polorized
(wider) plug blade filed to the smaller width of the other blade - MIGHT
BE ALL YOU NEED TO RUN ELECTRIC APPLIANCES IN Japan.

REMEMBER, you could be on a 50 Hertz outlet, meaning all mechanical clocks (motors)
will run slow.

The 100 Volts AC may be too low to support things like your computer - 
I am looking into this potential problem.   

David Woodsmall  www.woodsmall.com

http://www.woodsmall.com/japanese-plug-adapters.txt