An Inexpensive and Portable Adapter: eForCity Universal Travel Adapter Review

Where to Get It:

You can find the eForCity Universal Travel Adapter here on Amazon.com

What’s Included:

• 1 universal travel adapter

I reviewed the eForCity Universal World Wide Travel Charger Adapter Plug in white. This adapter only changes prong shapes to fit into outlets in different countries, and does not convert voltage. If you are looking for a voltage converter, check out my review of the Bestek Travel Voltage converter, which is one of the best voltage converters on the market right now.

Visit this page for more information on the difference between travel adapters and voltage converters.

eForCity Universal Travel Adapter Review:

When I first saw the eForCity Universal Adapter on Amazon.com for around $4, I was immediately skeptical. Was this another ‘Made in China’ piece of junk? Would it actually work? Why is it so cheap?

I put aside my skepticism and took a risk by buying it, since I would be back on the road traveling internationally after a short break in NYC. The quality of the adapter surpassed my expectations, and I’ve been using it for the past 2 months in Iceland, Russia and China. I’ll update this review if I ever come across any issues with the adapter.

The eForCity Universal Travel Adapter is approximately 3 inches tall, 2 inches wide and 1.6 thick and weighs only 4 ounces. The adapter is extremely portable and all of the prongs are stored inside the adapter and can easily be flipped or popped out when needed. The green switches on the top and bottom of the eForCity adapter allow for the prongs to be locked in a stowed away position or to be used. At the top of the front of the adapter there is a little red light, which indicates if the adapter is working.

All types of prongs can be inserted into the front of the adapter, including prongs for American outlets, prongs for European outlets and more. I am pretty confident that prongs from outlets from every country can be inserted into the front, and the manufacturer description for this product states that it is compatible with over 150 countries.

The same applies for the back of the adapter. There are 4 different prong shapes which the adapter can convert to. These prongs should be compatible with every country in the world.

Pros:

• Works with most, if not all countries
• Lightweight and portable
• Inexpensive (roughly $4 on Amazon.com)

Since I have several electronics which I need to charge at the same time, I purchased the Belkin 3-Outlet Travel Charger to use with my eForCity adapter. This also allowed for me to only purchase 1 adapter, instead of buying several adapters to charge all of my electronics. The image below shows the two devices together.

You can read my review of the Belkin 3-Outlet travel charger here.

Cons:

• Does not convert voltage
• Adapter can be loose when using the European prongs
• Questionable reliability

One of the major setbacks of this product is that it doesn’t convert voltages. I wrote a post earlier about the difference between voltage converters and travel adapters and what it means to convert voltage, which you can read for more information on the topic. Though it doesn’t convert voltages, I haven’t had any issues with voltage differences since all of the chargers for my electronics already convert voltage and can be used regardless if the voltage is 110V or 220V. Chargers for iPhones and laptops tend to not need voltage conversion to be used, while hairdryers usually need voltage to be converted. You can find a list of which electronics need voltage to be converted and which don’t here.

Since I only needed to charge my laptop and phone, voltage converting was unnecessary for me. Be sure to check with your electronics’ manufacturers before trying to charge them with different voltages.

The eForCity Universal Travel Adapter also tends to be a bit loose when plugging it in to European outlets. Electronics still charge while the adapter is loosely plugged in, however, I’d like for it to be a bit tighter so that the adapter wouldn’t fall out. I’ve had several experiences where I’ve plugged in heavy items, like my MacBook charger into the adapter, but had to support the adapter to keep it from falling out of the outlet socket.

So far, the eForCity adapter has been relatively reliable and I haven’t run into any issues except for the first time when I used it. In Iceland, I was trying to charge my iPad using the adapter, but right when I plugged the iPad charger into the adapter there was a huge spark which destroyed my iPad charger. The adapter was fine, and after that I haven’t had any problems since. Honestly, I don’t think a truly reliable adapter or voltage converter exists, since all of the adapters I’ve used have broken or had some issues within 6 months. Comparatively, the eForCity has been quite reliable.

The Verdict:

The eForCity Universal Travel Adapter is a portable and versatile adapter with some minor flaws here and there. At less than $4 on Amazon.com, you really don’t have anything to lose, even if it beaks. All in all, I highly recommend this adapter to anyone who is planning on traveling overseas and doesn’t need to convert voltage.

Where to Get It:

You can find the eForCity Universal Travel Adapter here on Amazon.com

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