Chile Forum

jalundberg,

Franzus makes higher end transformers that can be used full time. Check out all the products under that brand at jr.com. You are moving to Chile and the thing to keep in mind is durability and most plastic housed travel-type transformers will not cut it after a year of expat type use.

MarkF,

I started a thread on the voltage step down a while back and the esteemed TomBrad says it will not be a problem.

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jalundberg wrote:it says that it is not to be used for more than 15 minutes at a time.

I think that's common. Mine is 50 & 1200 watts. It says "Not for continual use." I've never had any trouble with it. It's eight years old.

EEUU mentioned Franzus. I saw this at Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/Franzus-Converter-Converts-Foreign-Domestic/dp/B000WGZXAO/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=automotive&qid=1210355432&sr=8-2

It seems to automatically detect wattage (doesn't require switching it to hi or lo). I think it was mentioned earlier that some converters don't hold to the wall very well. Mine has a tendency to tip out because it's height and depth are more square. That Franzus model is taller. It might resist that levering action.

Regarding EEUU's comments that adapters sometimes don't grip the US plug blade. The adapters from Fry's are noticeably lightweight. But, they grip the US blade well enough. It takes some force to pull out. Not as tight as extension cords you're probably used to. But, not anywhere near as loose that they'd fall out.

Mark

I agree with eeuu about the plug adapters, they are cheap and everywhere...supermarkets, Hardware stores, etc. I also found that some of the two prong adapters didn't grip the us prongs as tightly as I like.

Side note, I got a 50w 110-220 plugin converter in Vina del Mar for around five or ten dollars (converted from pesos). The same converter that I saw online was around 30 dollars. But then again, there are better places than others online!

I don't know about buying all of your adapters and such, but enough for your essential items.

This might be a good opportunity for people here to let others know what kind of prices they see for these items. The next time I am at Sodimac or Easy (like a Homedepot or Lowes) I will look at the prices that I see for converters and the plug adapters. I need to get a power converter for a kitchen center (combo mixer, blender, etc.) which has a motor rated up to 350W.

jalundberg wrote:... a laptop

BTW: Not related to electricity, if you're going to bring a laptop and want to make/receive cheap calls, I found MagicJack to be a huge benefit (Google for it). It's a device you plug into your USB port. You can either plug a normal phone (RJ-11) into it. Or, use a software application to dial the phone, and headphone/mic plugged into your laptop's speakers/mic connectors.

I liked it because it costs $30 a year for unlimited calling. You get a real (CLEC) phone number of your choice from available area codes. Anyone in the US or Canada can call that number and reach you in Chile, paying only the rate their telephone company charges them to reach that US number. You can originate calls to any US/Canada number from Chile for free. It has a lot of features like voice mail (which is on their system, not an application on your computer requiring it to be always on).

Also, I always bring a Linksys WRTGL54L wireless router (with 7-9db antennas). I've used it to share a neighbor's broadband. I either set it up for them on their system. Or, if they already have wireless, I use it in "client mode" if necessary. (That turns the wireless AP part of the router into a client, like a wireless card in the laptop. But, gives more range with better antennas.). That gave me some useful options. (In the US, sharing broadband with a neighbor usually violates the terms of service which the subscriber agreed to. Not sure how much of a problem it could be in Chile.).

Mark

MikieO wrote:Has anyone tried this Magicjack with the widely available free wifi in Santiago?

It should work as long as you get at least 100kbs up/dn (MagicJack's tech support told me that's what it needs to work, but I've not done any kind of edge testing like that). Latency is probably important too. You can go here http://www.speedtest.net/ and get an idea of speed and latency from Chile to various US locations (MJ has servers around the US). Compare your results from a few wifi spots and normal/private residential locations. If you post the results I can do a few from here and post results for comparison too.

I've used it in Chile. But, not using public wifi.

After mentioning MJ the other night, I noticed they don't ship outside the US. If you want one I'd be happy to receive it and forward it to you (if you can get the cost of postage to me somehow. Postage shouldn't be much since it's just a USB device.).

Mark

MikieO wrote:I'll grab one here (I'm still in Ca) during the next few weeks and bring it down.
I will check it out in Santiago and report.

Did you get one yet? I noticed on their website they're offering 5 years for $50 US. I believe that's in addition to the 1 year included with the purchase of the MJ ($40). Normally each additional year is $20. (A lot of VOIP companies don't survive. So, it's a risk of losing the $50. But, it's a good deal, unlimited calling to/from the US and Canada for $10 a year.).

If you use Windows and try it at a wifi hotspot (as you said you would) you may need to disable the wireless configuration tool. There are reports that it causes 4-5 second dropouts every few minutes.

Turn it off:

Code: Select all

C:\windows\system32\net.exe stop wzcsvc

Turn it on:

Code: Select all

C:\windows\system32\net.exe start wzcsvc

Also, there is a support forum here: http://unofficialmagicjack.forum2u.org/

MagicJack used to have a user-support forum. But, they turned it off (and recreated their web site into the hideous "As Seen on TV" style they have now). A lot of customers were upset about that. Evidently someone created a rogue support site.

Mark

jalundberg wrote:Follow-up question, am I helping myself out any by purchasing these here in the States before I leave? Or could I just as easily (and cheaply) purchase them when I arrive in Viña?

Buy a blow dryer in the USA. You can get a dual voltage hair dryer that runs on 120 and 240 volts. There is usually a little notch on the handle that you switch over to run it on 240. Check to see if the one your GF has runs on 240 or not. If not, get one before you come. Blow dryers are ABSURDLY expensive in Chile. If you ride the bus in the morning you'll see a lot of women with wet hair. All you'll need are the little two prong adapters which you can get cheap at many stores, 3 or 4 hundred pesos.

In fact maybe buy a couple hair dyers and bring them to sell.

I used to run my HP laptop on an elaborate set-up with a converter for 120 volts even though it was designed as a dual 120/240 voltage machine. I was a bit leery of running it on 240 but after a short time I did and it was fine, no problems. Make sure your laptop runs on 240 also, then all you'll need will be a power strip or line cleaner to prevent voltage spikes.

Hey, buy a spare used laptop off of Craigslist and bring it to sell. You can double your money pretty easy.

You can buy a voltage converter that changes 120 to 240 in Chile, mine cost 14 bux IIRC, (7k pesos maybe?) so you don't have to carry it with you adding to your weight in your suitcases. They're heavy little things.

After awhile in Chile you wont have much need for converters, you'll just buy 240 stuff.

MikieO wrote:I'm in Concepcion right now, used the magicjack thing to get my vm on my home cellphone using public wi fi. Not as clear as I'd like but ....? I've called a few people at home and they've been impressed.

I'm glad it will be useful to you. You could ask about performance tips at that unofficial support site. I read something about how, if you're using a real handset plugged into the MagicJack, you can improve clarity by going into the application's options and disabling the speaker/Mic. (Or, vice-versa, I don't remember.).

If you're using XP, you should make sure your TCP/IP is configured optimally (http://www.dslreports.com/tweaks). That could make a big difference.

MikieO wrote:Trying to get my customs shipment squared away, what a battle!

If you learn anything useful, I hope you document it on the wiki.

Mark

MarkF wrote:. . . .

MikieO wrote:Trying to get my customs shipment squared away, what a battle!

If you learn anything useful, I hope you document it on the wiki. . . .

Hear, hear! This is the one aspect of the mudanza that I'm most leary of, and, of course, the one on which Chilean friends and relatives can give me the least guidance.

MikieO wrote:Not as clear as I'd like but ....? I've called a few people at home and they've been impressed.

BTW, I think MJ shapes its bandwidth to improve the other end at the expense of your end. In other words: so the other party is less likely to realize you're on a non-traditional phone (with the expectation that you'll accept some degradation knowing you're not on a traditional phone).

MJ began pushing a software update the past couple days. I've not received it. If you encounter any problems, consult the unauthorized support forum I mentioned earlier.

Mark

Here's another VOIP service that looks useful: http://www.voipvoip.com/pc-to-phone/

- It doesn't require any special hardware or annual fee like MagicJack.
- You pay-as-you-go and can make calls to the US for $0.019 per minute. Calls to Chile for $0.0319. So, if you're in Chile you can make cheap calls to the US. Local calls to Chile wouldn't be too bad.
- Like MagicJack, you can call traditional phone numbers. But, unlike MagicJack, you're assigned a "virtual phone number" which can't be called from traditional phones. But, other voipvoip users can call you.
- You can get a real phone number in the US (like MagicJack) but it costs $7 US per month. Unlike MagicJack, you can obtain a real phone number in a foreign country (including Chile). But, that costs $15 a month.
- Like MagicJack, they have a "softphone" which eliminates the need for any hardware. But, unlike MagicJack, if you want to use a real analog phone, you have to buy a VOIP device and plug it into your router. MagicJack doesn't require this because it's little USB device handles the traditional analog phone. That also makes it possible to use an analog phone in a wifi environment (where there's no router to plug an adaptor and analog phone into).

If someone wants to maintain a US number, MagicJack is the way to go (for $20 US a year). But, if they just want to make infrequent outgoing calls, voipvoip looks attractive with no costs to get started. Just prepay $10 US and download the "softphone."

Mark