I've been using DC>AC inverters for about 15 years, for a wide variety of applications. They've come down quite a bit in price: I have one which originally cost over $20,000! Being able to purchase a creditable unit for less than $20. today, although they don't put out much wattage is amazing to me.
For my money, and from my experience, they're one of the most useful electronic inventions ever. And, as Bobgir suggested, they're multifunctional. Many have more than one receptacle built in. One of the things to look for when you buy is to find a unit with a "modified sine wave" output, and which seems to have few restrictions on its recommended uses, given its wattage output. Most also will put out up to two to three times their rated wattage for short periods of time. Good units can dish out twice their rated wattage for maybe five to fifteen minutes, and three times their rated wattage for perhaps a few seconds, without tripping their circuit breakers. Good units also will shut themselves off when the battery they're drawing power from falls below a pre-determined voltage. Some of these products allow you to custom-set the minimum voltage left in the battery before the unit shuts down to protect the battery. This dramatically reduces the chance that you'll leave your battery with too little juice to re-start your vehicle if you've been using your inverter with the engine off. Incidentally, an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) can often be used as a combination battery and inverter (that's what it is, after all!) for a limited period of time, and can even be used for such functions as running power tools in the wild, should you ever need to do that, or if you have other portable needs for AC 120 volt (or even 240 volt AC with units with that voltage option) when there's no easy access to ordinary AC current, the type we have in our homes. >> >> Seems an economical way to keep your iBook, iPod, and other devices >> powered on long road trips. > >>> For the same price, its much safer to get an auto adapter for your laptop. >>> >>> Andrew > > Andrew - > > Thing is, with an inverter I could take along the iPod and charge it and > one or the other of the iBooks and charge it too, and any other items I have > that require batteries and have a charger. > > If, however, you are telling me that theses things are unsafe, then I > certainly wouldn't purchase one. > > Could you elucidate a bit, please? > > TIA, > bob > > > > -- > G-Books is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... > > Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | > -- Check our web site for refurbished PowerBooks | & CDRWs on Sale! | > > Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> > > G-Books list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-books.html> > --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; > Send list messages to: <mailto:G-Books@mail.maclaunch.com> > To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/g-books%40mail.maclaunch.com/> > > > > --------------------------------------------------------------- > iPod Accessories for Less > at 1-800-iPOD.COM > Fast Delivery, Low Price, Good Deal > www.1800ipod.com > --------------------------------------------------------------- > -- G-Books is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | -- Check our web site for refurbished PowerBooks | & CDRWs on Sale! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> G-Books list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-books.html> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; Send list messages to: <mailto:G-Books@mail.maclaunch.com> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/g-books%40mail.maclaunch.com/> --------------------------------------------------------------- iPod Accessories for Less at 1-800-iPOD.COM Fast Delivery, Low Price, Good Deal www.1800ipod.com ---------------------------------------------------------------
