We don’t need AC in the home anymore.
I laughed and wrote out a list of things in my house using AC but I see you’re talking more theoretically. Most of the things using ac in my house are only ever plugged into one circuit, so we could leave those circuits alone. I don’t think USB C PD could handle a hairdryer though, and they aren’t always used on the same circuits (eg sometimes bathroom, sometimes bedroom)
It’s really tough to displace entrenched standards.
lud@lemm.ee 10 months ago
Since when is it an issue?
A lot of stuff accepts both and the plugs are different anyways so why does it matter?
Btw most of the world uses 50hz not just the EU. Image
barsoap@lemm.ee 10 months ago
It was once upon a time, in the age of olde, where switched-mode power supplies were not the norm and GaN semiconductors weren’t in the process of taking over the whole power IC market. Taking in any mains voltage/frequency and spitting out any reasonable DC voltage is no issue for those things, they simply don’t care.
It’s still going to be an issue in the future but pretty much only for resistive heaters (well, at least the voltage part) and motors with oomph.
Speaking of DC though: The EU is looking into applying HVDC not just in point-to-point connections but at a network level. Don’t expect that to hit your home connection in your lifetime, but if you’re an aluminium smelter it would make a lot of sense to have a direct connection to tons of DC.
ShadowRam@kbin.social 10 months ago
again, simpler and cheaper electronics for everything
lud@lemm.ee 10 months ago
Yeah, but they would be simpler but you would instead have to put powerful DC-DC converters in pretty much everything.
It sounds like a solution to a problem which isn’t a big deal. In theory it might be nice but it works fine as it is. We know very well how home AC grids work and charging that would be a mess.
ShadowRam@kbin.social 10 months ago
powerful DC-DC
No, are you not aware how these work?
A step down DC-DC is nothing compared to a transformer rectifier or PD electronics with communication with a USB-C.