The IoTaWatt Stuff commerce site was introduced a couple of months ago here in North America. While the basic unit is the same unit sold in Europe, the US model has US and Canada product safety certification (ETL) and is available with a selection of echun CTs that are better matched to the unique requirements of North American electrical usage. North American customers seem satisfied with the quality of the product and economical fast delivery (typically < $10 and 2 days).
However, looking at the analytics from the site, there seems to be worldwide interest. About half of the visits are international, and there have been a lot of abandoned shopping carts, presumably because shipping is not provided outside North America.
I’ve been looking at postal rates, and while relatively slow, a typicalk unit with CTs can be shipped virtually anywhere for about $33 US (<= 3 lbs). The other problem with servicing these international interests is sourcing and stocking the array of power supplies and AC adapters to accommodate the higher voltages and local plug variations. Here’s what I intend to offer:
The CUI USB adapter that I use here in the US, with a US two blade plug, is universal voltage. It operates from 90~264 Volts, 50-60HZ. It is identical to all of the other CUI offerings with similar form factor and various international plugs. All you need is a universal plug adapter to mate it to any local power system.
The AC adapter is a little trickier. While I think a single 230V AC adapter could work in both the US and internationally, there are other efficiency requirements in force in the USA that require a different adapter. That said, the 230-240V world can all use the same transformer, provided they once again adapt the plug to their power system.
Another thing I have heard from users in the 230V world is that unlike North America where virtually all wall plugs are duplex, many times there is only one receptacle available where two are needed for both the USB supply and the AC reference. This is a common complaint about the way IoTaWatt (and some others) work.
So my approach will be to provide the US plugged USB adapter and a Euro plugged 230V AC adapter to all international customers. What will be needed locally is a universal outlet power strip with at least two receptacles and having a plug that matches the local standard. These are readily available commodities throughout the world.
With this simplification, it might also be possible to offer a base kit through an outlet like Amazon, where shipping costs and delays can be minimized via bulk provisioning of their fulfillment stock.
That’s where I’m headed. So if you’re one of the international folks kicking the tires on the stuff site, it will be a month or so before I get the AC adapters, but hold tight, relief is on the way.