Customer Reviews

Power Bright VC500W Voltage Transformer 500 Watt Step Up/Down 110 Volt - 220 Volt

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

DOES NOT OVERHEAT, RUNS MY WIFE'S SINGER SWING MCH SHE BROUGHT FROM HONG KONG YEARS AGO..... SHE HAS MADE NUMEROUS SOFA CUSHIONS AND ALTERED SEVERAL PANTS ...
SEEMS FINE AFTER ABOUT 10 HOURS USING IT OVER TWO MONTHS...

Just remember, as with any "residential quality" transformer, buy 40-50% more output than your normal wattage load, and the transformer life expectancy will increase by double... (I'm retired electrician).

A step up transformer is a conceptually simple item and I've never owned another model so I can't make a comparison. However, I can say that I was very happy with the fact that the product came with extra fuses. The case is metal, not plastic. I like that the input voltage is set with a jumper.. no accidentally hitting a switch. As you can see from the picture, 220V output can handle most plug configurations.

I recently moved from Singapore (220v) to the US (110v) and wanted to keep using my stereo. I therefore bought this transformer. It is pretty heavy, but working fine as long as you watch limit your appliances do not exceed the max of 500 Watts. Please read manual before using it. There is a little plug at the back that you need to set whether you want 120-220 conversion or 220-110 conversion. For some appliances, like my Imac and Samsung TV there is no need to use a transformer because they run both on 100 and 220 volts. All you need then is a new power cord. Also for all 12v, 6v powered smaller devices and chargers you could also just buy a new power plug. These plugs cost you a few bucks and are cheaper than a convertor. However for my Pioneer stereo I needed a transformer and this product does the work perfectly. I could recommend this to anyone.

I have just used this unit once to convert from 110 to 220 in the US. It is super simple to use, just set the input voltage, plug the appliance into the correct outlet, turn on the transformer and it works. It came slightly dented even though the amazon box was not damaged.
Update 6 months later: still works well and easy to use

I got this transformer to run my American 400 watt rice cooker that is 110 volts here in France on 220 volts. It works perfectly, small and quiet. I recommend it as a down transformer.

I got one of these for a small, infra-red heater my wife got from her brother in China for therapeutic use. The heater has two "speeds", and this device works perfectly at the high setting. But at the low setting, it vibrates, and makes a noise. I'm not really sure if it's the fault of the transformer, exactly. I think the heater is reducing the power by pulsing the power on and off very quickly. I think the heater should have capacitor filtering to smooth out the pulses, and if it did it correctly, it probably would not vibrate.

Picked up this box to run some electronic equipment from the UK, here in the US.

The product claims to output 220V A/C from 110V A/C input. There is a manual fuse that has to be moved on the back (OK) to match the input voltage, but despite this, the transformer I received is only able to output 120V on both the 110V and 220V outputs on the front.

The 'documentation' is a single page of broken misspelt English which doesn't give you any hints as to what the problem might be. It includes gems such as:

"MAKE SURE THAT TRANSFORMER'S SWITCH IF 'OFF'"
"IF YOU ARE OPERATING THIS TRANSFORMER IN NORTH EURPOE"

It seems the only resolution to this problem that Amazon can offer is to replace it with another. It weighs 8lbs, I sure hope they cover the shipping on defective returns.

I used this to run a 260W subwoofer from 220V->110V (changed the pins accordingly in the back). It worked fine for one night; and then next morning, the subwoofer was dead (wouldn't work neither with this unit nor with others).

My verdict: piece of garbage.

I bought this for my monitor rquiring 220V power. It works good. No noise is heared. I really like it.

this thing works great, have no problems or issues with it... it has a slight whine, but once the appliance gets going it's not even audible. :D