Old HP test equipment power connectors...

[tony duell]

> 
> > But almost all shavers sold over here now run off internal rechargeable
> > batteries. Why I do not know. It's not as if the cable is a major
> > problem (unlike having a battery that is flat when you need it and which
> > has a limited life anyway). Amazingly the chargers that come with these
> > shavers have the 2 round pins to fit a shaver socket. Quite why you need
> > to be able to charge it in a bathroom is beyond me, but...
> 
>  That's because they fit virtually all ordinary mains sockets across
> continental Europe, that happen to be compatible to the common UK shaver
> socket for 2-pin unearthed (class II) appliances.  So manufacturers simply
> do not bother making a special version of shaver charger plugs just for
> the UK.  The same applies to toothbrushes.

We have an IMHO ridiculous law that every portable electrical appliance sold 
over here ('portable' means 'can be moved without the use of a tool') must have 
a BS1363 13A plug on the end of the mains lead (of course having an IEC320 inlet
connector and supplying a suitable cable with the unit meets this. Ridiculous becuase
it has led to some very dangerous moulded mains leads, and in my case it has just 
caused a lot of moulded plugs to go to landfill (on principle I cut them off and fit a 
properly made, properly wired, plug). 

But for some reason shavers (and electric toothbrushes?) seem to be exempt from this.
Note that the 'shaver adapter' does not have to be included with a shaver.

-tony