[Voltages and frequencies](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/70/World_Map_of_Mains_Voltages_and_Frequencies%2C_Detailed.svg/2754px-World_Map_of_Mains_Voltages_and_Frequencies%2C_Detailed.svg.png) are bad enough but [**plugs**](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e4/World_map_of_electrical_mains_power_plug_types_used.svg/2560px-World_map_of_electrical_mains_power_plug_types_used.svg.png) are on another level entirely.
Small appliances differ very little, if at all, and some brands can be found nearly everywhere – yet manufacturers (or users themselves) need to adjust them to local standards… that are there for what reason? Why can’t a universal standard be agreed upon?
There is a cost of adopting a standard, of course, but can’t adoption be gradual – e.g. replacement at EOL?
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Purely because back in the early 1900s each country picked their standard based on what made the most sense at the time. Which is usually what was available from the closest/largest supplier/manufacturer. Like Canada adopted the US plug because, well, the US already had a lot of them and the US significantly influences the Canadian market. Why waste their time picking their own standard when they could just take the work the USA already did.
But, this meant differences between countries and continents.
Now, 100 years later, we have to deal with it simply because it would be way to expensive for countries to redo their ENTIRE electrical systems to adopt a new standard. It’s way simpler to just keep the standards they have, because the only people it really bothers is travelers, who are a very small portion of people and can also buy just a cheap converter
Like tmahfan said, all the different styles developed before there was common global travel by a large proportion of people, so countries and regions developed their own “standards” and that worked fine because not many people left their country or continent very often.
>replacement at EOL?
**Replacement with what though?** Each country will say “sure great idea, as long as ours is the one everyone changes their stuff to at EOL.” That’s a big part of the problem. Consider what would happen if you suggested “why do languages differ so much, why can’t we have a global language. Adoption could be gradual, just teach all new babies the same language from birth.” Ok but do you see how the main problem there is picking which one? Are we all going to speak Mandarin? Italian? There’s no one language that every country would agree to transition to, so the idea goes nowhere. People have tried this too, just like people have tried making a global electrical standard.
**The other big part** is [this famous XKCD comic](https://xkcd.com/927/), which I bet about 10 people are going to post for you in the comments here. Basically you’re right: a global standard would be amazing, and people have tried to make one. Too many people!! Every time another one does, the need for a standard gets even greater, but now there’s even more competition for what that standard should be… Which inspired someone else to push for a new standard…It’s a vicious cycle / feedback loop.
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Because you can’t switch over a power grid when everything is made for a different voltage and /or frequency and it’s much cheaper and less of a hassle to have e adapters where necessary.
We couldn’t even get America to switch to metric or switch from bolts and fasteners being in “standard” sizes. You’d think that would be an easy one right?
and how do you think telling an entire state that on Auch and such day they have to throw out anything electronic or have adapters for everything because you’re going from 60hz to 50hz.
>can’t adoption be gradual – e.g. replacement at EOL?
No. This is a classic problem with standards. Say I’m in a 230V country that wants to switch to 115V. The power company can’t just switch voltage, or everybody’s stuff will suddenly stop working. Customers can’t just gradually replace their 230V stuff with 115, because it’ll blow up if they plug it in.
When everything has to be compatible with everything it connects to, you can’t do gradual replacement, you have to completely replace everything all at once. Which is hideously expensive, and when we’re talking about the electrical grid, messing it up means people die. Not just from electrocutions, but power outages are deadly.
There’s a name for this general problem that I can’t remember now, but it happens a lot. You can’t use a better nut because it won’t fit on the existing bolts, you can’t get a better bolt because it won’t take your existing nuts, the only choice is to replace all your nuts and bolts simultaneously, but that’s expensive and if you remove too many bolts at once the bridge might collapse, so you keep using the same shitty bolts.
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