The PowerCube is a multiple
electrical socket adaptor manufactured by the Allocacoc Corporation in Shanghai, China. Unlike a conventional
power strip
A power strip (also known as a multi-socket, power board and many other variations) is a block of electrical sockets that attaches to the end of a flexible cable (typically with a mains plug on the other end), allowing multiple electrical devices ...
, the device is arranged like a cube, which can solve the problem of multiple
AC adapter
An AC adapter or AC/DC adapter (also called a wall charger, power adapter, power brick, or wall wart) is a type of external power supply, often enclosed in a case similar to an AC plug. AC adapters deliver electric power to devices that la ...
s fighting for space.
History
The PowerCube was created by two graduates of industrial design engineering at the
Delft University of Technology
The Delft University of Technology (TU Delft; ) is the oldest and largest Dutch public university, public Institute of technology, technical university, located in Delft, Netherlands. It specializes in engineering, technology, computing, design, a ...
(TU Delft) in the Netherlands. They noticed that people had problems using conventional multi-socket adaptors and started a company,
Allocacoc in 2011, to produce an alternative.
Features
The PowerCube is a cubic shaped power socket equipped with multiple sockets. This allows differently shaped
AC adapter
An AC adapter or AC/DC adapter (also called a wall charger, power adapter, power brick, or wall wart) is a type of external power supply, often enclosed in a case similar to an AC plug. AC adapters deliver electric power to devices that la ...
s to be plugged in next to each other, which is not necessarily possible on a conventional powerboard due to shape and geometry.
[ A typical scenario may be a ]laptop
A laptop computer or notebook computer, also known as a laptop or notebook, is a small, portable personal computer (PC). Laptops typically have a Clamshell design, clamshell form factor (design), form factor with a flat-panel computer scree ...
, a tablet computer
A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package. Tablets, being computers ...
and multiple smartphone
A smartphone is a mobile phone with advanced computing capabilities. It typically has a touchscreen interface, allowing users to access a wide range of applications and services, such as web browsing, email, and social media, as well as multi ...
s charging simultaneously. The device is available in several different modules, including an optional extension cord and USB
Universal Serial Bus (USB) is an industry standard, developed by USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF), for digital data transmission and power delivery between many types of electronics. It specifies the architecture, in particular the physical ...
outlet, and catering for the target country's appropriate power supply.
Several magazines criticised the PowerCube for its lack of a suitable surge protection, noting that the device has been manufactured solely for convenience.
Awards
The PowerCube has won several awards:
* The PowerExtension was in the ''MKB'' Innovation top 100 at the fifth place in 2014.
* Red Dot Design Award
The Red Dot Design Award is an international, annual design competition for product and industrial design, brand and communication design as well as design concepts, in which the Red Dot quality label is awarded to winners. The Red Dot Design A ...
2014
External links
*
Ukraine shop
Danish shop
References
{{reflist
Electrical connectors
Chinese inventions