This is my PlayStation 3. It is an American PS3. I brought it to China. Notice, it is plugged into the wall with only an adapter. The transformer I brought for the sole purpose of protecting my PS3 sits to the side.

I did a lot of research on this – I looked at ask.com, Yahoo answers, PS3 forums, Sony forums. I read many contradictory arguments. There are those fantastically helpful people who say things like “Any idiot knows this will work,” followed by someone whose PS3 exploded when he looked at it funny. There are tech experts who put up fuse specs on motherboards and took apart their machines to illustrate how safe something is, only to be tangled in jargon with other techies.

Finally, I found the PS3 wiki, where the developers said not to use a transformer or a convertor. Just use the adapter cable, and it should be fine because the PS3 is, in fact, dual voltage.

So I did. I had just lost a laptop. If I lost my PS3 it would have been game over, China (pun?)

Notice, “Auntie Mame” is on the screen. This is one of my favorite movies of all time. Words cannot express my fear at turning on my USA PS3 in China, nor my joy at finding out it works.

Thus far I have logged in some serious hours at Mass Effects 2 and 3, Assassin’s Creed Black Flag, Batman: Arkham Asylum, and several Jane Austen movies. The PS3 is dual voltage, even though on the case it gives only the American voltage requirements. It works in China – I’m lucky enough that the IBIS hotel has HDTVs, so my HDMI cable connects just fine as well.

Now what am I supposed to do with the seven pound transformer I lugged all the way here?…