Home > Consumer Reviews > APC Air/Auto TravelPower TeleAdapt DC to AC Power Inverter (75W DC/AC, 120V)

This is a auto/air power adapter that inverts DC power into a standard AC power receptacle.

I picked up this adapter after being unable to find a tip to use on my Compaq900 notebook for use with a universal adapter. This product is truly universal. But it doesn't seem to have enough power at 75watts and the special power save feature is annoying. It also means more stuff out of your laptop bag as you still need you regular power supply to plug into the adapter. But if it worked the whole flight it would be great. The problem is that it doesn't.

It works fine in a car. But I purchased it for the air. On a flight out to SFO (A321) to CLT, I plug in the unit. Then I plug my notebook power supply into that. All is great, the notebook shows AC power and I'm off battery watching a DVD. About 1.5 hours into the flight the unit shows a red light and now refuses to charge. I tried another outlet but no luck. Now my wife is in a seat ahead of me using a regular auto/air adapter with her Thinkpad and it is working fine. But mine will not deliver power. You see the unit has this "smart" feature that makes it refuse to draw power if the source supply drops below 11.5WDC. So it cuts off. It blinks and charges for like 10 mins about 2 hours latter. Luckily, between the first hour on power and the battery I am up and working the whole trip but I was very disappointed by how it would stop.

On the return flight, again on a USAir A321 it does the same thing. About 1.5 hours into the flight it stops working. And again my wife's cheaper unit is working fine. (BTW, I was 1st going out and Coach on the return and I noticed on the return that the entire plane had power ports, not just 1st. So don't let people tell you that the power ports are only in first.)

Now, I don't know whether or not to blame the plane, the unit, or my notebook for drawing too much power. But it is obvious that something isn't working right here.

I take this unit EVERYWHERE with me as my laptop is a power hog and trans-atlantic flights usually are much longer than my laptop battery will hold out. I have never had it kick out on me like the other reviewer had.....Overall it is a wonderful product...compact, easy to use, and versatile. It provides 75 watts of output power, so as long as your laptop draws no more than 75 watts (which the vast majority dont) you will be all set. Easily 5 out of 5.

Purchased item to power my laptop over 22 hours of air travel between Alaska and North Carolina and back. Unfortunately, none of the three different types of planes that I flew on had outlets on the seat arms so the unit stayed in my backpack. While camping over a weekend on that trip I did find the adapter handy for use with an air mattress that needed to be plugged in in order to inflate. I was however disappointed that it would not power a 4 cup coffee maker that I brought with me.
I have tested the adapter with my laptop and find that it works as designed. In airplanes that actually have power points in the arms of the seats, this product would be indispensable for laptop users on long trips.

I bought this many years ago. I have switched to a Hybrid car which came with a 110V outlet. However, I remember with my previous car, this adapter is very useful to connect my laptop, GPS and so on.

Included with the inverter is an airline adapter, which plugs directly into an airplane's (American Airline) seat power receptacle, and an automobile adapter, which plugs directly into your car's cigarette-lighter receptacle. I can go to any where with my notebook, this is a super best item, A++++++++