D.D.D. wrote:I have two of those that I got at EB when they were clearing them out. It was 10+ years ago and I think I was only working P/T at the time but I remember them being $5-ish.
Thing is though, after all this time, would they even be safe to use???
It all depends on whether its a surge suppressor or just a power strip. From looking at CGR review when he looks at the bottom I'm reasonably sure it says surge suppressor. A power strip is only a row of outlets, it provides no surge protection. If that is the case it shouldn't go bad over time, any more than other electronics. But it also doesn't provide any surge protection which means surges in your home can and will eventually destroy your more sensitive electronics.
Surge suppressors are better and they will absorb those power surges. They are rated in Joules, which is the amount of energy they can absorb, but its a cumulative effect. If your surge protector is rate 250 Joules and you have a 150 J and a 100 J surge, your suppressor no longer functions as a surge suppressor, only as a power strip. There is sometimes a light on the protector that indicates it is still protecting, sometimes not. Fact is small surges are rather typical in the home and surge suppressors will go bad over time as they absorb those surges. Likely these old Sega power strips, if they are surge suppressors, no longer offer surge protection. Yes they might be cool, but in my opinion its better to protect my retro game systems with surge suppressors.
On a related note, most people think surges only occur during lightning storms. The most common event causing a surge in the home in when a large appliance or hair dryer kicks on. These use a lot of power, and often there is a surge of power in attempt to restore a power balance after they suddenly start absorbing a lot of power. Also you should never daisy chain surge protectors, however; it is okay to daisy chain power strips into surge protectors and visa versa, as long as one does not overload the outlet which is 120V 15A in the U.S.
