Plug that folds flat: Sleek new design for the laptop generation

Over the decades, many of the appliances it powers have become slimmed-down, compact or flat.

But the British three-pin plug has remained exactly the same size – very bulky.

Until now, that is, as an enterprising design student has come up with a folding plug that tucks away snugly to a quarter of the size of a standard one.

Its three pins can be folded flat and the sides turned-in.

It is intended to be used with laptops, mobile phones and digital cameras, where the normal size would be too bulky and the pins could scratch the device.

The plug is just 1cm thick compared with the standard 4.5cm size.

Designer Min Kyu Choi, from Bayswater, West London, came up with the idea after a plug damaged his laptop.

He said: ‘I bought a new laptop that was advertised as being thin enough to carry in an envelope but it came with a bulky three-pin plug.

‘I carried the laptop with me to university but when I took it out I was disappointed to find the plug had scratched the computer.

‘I thought it would be a good idea to create a plug that could be folded flat so the pins would not cause any damage and also to make it as thin as the laptop itself.’

Min, 29, said it took a year to perfect his idea. He added: ‘I hope that one day it will come as standard on all portable electronic devices so that others do not have to experience the same problem as me.’

He has also created an adaptor that allows three of the plugs to fit into one standard socket

Min is looking for investment to put the plug into mass production and has entered the design into the James Dyson Award in the hope of winning £10,000.

The British three-pin plug dates from 1947. Its design was chosen by a committee headed by Lord Reith, the minister of works and planning.

The standard plug and its socket replaced a variety of different designs, and included the safety feature of shutters in the wall socket to stop children poking their fingers in.

The three-pin plugs are in use in many parts of the world where there has been a strong British influence, such as Cyprus, Malta, Malaysia and Singapore.


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