What I really loath is the situation with plugs and sockets for electrical outlets, with 15 different standards:
At least, all over Europe (of course: with exception of the UK and Switzerland) plugs look slightly different, but for newer appliances, they are compatible.
There has been an attempt to create a universal standard “Type N” (which looks almost identical to the Swiss, but it doesn’t fit), but so far it has only gained adoption in Brazil and South Africa. At least the non-grounded (2 pin) European variety fits into this one and in the Swiss (to get it into a UK socket, you need to push a screwdriver into the ground hole. Once, you squeezed the plug in, you can pull the screwdriver out).
You get the idea… In terms of electrical power, at least swapping power cords isn’t as much of a pain as all the places you mention at least get the same thing once connected, namely something close to 220V @ 50Hz… US (and Canadian) electric has IMHO a nicer more compact plug, but we get 110V @ 60Hz, which isn’t very easy to swap between. At least these days we are getting more and more electronic devices with power supplies that can handle both, but simpler things like light bulbs and electric motors are still a much bigger problem…
This was a classic case of standards proliferation due to proprietary patents… Early on the generators, etc. for the US standard got patented, and the patent holders were unwilling to license the tech to other countries… The 50Hz 220V system was basically an end run to avoid the US patents… It also reflected improvements in insulation tech, 220V was more than some of the early stuff could handle.
Some ways the 220V system is better, in that it allows use of lighter gauge wire which reduces the demand for copper, etc…
