In addition to being faster, another benefit of EMUs and high-speed rail is that they can charge digital devices. Generally, regular air-conditioned trains do not have this function. However, this situation will change starting from next year's Spring Festival travel rush. Beginning with the 2014 Spring Festival travel season, all power outlets on air-conditioned trains will be activated, allowing devices such as mobile phones, tablets, and laptops to be charged via these outlets.
The Zhengzhou Railway Bureau previously confirmed that starting October 1, 2013, air-conditioned trains traveling from Zhengzhou to Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou had completed inspections, repairs, and electrification tests for their outlets, and they were officially put into use. Work on other train routes is ongoing and will be available for use starting from the 2014 Spring Festival travel rush.
Regarding the number of outlets, staff members explained that in the soft sleeper carriages, each compartment has one power outlet, with three additional ones in the corridor. In the hard sleeper carriages, there are three power outlets in the corridor and one in the attendant's room. In the hard seat carriages, there is only one power outlet in the attendant's room, and none in the passenger seating area.
If passengers in the hard seat carriages need emergency charging, they can inform the train staff, and electronic devices can be charged in the attendant's room. Each power outlet has five holes, accommodating both two-prong and three-prong plugs.
Some users might think that we can now eat hotpot and sing songs in the soft sleeper carriages, but unfortunately, this is not possible. According to the Zhengzhou Railway Bureau, the use of air-conditioned passenger train outlets is limited to five types of appliances: laptops, mobile phones, tablets, electric shavers, and portable chargers carried by passengers and train attendants, and these products must be certified through the 3C certification process. No one, including train staff, is allowed to use appliances such as induction cookers, microwaves, electric pressure cookers, or hair dryers on these outlets.