Ask Lemmy

As several people have mentioned, it's for lights. The reason is, in Norway any electrical work needs to be done or certified by a licensed electrician. Since light fixtures are a fairly commonly replaced item, the current trend is for ceiling mount points to come with a nearby electrical plug so you can switch out a light fixture without shelling out for an electrician. These power outlets are connected to a switch elsewhere so you can flick the lights on and off like normal.

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Those are usually connected to a light switch for connecting ceiling lights. Especially in older houses from when it was common to have many dim lights instead of few bright ones.

Seeing as it's grounded, that one is new-ish... before the 80's, it would probably not have been grounded.

Also, close to a window tells me that its primary use nowadays is for christmas lights.

Source: am noggie

Lots of reasons. In residential settings, wall mounted clocks and lighting are the usual reason.

You see a lot of these in commercial buildings here, also. Often they're even in the ceiling, not even high on the wall. It provides guaranteed access to an outlet that's not blocked by furniture for use with cleaning and maintenance equipment. Vacuums, floor polishers, floor drying blowers, that sort of thing. Having the cord come from a high point also makes it easier to keep it running over top of furniture and obstructions when it will only be used temporarily rather than snaking around the legs of desks and chairs and so on. And it also discourages passers by from fucking with them if they haven't brought a short stepladder or a foot stool or something.

Is there a light switch that controls it? Maybe lighting options that can hang.

That sounds like some new modern slang. Hi outlets! Whattup my outlets?

they look like teletubbies

I wish my house had these for lights and all the other crap I have plugged in high up on a shelf.

In Japan, they're typically for aircon units, but I don't see anything indicating such would be mounted there nor does it look to be an exterior wall for the rest of the unit.

paging /u/purplecoco

I use mine for my lamps. Got four outlets like that in my living room.

Ideal to plug in some christmal lights and attach them to the window?

And judging by the shadow of your arm and phone, the lights are low.

I don't know what other people use it for, but that's where I plug my butt.