Markit
Where's the best place (cheapest) to buy top of the line computer kit in Asia other than Hong Kong?
spicyayam
Singapore maybe? I think most of the major manufacturers have offices and service centers there, so maybe that is the cheapest place. I guess also which country has the cheapest sales tax and maybe if you can get it duty free if you are just traveling there.
Markit
Thanks Spicy I hadn't thought of the duty free angle. What's the secret of getting stuff duty free in Singapore - anyone have experience?
Normy
In Singapore I go to Sim Lim Square. Many levels of all varieties of electronic gear. You must be prepared to haggle hard for best price. Not sure about duty free. I was charged VAT. Got the refund at an office in airport.
Mark
Thanks Spicy I hadn't thought of the duty free angle. What's the secret of getting stuff duty free in Singapore - anyone have experience?[/QUOTE]You need to pay the 7% GST (goods and services tax) at the time of purchase, but if your merchant (who must participate in the GST refund program - many do not) fills out and chops a refund form, which you present to customs with the kit on your way out of Singapore, you can claim back the GST. The steps can be located at [url]http://www.customs.gov.sg/individuals/going-through-customs/departure/tourist-refund-scheme[/url]As for Normy's suggestion of Sim Lim Square, I would recommend steering clear of that place unless you know exactly what you want and more or less what it should cost. The place has a reputation as somewhat of a thieves' den of unscrupulous traders and con artists. There are no doubt some honest merchants there, but telling the good guys from the bad ones is very difficult and for a first time visitor nearly impossible.
Markit
Thanks for you kind advice and suggestions. I do know exactly what I want and just about exactly what it should cost so will polish up my bargaining shoe and head to SNG, maybe.
Fred2
I used to steer clear of Sim Lim square(International warranty con, Item cost $900, warranty $1500 no refund). Funan Digitalife Mall(Funan IT Mall) has now closed for refurb, Challenger used to be on the top floor, they are on line and do have other stores.Singapore used to be cheap for everything but now only the flights too singapore are cheap. I miss going to Chee Fatt & co, best Man tool store.My last laptop was a really good buy at Low Yat Plaza in Kuala Lumpur, lots of people take the bus from Singapore to buy computer stuff there as its cheaper then Singapore.I now buy from Hi Tech mall in Surabaya(10x bigger then Remo) Take a cheap flight to KL.
Markit
I now buy from Hi Tech mall in Surabaya(10x bigger then Remo) Take a cheap flight to KL.[/QUOTE]Sounds great! Thanks a lot. Is the Surabaya mall worth the effort because it's the same if I fly to KL or Surb for me?
Fred2
I like the sound of a holiday in KL(Federal Hotel)but depends on how much you want to buy? you can always send it from Surabaya.
ronb
I am also not so keen on Sim Lim. I think I am getting a good deal but when I go home and Google I find that they have out-witted me. So, they are good at what they do. I have been using bhinneka.com for computers. Their prices are pretty good - maybe not the absolute lowest, but close enough. Their advantage is a wider range of offerings compared to RTC in Denspasar.
JohnnyCool
Where's the best place (cheapest) to buy top of the line computer kit in Asia other than Hong Kong? [/QUOTE]1. A "top of the line computer". Like what? A top computer now, or last month, will probably be superceded very soon. It's almost impossible to keep up.2. If you [B]think[/B] you know exactly what you want, the shops you go to might not have it in stock ("old stock syndrome").3. If you buy something overseas and something goes wrong with it, where will you go for repairs ("under warranty")? So-called warranties for products bought in Indonesia are often much shorter than their international equivalents. Brand X overseas says three years - the same thing here might be one year. Nevertheless, IMHO, it still [I]might[/I] be cheaper to repair locally at an authorised service centre than dealing with some shop in Singapore, KL, etc.I do know exactly what I want and just about exactly what it should cost so will polish up my bargaining shoe and head to SNG, maybe.[/QUOTE]That's a good start. What is it? What it [B]should[/B] cost and the price you actually pay might be different. All power to you bargaining with Chinese, Malay, Indian sellers, etc, in Singapore.You [I]could[/I] throw some caution to the wind and try and find it on e-Bay, or some other online outlet, cross your fingers and hope for the best.[B]Bhinneka[/B] in Jakarta is pretty good. I've bought several things from them without any problems. The downside is that they don't always have the latest and greatest item you're looking for when you want it. But lots of choices that [I]could[/I] meet your needs.
Markit
Spent the last days pricing all the possibilities listed here in Singapore, KL, Jakarta and tired, expensive, old England and surprise, surprise England (Amazon UK) is the cheapest. I was very surprised considering that KL and Singapore are supposed to be effectively duty free. Luckily all the places have their price lists online. Anyone interested in what my idea of a topline pc looks like and the price: [URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B010T6DQTQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A130BMNU3EP0Y"][COLOR=windowtext]Intel Core i7 6700K Processor (4 GHz, 4 Core, 8 Threads, 8 MB cache, LGA1151 Socket Box) [/COLOR][/URL]by Intel 273.98 [URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00F0SQL6O/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE"][COLOR=windowtext]Asus BC-12D2HT Blu-ray Combo Drive [/COLOR][/URL]by ASUS 47.99 [URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01127D0MY/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE"][COLOR=windowtext]EVGA 600 W 80+ PC Power Supply Unit - White [/COLOR][/URL]by EVGA 39.88 [URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00LA70SKO/ref=ox_sc_act_title_4?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2LNOP4UQZJ1"][COLOR=windowtext]Corsair CC-9011061-WW 380T Graphite Series Windowed Mini ITX Portable Gaming Case with LED Fans for PC - White [/COLOR][/URL]by Corsair 80.04 [URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00Z6VMWFO/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE"][COLOR=windowtext]EVGA NVIDIA GTX 980Ti HYBRID PCI-E Graphics Card (7010 MHz, GDDR5, 384 Bit) [/COLOR][/URL]by EVGA 569.99 [URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B008FXHKVQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_6?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A16X3FHDD1CBXR"][COLOR=windowtext]Seagate Barracuda 3.5 inch 2TB 7200 RPM 64MB 6GB/S Internal SATA Drive [/COLOR][/URL]by Seagate 58.90 [URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00P73B1E4/ref=ox_sc_act_title_7?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A2JHYK3J66KH8S"][COLOR=windowtext]Samsung 850 EVO 500 GB 2.5 inch Solid State Drive [/COLOR][/URL]by Samsung 106.93 [URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00S51XHUQ/ref=ox_sc_act_title_8?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE"][COLOR=windowtext]Corsair CMK16GX4M2A2400C14R Vengeance LPX 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 2400Mhz CL14 XMP 2.0 High Performance Desktop Memory Kit - Black [/COLOR][/URL]by Corsair 54.99 [FONT=&][URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B015FY4HLS/ref=ox_sc_act_title_9?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE"][COLOR=windowtext]Asus Z170I Pro Gaming Motherboard (Socket 1151, Intel Z170, DDR4, S-ATA 600, Mini ITX, SupremeFX, Sonic Radar ll) [/COLOR][/URL]by ASUS [/FONT] [FONT=&]127.38 [/FONT] [FONT=&][URL="https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00N93KIES/ref=ox_sc_act_title_10?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A3P5ROKL5A1OLE"][COLOR=windowtext]Cooler Master RL-S12V-24PK-R2 Seidon 120 Ver.2 "System Builder, Closed Loop Liquid Cooler, 1 Silencio Fan, 120mm Radiator" Black [/COLOR][/URL]by Cooler Master [/FONT] [FONT=&]38.50 [/FONT]
Nydave
Im no expert on computers or the like,but a couple of years ago I had a Samsung laptop which developed a serious flashing of the screen,i researched it online and discovered that it was a common problem on the model I had,it was a cable that was being pinched somewhere,in fact if I put pressure on the bottom of the screen about the middle it would stop,i took it to a Samsung repair place in Bali,they wouldn`t even entertain me,ooh that's an American version,wouldnt even attempt a fix and the laptop came with an international warranty,however I was willing to pay,i took it back home and it cost $55 to have it repaired at a regular computer repair shop not a Samsung repair center and the guy did it while I waited,so much for the international warranty,,i find that people here look for any excuse not to do things,So be careful buying a computer from another country,you may not get the most modern version here but at least you should be able to get it fixed should anything go wrong,,Probably a good idea to question how they handle repairs before buying ,I woud also imagine that if customs see Amazon Uk on the packaging they will nail you for import duties,
JohnnyCool
Looking "nice". About US$2,030 so far, (not including a monitor, keyboard, mouse, modem, operating system or shipping/insurance/Indonesian duties). I presume that you'll be assembling it yourself?My thoughts:This is quite a large overseas purchase and I don't know how Indonesian customs will regard all those bits 'n pieces. (A potential bottle-neck and possibly additional "charges".)I looked up [I}some[/I] of the items (or similar ones) that are already available here from Bhinneka. Some examples:Intel i7 6700K (Amazon 273 - Bhinneka 253)Samsung 850 EVO 500GB (Amazon 106 - Bhinneka 106)NVIDIA GTX 980Ti (Amazon 570 - Bhinneka around 600, doesn't have EVGA brand but many others)Corsair Vengeance DDR4 2x8 GB (Amazon 55 - Bhinneka 60)ASUS BlueRay Combo (Amazon 48 - Bhinneka 60) Can only read BRs but can write DVD/CD)ASUS BlueRay Writer (can also write DVD/CD) (Bhinneka 81)Sorry, I don't have time to check things like power supplies, motherboards, PC cases, hard drives, cooling systems, etc, but there are many brands available at all price ranges.If there is [B]really[/B] something you can't get/need here, I would buy that from overseas rather than the whole lot in one go. A lot less hassle, including the issue of what do you do when some component breaks or needs repair/replacing.All those items I looked at above from Bhinneka are delivered to Bali for free.See what I'm getting at? It's your money and the choices are all yours. Good luck and happy computing.[I]Did you know that John Cleese's family name was actually [B]Cheese[/B]? His dad changed it to Cleese to avoid being harassed in the military.[/I]:applause:
Markit
Johnny thanks for your cross-checking. That's the same result I came up with that the only thing cheaper here was the CPU - funny that, I would have thought .. well, who knows what taxes they put on that stuff here. Speaking of taxes I'm only seriously considering the UK buy if I can get the 20% VAT knocked off for exporting the thing (built together from the pieces first). Gamers take their comps all over the world with them - shouldn't be so unusual for the Customs peeps?As for guarantees - in my (admittedly, largely anecdotal) experience of hardware manufacturers you will only get a tired laugh back (no money) unless the component was DOA. There are thousands of "outs" for them after it's been installed in something so once you build it, you've bought it.
JohnnyCool
So - you're not "building" = assembling it yourself after the parts arrive.[I]Possibly[/I] a plus.Apart from [I]maybe[/I] getting 20% VAT knocked off for export, I still think you'd be better off in the long run buying your rig here, especially when it comes to crunch time and something breaks.As for guarantees - in my (admittedly, largely anecdotal) experience of hardware manufacturers you will only get a tired laugh back (no money) unless the component was DOA.[/QUOTE]That's not always the case (in my real experiences). For example - when I used to use VisiPro SDRAM chips with a "lifetime warranty", they were replaced. No questions asked.When one of my Corsair Vengeance RAM chips spat the dummy (admittedly a DDR3 version), I had to have two of them replaced because they come in interlocked pairs. Can't get just one and hope for the best. Uh-oh - no stock in Indonesia. Had to wait for them to come from Singapore(?), but they did (maybe a week or two - I forget).On the other hand, I have a small Samsung audio system (two speakers and player - plays DVDs, cassette tapes, and a USB port). It broke and I took it to the Samsung Service Centre. Told me it couldn't be fixed. Yeah - right. I took it back and the same day went to a little electronics repair shop I know near Kuta. They fixed it - the repair cost maybe ten bucks. It's still working great (for what it is).I slipped over a while ago on some wet tiles with my ASUS tablet in my back pocket. It was stuffed. Took it to the ASUS Service Centre and they told me it would cost two million rupiah to replace the screen. Well, I'd only paid about that for the whole thing in Darwin, so told them I'd think about it. Couldn't find a new one in Indonesia so ended up buying it from e-Bay. Some place in Texas - it did the rounds from Texas, various US states including Alaska, eventually turned up in Jakarta and finally landed in Bali where it was "held up" for unknown reasons for several days. After that, it was finally delivered. The tablet, international shipping, etc, cost less than just replacing the screen here. (The original broken screen was one thing, but I suspected other parts might have been damaged as well.)This following quote has nothing to do with anything much, apart from how stupid some Australian politicians can be. It's from a former Premier of Queensland ("Joh" the peanut king). In one way, maybe things haven't changed all that much:You can't sit on a fence, a barbed wire fence at that, and have one ear to the ground.[/QUOTE]How's that for a mixed mangled metaphor?:icon_eek:
Markit
Good points, thinks me... I just had a think if I knew of any computer system of mine that had died in the last 30 years and I really can't think of a one, not one. I had my first one in 1987!I'm not Bigging myself up as most of these were bought systems or works comps. My point was simply that they are the most dependable machines that I have ever seen - they get used often for large portions of the day/every day and still chug through without a complaint in my experience.
JohnnyCool
Astonishing. Not [B]one[/B] of your computers broke in 30 years?If I had a hat, I'd take it off to you.Don't forget that as computers evolve and become ever more complex, there are more things that can go wrong, and do for "normal" consumers.I started with computers back in 1968 on an IBM mainframe behemoth at Melbourne University. Windows wasn't invented yet. No GUI. Not even a mouse.No hard drive. No internet. It cost the university lots just to time-share it with IBM. You certainly couldn't put it in your pocket like these days. My worst smartphone's got more capability than that.I'm thinking of searching for a second-hand Cray supercomputer. [B]If[/B] I found one, my Balinese electricity supply wouldn't be able to handle it.[I]If mushrooms grew under your nose, you wouldn't have to go into the forest to pick them.[/I]
davita
I know very little about the workings of a computer but was one of the early flight instructors on an RAF VC10 Flight Simulator...between about 1968-71.It was powered by a Ferranti 350 computer...."[I]A variant of the 300 was the Argus 350, which allowed external access to its core to allow direct memory access. This improved performance of input/output, avoiding having to move data via code running on the processor. The 350 was used in various military simulators, including the Royal Air Force for the Vickers VC10 flight simulator built at Redifon and delivered to RAF Brize Norton in 1967. The model used on the VC10 Simulator was a 3520B, this meant that it had (20)kWords of memory and a (B)acking Store.[/I]" I don't understand a word of the above description...I'll leave that to you boffins, but the computer, compared to the Belfast Aircraft analogue Flight Simulator next room was tiny, noiseless (no clickety-clack of relays) and no heat.Am I correct to think that this comp I'm writing on has as much computation capability than the Argus 350 had? J..C says that a smartphone is more of a computer than the original IBMs.
Markit
I really thought hard about it and came up with 2 fans went out and 1 hard disk but I don't consider that "broken" just needed slight repair and then it took off again where it stopped at. Luckily I came to computing much later when the first Macintosh and IBM/PC came out and they were massively dependable.
