Buying a laptop in hua Hin?

Post by **david83** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 1:03 am

Looked around in the threads but couldn't find anything about prices and quality on new laptops in Thailand, especially interested in Hua Hin and BKK.

Anyways, how are the prices compared to the U.S and Europe? I am looking for something in the area of 2Ghz, 256/512mb graphic card and 1+gig memory, going to be used for some graphics work and other demanding operations I hope.

Any tips on stores in HH or BBK would be appreciated, aswell as prices compared the rest of the world.

Post by **richard** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 1:41 am

Talk to budsika

Post by **Guess** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 4:23 am

Check out websites. HH is not the place to buy a laptop although Tesco may have some competitive deals on certain models.

I reckon that you would be better though picking one up in the US. You will not save money here but you almost certainly will if you go on down to Malaysia or Singapore.

There can be savings here on peripherals and with desktops and towers you can save quit a bit but only on no names.

THe cheapest solution for you is to buy a second hand machine (Compaq or Tosh, maybe Sony) in the US. You can then upgrade the memory and graphics card in Panthip Plaza in Bangkok.

You won't get anything much in HH and second hand, forget it. Every second hand machine I have ever had anything to do with in Thailand has been an overpriced rip off whereas the spec you are mentioning is almost end of life in US or Europe so you should get a second hand one year old with that spec. Also if you are prepared to accept AMD over Intel you can save some money.

Post by **migrant** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 10:41 am

What about the electrical differences?

Post by **buksida** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 10:55 am

As said above you wont get much joy looking for one in Hua Hin, BKK is best. You can probably save about 10 grand on something by buying in Singapore too.

Try this site for prices in Thailand:

http://www.tohome.com/catalog.aspx?catalog_id=339

Post by **PeteC** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 1:28 pm

migrant wrote:What about the electrical differences?

All laptops I know of come with a small transformer box attatched directly to the cord. You're good from 100 to 240 volts and ??? up to 50hz I believe. Laptops are made to work everywhere, at least all the ones I've had. Pete

Post by **migrant** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 7:56 pm

prcscct wrote:
migrant wrote:What about the electrical differences?
All laptops I know of come with a small transformer box attatched directly to the cord. You're good from 100 to 240 volts and ??? up to 50hz I believe. Laptops are made to work everywhere, at least all the ones I've had. Pete

Was always wondering, now I know I can safely buy here in the states!

Thanks!!!

Post by **Guess** » Tue Sep 26, 2006 10:19 pm

I'll second that. I have done it both way rounds but only with Toshibas and Compaqs. The elctronic sensory system will detect the voltage and will cope with anything from about 30HZ to 75MZ.

Post by **david83** » Wed Sep 27, 2006 2:42 am

Thank you all for the responses, the prices on the tohome.com were about the same as in the west so there wasn´t much point in buying one there.

However it seems like I can change my ticket and take a couple of days in Singapore before I come to Thailand

Anyone have any tips on good places to look in Singapore?

Post by **STEVE G** » Wed Sep 27, 2006 2:58 am

If you are in Singapore, try Funan Mall on North Bridge road, it used to be the place for computers, but there might be newer ones as I havenâ€™t been there for a couple of years.

Post by **billseymour** » Wed Sep 27, 2006 6:59 am

You haven't mentioned where you will be using the laptop.

If you will be using it at any length in Thailand, it might be useful to have the Thai keyboard character set, which would suggest buying in Thailand.

Post by **Rob W** » Wed Sep 27, 2006 1:38 pm

STEVE G wrote:If you are in Singapore, try Funan Mall on North Bridge road, it used to be the place for computers, but there might be newer ones as I havenâ€™t been there for a couple of years.

Yep Funan is still the place you can also try Sim Lim square but be prepared to be pestered. But out of interest I was looking there last week and did not think anything was particularly cheap, but again I was only browsing.
Rob

Post by **buksida** » Wed Sep 27, 2006 1:56 pm

A friend of mine purchased a high-end Acer laptop in Singapore only last week for around 70,000 baht. The identical machine was 10,000 baht more expensive in Thailand, will have to find out where exactly he got it.

Post by **Guess** » Wed Sep 27, 2006 3:41 pm

buksida wrote:A friend of mine purchased a high-end Acer laptop in Singapore only last week for around 70,000 baht. The identical machine was 10,000 baht more expensive in Thailand, will have to find out where exactly he got it.

That is about par for the course. The profit margin in laptops is very low with at most 20% being loaded from manufacturer to end user. This gives littlle to play with. I'm not sure what the VAT situation is in Sing at the moment. That is alaways a factor to consider especially in Europe ahen VAT rates of up to 25% can be encountered. As for Sing it is either zero or if not you will be able to claim a refund at Changi on your way out. The only problem you might encounter is when you return to the US. I think a laptop excedes the tax free threshhold so it would be worth making sure any sticker on it indictaing its retail origin is removed.

Do not worry about Thai characters in fact ensure that you have a US keyboard only on a laptop. You can get into some weird bugs when using Mandarin drivers and keyboards. If you want to use Thai get a separate keyboard her for a couple of hundred Baht.

One other thing if you are not buying a major brand check out the CMOS config to make sure that is in English and set to English.

The one Buksida mentioned (Acer) is the standard in Malaysia and good kit but have never used their lapttopt. It is definitely worth checking out a review site either in Sing or Malaysia where they certainly include Acer machines.

Post by **Rob W** » Thu Sep 28, 2006 1:57 pm

I did not look for specific models as they are changing all the time and was just looking in general. Prices of laptops have dropped dramatically in the UK with comet etc selling low end machines at 399 pounds and can get them as low as 330 on special offer all new low end name machines, I just bought a dell just to have as a stand by for the email at home (my kids play around with the main machines) and it was 325 + vat.
Iâ€™m back in Singapore next week and will look if anyone wants a price of a specific model.
Some Acer laptops have a problem with the power pin snapping out (one of mine did) and I had to import the part from the states as I could not get it locally, I was in Canada at the time .
Rob