Guest Ray Darr Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 The computer market is pretty good in both YVR and HKG, but I want the best out there. Anyone have recommendations on a good computer shop to put a system together? I haven't decided on one in YVR or getting one built on a visit to HKG. Has anyone got specific shops in both places to suggest getting this done? Many thanks. R.D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wrench Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 My 2 Cents: Never buy a computer where you can not get customer support. (Unless of course, you don't mind throwing your money away). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest HardRock Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 I lived in HK long enough to know to buy everything in North America. (except pirated software!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest M. McRae Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 www.dell.ca Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Financial Guy Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 I highly recommend Dell. The customer service is excellent. I needed a new keyboard once, as well as a new power unit on another occasion. Both arrived via Purolator withing two days - no charge, you just have to send the old ones back in the package the new one arrived in, pre-paid by Dell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest neo Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 You can save a _little_ bit of money by shopping at small stores, and you can save a little bit more by building it yourself. But you're talking, what? 10%? Maybe. Whichever vendor you choose, you will likely grow to count on your computer's reliability. The larger vendors tend to spend a substantial amount on R&D to make sure the separate components in the computer work compatibly. The $100 or so you save by going cheap will look insignificant if your computer gives you problems. I recommend shopping where you can count on a reliable product and good service after purchase. By the way, as an obsessive computer window-shopper I've noticed that one popular vendor, Dell, varies their advertised prices in unpredictable ways. And that this is the time of year when they often do it. You have to read the fine print, though. It's in the add ons, such as software, extra memory and the like where the value lies. I've had several Dell's and would get another one, if the deal was right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Innuendo Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 I have dealt with Dell for two systems and have been very satisfied especialy with the support via the phone when I had a disaster after a power brownout. The only down side could be that to some extent they can use proprietary parts which means that you may be locked into them if you want to upgrade. An example in my case was increasing RAM to 512mb. They used RD RAM in my system and this was a lot more pricey to buy. I'm not sure if their motherboards are specific to them if you ever want to change anything but that said I have been very pleased. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JakeYYZ Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 I consider myself to be of average intelligence and able to read and follow instructions. If you fit this description, then my advice is to build it yourself. It’s not at all difficult and should take approximately 2 hours. No specialized tools required. (MiniMag flashlight, cable ties, and a interchangeable head mini screwdriver) The most time consuming and difficult part is your component selection. I recommend doing some homework as to the manufacturer's product and customer service reputation, as well as what you want from each individual component. Speed, reliability, noise and heat are just a few of my selection criteria. Newsgroups are a great source. As well as: http://www17.tomshardware.com/ http://www.motherboards.org/ http://www.pcguide.com/topicnf.html http://www.pcpitstop.com/default.asp This year I built an entertainment ‘puter for my son. It serves as his stereo, (built-in equalizer), Altec Lansing speakers, TV, DVD player and work station. Couldn’t buy this ‘off the shelf’ and it has a life-time service warranty! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Innuendo Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 I have dealt with Dell for two systems and have been very satisfied especialy with the support via the phone when I had a disaster after a power brownout. The only down side could be that to some extent they can use proprietary parts which means that you may be locked into them if you want to upgrade. An example in my case was increasing RAM to 512mb. They used RD RAM in my system and this was a lot more pricey to buy. I'm not sure if their motherboards are specific to them if you ever want to change anything but that said I have been very pleased. While I have always enjoyed shopping in HKG I always remember a comment by one of the guys that was "If you think you might have been scr*wed, you have" Great place but Caveat Emptor in HKG. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest flyersclub Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 i've done it all, built one, have one built, ordered from dell and finally bought from a local yyc store, compusmart. well i am a forever customer of compusmart now. when something fails, as they always do, i.e. mice, wireless router etc., you go back, no need ever for a receipt as everything is on their computer, and they fix or replace instantly. i think they are wonderful ... now they know me so they do extra things for me ... upgrades in store free etc. i did buy their 3 year warranty with my latest laptop and that was useful when it failed and needed a complete new hard drive (i think that was a toshiba problem though and would likely have been covered). anyway, i love that my support is a few miles away. the desktop someone built for me cost a lot, has always caused problems and came with a 3 year warranty ... in 3 years i haven't been able to find who to call for warranty work!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest flyersclub Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 P.S. read an article in 2002, that yyz was the cheapest city on earth for computers ... that was based on a cheaper cdn $$ but if you have a layover there, maybe check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest neo Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 I have RDRAM in my 2 year-old Dell as well, and you're right it's more pricey than standard. Dell used it (up until about six months ago) because at the time it was the fastest RAM memory available. But motherboard bus speeds have increased and the performance advantage RDRAM used to have isn't cost effective any more. Dell now uses the same RAM memory everyone else is using. Best, neo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest James Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 What, no "Mac" guys out there. Great stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Super 80 Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 I can't speak for Hong Kong but one of my friends is frequently in Singapore and she finds computer parts are about 20% less expensive in Asia than they are in Calgary. But other than crap asian laptops, complete computers are really no less expensive than they are here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JakeYYZ Posted October 14, 2003 Share Posted October 14, 2003 My first computer, in ’89, was from Future Shop….not a good experience. Next, ’92, came from my future brother-in-law, an IT guy with the TTC. Taught me a lesson about doing business ‘in family’. Never do that again. Followed by and IBM in ’95. Very good. But, very expensive to upgrade, due to a proprietary motherboard. Built a DIY in ’97 and 6 since for family and friends. As Neo has said, you won’t save more than maybe 15% going the DIY Route. But you will get exactly what you want and remove the intimidation factor. The trick is, knowing exactly what you want. I’m still convinced that home-built is the way to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest leftbase Posted October 14, 2003 Share Posted October 14, 2003 Buy a Mac and you won't need customer support. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
handyman Posted October 14, 2003 Share Posted October 14, 2003 Computers are very similar in price between HKG and YVR. You will save the tax if you buy in HK but support is a little distant. I have found this to be true with most electronic items. I do buy ALL of my accessories in HKG as they can be 20-30% cheaper. Items like Compact Flash Cards, spare batteries, cases, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest neo Posted October 14, 2003 Share Posted October 14, 2003 Hell, you've convinced me. I'll buy a computer from ya! Just post your 24-hour tech support line number first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ray Darr Posted October 14, 2003 Share Posted October 14, 2003 I actually live much closer to HKG than YVR (relatively speaking....if you count the distance in thousand-mile markers!) so either place would be fine regarding distance to RMA parts (return for any support reason). Yes, the peripheral parts from HKG are the plan. It's the system construction I am trying to decide on YVR or HKG as to where to get it built. As for taxes, I can claim the stuff bought in Canuck-land back, thankfully. Any good builders in YVR that come well recommended? I want to have a great machine built, but finding the right place to get this done is quite a task! Thanks for all the responses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkavafian Posted October 14, 2003 Share Posted October 14, 2003 You will get much more advanced computers in HKG although the price may not be cheaper than in Canada. Advanced computers first appear in Tokyo and then quickly go to HKG and a few years later to North America. So while you may not get a cheaper machine, you will get an advanced version of a computer that may never come to Canada. Just make sure you get an English language operating system. Based on what I saw in Tokyo a month ago, computers have become a fashion product and if those models come to Canada in 3 years or so, I think many people will upgrade their current machines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mitch Cronin Posted October 14, 2003 Share Posted October 14, 2003 Ray, forgive me if I'm not addressing your situation, but I'd like to relate a story that may be relevant... Some years back, when most people were still running 386's, and some were running 486's, and a very few had the best 486's... Someone (who shall remain nemeless due to severe embarrasment at his stupidity) found himself in the position to buy a mega computer.... He spent six thousand dollars on this super-ultra-fantastic-mother-of-all-computers machine... a 100 megahertz Pentium. No one had a Pentium computer at the time! 16 meg of ram, a pair of 1.2 gig hard drives... tape back-up, yada, yada... All absolutely top of the line stuff at a very premium price... Needless to say, the same machine could be had for about 2 thousand dollars somewhere close to 6 months later... The machine now sits beside me as my permanent reminder to stupidity. I don't think it's ever worth buying the greatest computer available. Buy something just a bit worse and you get much more value for your money. Cheers, Mitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shibui Posted October 14, 2003 Share Posted October 14, 2003 Have Phil Statham build one for you. Lots of satisfied customers and he's even closer to you than HKG (relatively speaking...), box number 337 at the TBF. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ray Darr Posted October 15, 2003 Share Posted October 15, 2003 Thanks, gang. It looks like I'm going to buy the components in Hong Kong, saving a whack of cash by pounding prices down using the "one-store-versus-the-other" method at a few stores I was recommended to check out. The tax wasn't the issue (not living at home anymore) and the warranty in Hong Kong at the places I have checked out is fine, plus it is closer to where we call home nowadays than buying it in Vancouver. Hope all them pesky cables hook up "as promised" when I start putting parts together! ...oh the joys of doing it yourself! Cheers, Ray Darr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest shibui Posted October 15, 2003 Share Posted October 15, 2003 Phil....Statham..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gator Posted October 19, 2003 Share Posted October 19, 2003 test Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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