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To bring or not to bring?
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Joannda



Joined: 07 Jun 2004
Posts: 43
Location: Japan!

PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 12:58 am    Post subject: To bring or not to bring? Reply with quote

I interviewed with AEON last week, and will hear back from them this coming week. Basically, though, I was told that if my references check out, I will most likely be offered a position with them Smile Yay!!
So, now it's time to get down to the nitty gritty of going to Japan. I have been there before, but that was on exchange, and I stayed with a host family, so didn't need to worry about the kinds of things I am wondering about now.

First question is whether it would be worthwhile bringing a laptop computer? I will definitely be emailing a lot, basically to keep in touch with family and friends back in New Zealand. I don't have a laptop yet, but am contemplating buying one if it is worth it? Did anyone bring one or did they buy one in Japan? How much is the average (basic) laptop in Japan these days? Or do most of you just use your cells? What sort of costs are involved in terms of hooking up to an internet provider? How easy is it to find an internet cafe in the Osaka area (hope to be going there), and what are the average charges at these? Is it preferable to go to an internet cafe or have your own internet at home? any hints or tips would be very welcome! AEON doesn't allow its teachers to use computers at work from what my recruiter told me. Does anyone use computers to prep for classes? Or do you all just write things out by hand? (tools for use in class etc)

Second; I've read a few posts on international calling, and it seems Brastel calling cards is the way to go according to most? It is 15-20 yen per minute to NZ, which seems fairly reasonable, but does anyone have any other suggestions? How much does it cost to buy the card? I know most of you are probably from either the States, Canada or UK, but if anyone has any insights into NZ that would be a huge help Smile I'll be making calls to NZ regularly (probably a couple of times a month), so the cheapest (but still with a good connection) would be best Smile I've heard various things about getting a land line in Japan, basically that it is expensive? Which company do people suggest going with? How much is the monthly charge (not incl. calls)? Or are there better ways to go about it? (eg. cable or internet?) and if so, how do I go about setting it up and what costs are involved?

I know there are a whole lot of questions here but any help would be really useful Smile I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to these things... Thanks guys!
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easyasabc



Joined: 13 Jul 2003
Posts: 179
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 3:06 am    Post subject: Re: To bring or not to bring? Reply with quote

Joannda wrote:
First question is whether it would be worthwhile bringing a laptop computer? ...........How much is the average (basic) laptop in Japan these days?
I'm not sure what prices in NZ are like but for me comparing to Australia the prices here seem cheaper and there are probably newer models available here. Toshiba hhave an online shop for foreigners here which should gove you an idea of prices. It's at: http://www3.toshiba.co.jp/tdirect/eng/

Quote:
What sort of costs are involved in terms of hooking up to an internet provider? Is it preferable to go to an internet cafe or have your own internet at home? any hints or tips would be very welcome!
Depends where you are and what kind of service you have. Close to Osaka I'm sure you would be able to get cable service and I think the prices are very reasonable. I have cable which is great and it only costs about 3800 a month. It started out more expensive but charges have dropped recently so I figure things must be getting more competitive.

Quote:
Does anyone use computers to prep for classes? Or do you all just write things out by hand? (tools for use in class etc)
I do everything by computer.

Quote:
I've heard various things about getting a land line in Japan, basically that it is expensive?
If buy a line it is expensive. Mine cost 70,000 yen a few years ago (but I wasn't too worried because my company paid me a moving allowance which covered those kinds of expenses) but you don't have to buy the line. I had a friend who worked for Aeon and she just had a rented line of some kind that cost about 1500 to rent. I'm sure Aeon could tell you about that once you know your're coming.

Quote:
Or are there better ways to go about it? (eg. cable or internet?) and if so, how do I go about setting it up and what costs are involved?
I use a company called Global Call, They have a cheap call-back sytem and an even cheaper internet based system where you call from your computer using a headset. Unfortunately I can't use the internet system anymore because the headset connection port on my computer got damaged Sad but if you have a fast internet connection the quality is fine and it's really cheap. It used to cost me about US 4cents a minute to call Australia so I think that's about 5 yen a minute. Global Call are at:
http://www.gcall.com

Good luck with the move.
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lajzar



Joined: 09 Feb 2003
Posts: 647
Location: Saitama-ken, Japan

PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 3:36 am    Post subject: Re: To bring or not to bring? Reply with quote

Joannda wrote:
First question is whether it would be worthwhile bringing a laptop computer? I will definitely be emailing a lot, basically to keep in touch with family and friends back in New Zealand. I don't have a laptop yet, but am contemplating buying one if it is worth it? Did anyone bring one or did they buy one in Japan? How much is the average (basic) laptop in Japan these days?


A good laptop will set you back about 180,000 yen, and the bottom end is around 100k for new laptops. Unless this is significantly more than your local prices, consider carefully whether you can use that 3 kg or so more effectively in your airline luggae allowance.

Quote:
Or do most of you just use your cells? What sort of costs are involved in terms of hooking up to an internet provider? How easy is it to find an internet cafe in the Osaka area (hope to be going there), and what are the average charges at these? Is it preferable to go to an internet cafe or have your own internet at home?


You can use a keitai for email, but it is too fiddly for anything but teh shortest messages. Internet costs about 5000 yen a month (inclusive), generally with the first 3 months free as a sign-up incentive. Once you get over the language barrier, it is trivially easy to set up.

Internet cafes are all over the place, and typically quite expensive.

Quote:
I've heard various things about getting a land line in Japan, basically that it is expensive? Which company do people suggest going with? How much is the monthly charge (not incl. calls)? Or are there better ways to go about it? (eg. cable or internet?) and if so, how do I go about setting it up and what costs are involved?


Any deal which gets you internet at home will almost certainly include a land line. A keitai is good for being a mobile phone, but everything else on it is just bells and whistles.
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 3:53 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I brought my laptop with me and highly recommend it. Internet cafes cost money, plus transportation just to get to them, and you have to deal with their hours and levels of operation.

General Internet hookup will run 10,000-15,000 yen, and ADSL service will run (on average) 3500-5000 yen/month.

I bought a laptop in Japan (just to show that I'd been here so long, my original US laptop was becoming too old). I agree with lajzar about the prices here, and will add that you can't always expect to get an English user manual here (or online), plus warrantees here are not good outside the country, plus you will have to pay more for an English OS. Macs offer a better deal concerning the language issue, so I hear.

I sometimes use my home computer to prepare for my high school classes. Usually, I just stay at work and do it. Eikaiwas are a different story. Never used a computer for a lesson there. I'd have preferred to, but there was no time to prepare stuff.
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Gordon



Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 5309
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 6:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I also recommend bringing a laptop with you. You don't get the kind of selection here with English keyboards and English software. I bought a laptop here through Toshiba (link above from easyasabc). It was expensive but my school paid for it Very Happy .

Yahoo BB is good for internet connection, about 4,000/month and overseas calls are cheap too. I don't know what it would be to NZ though.
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denise



Joined: 23 Apr 2003
Posts: 3419
Location: finally home-ish

PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 6:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

I got a laptop in the States just before heading over here, mainly because I wanted to make sure I could understand the operating system & software.

I use yahoo broadband for internet. I don't recall having to pay anything to set it up (Glenski [I believe...] said that there was a start-up fee--maybe for a different plan?). The first two months were free, and now I pay about 3,500/month. It does cover dirt-cheap international calls (to the States--I don't know about anywhere else!).

d
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Glenski



Joined: 15 Jan 2003
Posts: 12844
Location: Hokkaido, JAPAN

PostPosted: Sun Jul 11, 2004 2:34 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
I use yahoo broadband for internet. I don't recall having to pay anything to set it up (Glenski [I believe...] said that there was a start-up fee--maybe for a different plan?). The first two months were free,



According to their home page, this offer was only good up to July 24 this year. I don't know the current fees.
http://bbapply.com/
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Joannda



Joined: 07 Jun 2004
Posts: 43
Location: Japan!

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 12:42 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks everyone for your helpful replies! I actually got the call the other day, and was officially offered a job, so; Japan, here I come Smile I'm real excited!!
I think I will bring a laptop with me. From the sounds of things, they are pretty much the same price or cheaper in NZ, and at least I will be able to understand it! (No Japanese...)

Lajzar, do you mean that if I set up an internet account, you will usually get a landline free with it? Or did I understand you wrong? Is that just for Internet, or can you use it for phone too? (I'm sorry, I'm not very good with all this technical stuff Smile).

Thanks again for all your help. You'll no doubt be hearing from me again with more questions Smile
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PAULH



Joined: 28 Jan 2003
Posts: 4672
Location: Western Japan

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 2:09 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Joannda wrote:

Lajzar, do you mean that if I set up an internet account, you will usually get a landline free with it? Or did I understand you wrong? Is that just for Internet, or can you use it for phone too? (I'm sorry, I'm not very good with all this technical stuff Smile).


Im not sure on this, but if you just want a line connection for your computer its fairly cheap to rent a line and you pay a monthly rental fee. I assume AEON will have an Internet jack in their apartments.

If you want to use a land-line telephone thats where it costs- to buy a number from NTT it cost 70,000 yen new for the line but its possible to pick up second hand lines from people leaving- you just change the number over at NTT. To use telephone and computer at the same time on the same line you would need to set up an ASDL connection which requires special hardware.

Mobile phones are fairly cheap as you can pick up the handsets virtually for free and then you pay the monthly phone charges

FWIW I have Yahoo BB now which is Broadband cable and all my international phone calls are routed through the Yahoo server rather than NTT. It is incredibly cheap to make overseas calls using your provider than going through NTT. You will still need a phone line and a number from NTT though to do this.
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guest of Japan



Joined: 28 Feb 2003
Posts: 1601
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 2:44 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Most ADSL providers will sell you an NTT phone line when you sign up for their service. The phone line will be about 10,000 yen (far cheaper than buying from NTT or second hand). They will also provide you with the necessary hardware. It will probably take about a month before service is up and running.
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Xerius



Joined: 20 Jan 2003
Posts: 29

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 4:24 am    Post subject: re: Yahoo BBPhone Reply with quote

Does anybody (PAULH, maybe?) know where I can find a list of calling rates to various countries for Yahoo BBPhone? I've seen ones for the U.S., U.K., Germany, Australia and such tossed around, but I'm curious about a few other places where I have friends I'd be interested in calling (ex. Romania). I did a search on the internet, but didn't come up with anything. Just curious as to whether they're competitive with those of Brastel or not.
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Xerius



Joined: 20 Jan 2003
Posts: 29

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 4:30 am    Post subject: check that Reply with quote

Nevermind that last post. I dug a little deeper and found a complete list. For everyone else's reference, you can find it at http://bb.softbankbb.co.jp/bbphone/price.php.
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jenofoz



Joined: 14 Jul 2004
Posts: 3
Location: Japan

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 4:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi there,

I have some info about phone and internet lines...

I live in quite a large city and had a phone line bought by my office. I hence only paid the monthly fee, but without making any calls (we all use our mobiles for everything) it still cost me 2500 yen a month. I thought it was a waste as I only ever used it for overseas calls, so I cut the connection and had the internet installed.

As I don't phoen home much I just use Brastel and use the work phone or my mobile and it works well.

However the great thing was, that in connecting to the internet I have been able to use msn messenger to chat to family and friends all over the world. You just buy a webcam and headset, (mind are from amazon.jp for a mere 3000 yen) and talk for FREE!!!)

As for my inter net connection... although I am in a big city, it doesn't mean I have the choice of connections... NTT came and checked out my appartment and the only option I had was broadband. This is because of something to do with cables and optic fibres etc.. so yahoo bb etc were no good. However, this is in fact a very good thing. I paid 20 000 yen to have the ppl come and connect the cable and give me the modem, then I got two months for free, (worth 10 000 yen anyway as I pay 5,050 per month) and the money I spend on phone calls has decreased considerably, as well as the money I spend on movies as I just download them all online using kazaa lite, fantastic!

Hope you found this helpful, best of luck in japan,

jen

www.j-talk.com/jenofoz/
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shmooj



Joined: 11 Sep 2003
Posts: 1758
Location: Seoul, ROK

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 11:55 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

You can skip that 20,000 for people installing it for you if you have a reasonably new computer (for that read less than three years old) with a LAN port running WinXP. Simply get the modem out of the box, look at the pictures and connect the modem to your computer and the splitter and the phone socket. You shouldn't need to do anything else.

It worked for me on two different computers while in Japan and connecting to Yahoo BB, one running an English OS and one running a Japanese.

XP is ready set to auto detect network connections and charging people 20,000 to come and do something that takes zero skill is a sad abuse of trust IMO.
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Synne



Joined: 06 Apr 2004
Posts: 269
Location: Tohoku

PostPosted: Thu Jul 15, 2004 5:20 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

How does the different power outage they have in Japan affect North American computers?
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