Job Discussion Forums

[ebond007]

I'm leaving for Japan next week, and I have sort of a smattering of miscellaneous questions related to technology that I could use answered by people in the know.

1. The cell phone situation. I've heard that I would be best advised to buy an unlocked iPhone here in the states and then take it to use in Japan. Good idea? Bad idea? Are there better options for a good/great (re: one with a good arsenal of useful features) phone? I know the features of Japanese cell phones are legendary.

2. I'm planning on buying a laptop this weekend, but I am a casual gamer and would like to eventually (re: in the next couple of months) have access to a gaming-quality PC. Is there any realistic (and safe) way to get my desktop over there at some point?

3. As pertains to the above, anyone have a good laptop recommendation? (Note: I'm on a budget. $500 to $999 would be preferable.)

4. What about a game system? Like an X-Box? As I said before, I'm a casual gamer, but I've always found some games to be good ways of making friends (i.e. - "Wanna come over and play Guitar Hero?"). Plus the wife and I use it as our primary DVD player. It's a fairly delicate piece of equipment, though. How might I get it to Japan intact?

5. I'm an avid reader, but I read a lot of very obscure books that you won't find in most eBook stores. However, I have a fair collection of eBook copies of things in .PDF format. Would any of you folks recommend an E-Reader as a worthwhile purchase? A specific one?

I probably have more, but that'll do for now. Thanks!

[seklarwia]

You are coming from America, right? You lot get a huge baggage allowance compared to us poor Brits.

Your laptop and your (can I assume) 360 go in you hand luggage. I fit both in a regular rucksack. The 360 power brick can go in your checked luggage as long as its packed with clothes.

You can just buy an iphone out here. I was told that some of its features are not fully compatible with the networks out here and vice versa. And be prepared for huge bills with the iphone.

BTW, all decent phones and even some of the cheaper ones out here, come with loads of features. What exactly do you want on your phone.

[Mr_Monkey]

1. It depends very much on whether or not the phone can handle CDMA. Most phone networks throughout the world use GSM. Japan does not.
   
2. Buy a netbook - I love mine. They're cheap too, and you could probably do with saving cash.
   As far as your desktop is concerned, there is always a risk when you move something as bulky as that to the end of the street, let alone to the other side of the planet. My wife and I both brought our desktops back to the UK when we came here. We did, however, get rid of the cases, and wrap the internals individually in a couple of inches of bubble-wrap. I can't comment on the price, as we sent it over with the rest of the stuff we shipped, but everything (displays included) arrived in perfect condition.
3. Get a netbook - they do everything a laptop is intended to do, and weigh the same as a book the same size. You'll appreciate the portability when it's no longer your primary PC. I have a 2nd generation netbook - an Acer Aspire One A150-L with 1GB RAM, an 8GB SSD and a 16GB SDHC (Cat. 6) for the /home folder. It runs Ubuntu Netbook Remix, and I love it to bits - I wouldn't swap it for a larger laptop for anything (unless you gave me money and let me clone the drive first;))
4. I would question whether or not it's worth taking the xbox. First, the Wii is dirt cheap in Japan. Second, you'll find it very difficult to get it fixed under warranty should anything go wrong with it - most warranties do not cover international use. Third, you might find it quite difficult to locate games for it, particularly in English - the xbox has never been a mainstream console out there.
5. Your netbook will make a perfectly serviceable ebook reader, and will be a great deal more flexible. Buy a netbook.

[seklarwia]

[ebond007]

Thanks for all the replies so far. Further input is most welcome.

A few specific replies:

- I'm not sure exactly what to say I'm looking for in a cellphone, but there are certain features I use a lot on my current phone, such as internet, GPS guidance, email connectivity, photo/video, customized ringers, calendar, qwerty (or touchscreen) keyboard, weather and news updates, etc. I have never had an iPhone, and I have to admit I've been salivating over one for a while, but I don't know how they really compare to Japanese cell phones. I also don't want to pay an arm and a leg for it every month. I currently pay about $100USD monthly for my phone service, but I'd love to have that go down.

- I've been looking into netbooks, but given that I'm unsure HOW long it'll be my primary computer, I'm a little skeptical about going without a full operating system and feature set. Further investigation is probably needed.

- Regarding the X-Box, I'd really very much like to take it. I have a Wii, but it does not play DVDs, and most of the games I like are on my 360. I'm a bit skeptical that they'd allow me to take such a complex device on the plane, though. Wouldn't it be a bit of a bomb suspect? Even if not, it's awfully fragile and bulky.

[seklarwia]

[Amarok]

I've taken gaming consoles on multiple flights without any problems. The worst you'll probably have to deal with is the security personnel saying something like, "Oh, this is one of those Nintendos," when it's obviously an XBox.

I'll second or third the recommendation for a netbook. It's really cheap and will give you all the basic functions you need for computing while you wait to bring over your desktop. They're not as bad as you're probably thinking they are!

[ebond007]

Ah! Another good question: What will I need to use my cellphone as a modem for my PC? Will a Japanese phone be cross-compatible with an American laptop/netbook? Do Japanese phones even typically come with this capability?

[Mr_Monkey]

[Rezz]

I would advise spending about �400 - �500 ($800?) on a mid-high range dell laptop. I bought one 2 years ago for �510 with a 8600M GT, dvd player/writer, 2gigs of ram and a 2.2ghz dual core cpu. I regularly use it to play left4dead/team fortress 2 with my old housemates no problems and plan on taking it to Japan with me.

It also has an s-video and VGA out meaning you can plug it into (almost) any TV and use it as a DVD player

I wouldn't advise taking your 360 over. Might be better getting a new one out there as they just had a price cut and I believe gamer profiles are region locked anyway. I will probably do this too and buy some region free games (in English) from play-asia.

[seklarwia]

[Mr_Monkey]

[Rezz]

seklarwia: That's good to know! If I have enough room I might try taking my arcade console over, did you take the UK power supply and just stick a 2 prong adapter on it or do you need a different power brick altogether?

Why would you recommend a VGA cable? For plugging into pc monitor or something? Do Japanese TV's have an RGB scart connector? (can't see myself getting a HDTV and will be using laptop so no pc monitor )

[seklarwia]