Korean Job Discussion Forums

[badabing1980]

I have a question regarding computers, is it cheaper to buy it in Korea or Canada?

I'm thinking about purchasing an HP laptop from Best Buy for about $700-$1000, is XP and all the software in Korean when you buy it in Korea, along with the keyboard? Not only that I wouldn't want to purchase a laptop with a dvd drive that only reads dvd's from Asia.

Basically, whats the chances of purchasing a laptop geared for North American consumers over there.

Thanks for any help.

[SHANE02]

I wish the search engine worked!


Save yourself alot of money, buy in the US.

[bassexpander]

If you buy from an HP dealer in Yongsan, you can ask to get the OS switched to English. They'll do the switch for you in under an hour.

Personally, I'd buy the notebook in the USA, if you're only planning on being around for a year.

[moosehead]

my american mac w/dvd player has no problem playing k dvds

you can also buy a desktop dvd player that doesn't care - and will play cds as well

but to answer your q - WHY ON EARTH WOULD YOU EVER IN YOUR UTMOST MOMENT OF SANITY EVEN REMOTELY CONSIDER BUYING AN AMERICAN COMPUTER WHEN THEY ARE ALL GARBAGE!!!

american computers are built like american cars - made to break down in a couple of years so you'll buy another one - !

you can get a good deal on a used nb in youngsan or technomart

or you can buy an MSI windbook for 650,000 - ask to have E windows loaded on it - and enjoy it as I'm doing - they are totally rad - and NOT avaiable yet in the u.s.

eePC nbs are also cheap but look out for the ones with the tiny hard drives of only a couple of gig - there's one w/80 g but for what you'll pay - go for the windbook

good luck!

[bassexpander]

You're touting MSI over HP?

Give me a break.

Also, these computers aren't all made in the USA anymore, anyway.

[Drew345]

The computers at "best buy" and stores such as that in North America are much cheaper and you'll get the most up to date version.
There is a software setting that changes your DVD drive from American zone to Korean zone. This setting can only be changed 5 times before being locked. There is software around this if it becomes an issue.
Good luck finding XP though. I bought my laptop in Portland (tax free) last summer and it came with Vista. Big headaches. Probably all you'll find is Vista nowadays.

[EzeWong]

Yeah buy it in America and then buy a Step down converter here (I got mine at Home Plus $30)

Lol something you need to take into consideration is the area you will be at. Because I never checked to see if my area had wireless and now I have the world's most expensive eating mat.

lol so lame. I spent 2 FULL days looking all over Daegu for this godamn laptop wire, and then settled for the converter and now I don't have internet.

[aka Dave]

Whatever you do, don't get Windows vista in Korean! It's pure evil!

Before you buy here check newegg.com. One thing about Korea, they're a year and a half behind in video cards, which is important if you like gaming.

[Otherside]

[aka Dave]

When I bought my comp last January, the best thing I could get online was a 8600 GT . The Korean Dell was offering this, but the American Dell was offering much better cards.

The 8800 lines at the time were out in the USA. I upgraded to a 8800gts a few months later by having it shipped in. The cards in the department stores in Cheong-Ju (yeah I live in the sticks) were even worse than the 8600.

I'm guessing what is sold in Yongsan isn't typical for Korean computer vendors. Also, my previous card was ATI, wasn't very happy with it. Prefer Nvidia.

[Ukon]

[seoulteacher]

[Join Me]

There is no reason to buy a computer in Korea if you can avoid it. You certainly won't save any money over the US. Also, you may run into software or warranty issues as well. I just can't think of a good reason to wait to buy a computer in Korea.

[cdninkorea]

[esetters21]