Korean Job Discussion Forums

ciccone_youth · Joined: 03 Mar 2008 Location: Japan

LOL!! it's brillant!

smitchlovesfunk · Joined: 14 Apr 2008

well, i couldn't wait! i bought a macbook 403 yesterday in yongsan, got it for 1,245,000 won which i'm pretty chuffed about.

so far so good...

ciccone_youth · Joined: 03 Mar 2008 Location: Japan

that's great!!!!

yesterday i was window-shopping for one.... sooooo tempting.

red_devil · Joined: 30 Jun 2008 Location: Korea

Welcome to Korea. Microsoft got sued successfully for breaking anti-monopoly regulations...which anyone can see is true since it has like 99.9% market saturation.

I've been able to use most public internet portals like Daum, Naver, Cyworld, etc., using Firefox 3. Otherwise Windows XP is just a hotkey away with Parallels.

ciccone_youth · Joined: 03 Mar 2008 Location: Japan

Alright, so my iBook G4 (mid-2005) had a power cable problem, and now it turns out that the battery is completely dead as well.

I can't find any cheaper replacement cables for a Mac in Korea, I went all over Yongsan and they did the cross-wrist no sign the whole time.

Anyways. I'm going back home in February. I cannot buy a MacBook here since I need the French Canadian keyboard.

Should I spend money to get my G4 fixed, or save up and get the MacBook at home in a few months? Is 3 years a normal Apple lifespan?

prideofidaho · Joined: 19 Mar 2008

Hey....is the battery dead because the cable is wonky? Were you not able to get the cable because your computer uses the older power cord (the non-magnetic/rectangle shaped one)?

My Macbook is about a year old and I was able to get a new cable in Yongsan at the Mac service center. It's not in the main building. I'm not able to give proper directions at the moment, but if you think you can use a brand new power cord, I'd be happy to post directions.

Sorry if the info I'm giving is random...you can imagine I'm not the most tech-savvy person. Just wanted to make sure you tried the service center since they don't sell the cords at the dealers.

ciccone_youth · Joined: 03 Mar 2008 Location: Japan

I'm not sure if the battery is dead because of the cable, is it possible?

And yes, same as you, I wasn't able to get a cable since my G4 uses the old-school rectangle one...

But I'd definitely like to give it a try! Should I just show up at the service center? I know they have one in Yongsan, and one near Coex. I could try to find it, I'll look up the map on apple.co.kr.

Thanks for the info, it's very helpful!!!!!

boatofcar · Joined: 20 Dec 2006 Location: Sheffield, UK

Ordinarily, the "lifespan" of a Mac and a PC in terms of performance is pretty similar. However, when Apple made the jump to Intel processors, the speed of their machines more than doubled. I recently upgraded from a G4 iBook to a new iMac, and I was blown away by how much faster it was.

ciccone_youth · Joined: 03 Mar 2008 Location: Japan

But as for just the regular lifespan, I mean, is it normal to buy a new computer after 3 years of use?

prideofidaho · Joined: 19 Mar 2008

Well, I had a 2001 iBook that lasted 5 or 6 years. In fact, it still works, it's just geriatric. It's not so much the lifespan of the computer, as much as how long it can keep up with others...so while my old iBook is still functioning, it's just too slow and old to properly use.

I went into one of the buildings behind Yongsan called the Nanjin arcade.

http://forums.eslcafe.com/korea/viewtopic.php?p=1791091&highlight=#1791091

scroll down to Ttompatz's post and click on the photobucket link...he's added a great bird's eye shot that should help you find the right building. The apple service center was on the far (west/left) end of the building on the main floor. All the way at the back. You'll know you're in the right place if you see other service centers.

Why not take your whole computer in and have them give you an opinion...shouldn't cost too much. They should be able to tell you if the battery is messed or if you just need a new cable. I find it likely you just need a new cable.

Fingers crossed for you! I saw you need a french canadian keyboard...I don't have one, but my Macbook has the ability to type in French...just wanted to let you know.

ciccone_youth · Joined: 03 Mar 2008 Location: Japan

wow, thank you SO MUCH for all the info, it's been so helpful! i'll go to the service center next week, i have a day off. hopefully they can tell me what the problem is and i can use it for another year or so, i loved that computer.

and i had no idea you could still type in French on any macbook, good to know.

thanks again!!

swigs · Joined: 20 Apr 2008

worst case, just buy one of the cheaper EEE's for around 300,000. That's what i'm going to do. I have a Macbook, but want somthing easier and cheaper to travel around with.

I'm in the market to buy one now, i'm gonna check out the yongsan market this weekend. Anyone know what time they are open too.

BTW, sorry to hear your still having problems with your cord/battery.

ciccone_youth · Joined: 03 Mar 2008 Location: Japan

thanks for the tip!

i think Yongsan opens at around 10:30 or 11am, and closes at 8pm... kinda early.

i'll give the service center a try next week, and if not i'll suck it up for another 4 months... i have access to a computer at school and i can use my BF's at home.

Ut videam · Joined: 07 Dec 2007 Location: Pocheon-si, Gyeonggi-do

Also, if you're thinking of buying a new MacBook but need the French Canadian keyboard, try calling up Apple Sales (080-340-4622) and talk to a rep�I'm told that Apple Korea's English-language sales are handled out of Australia, so language barrier shouldn't be a problem.

The machines all come from China, so getting a French Canadian model shouldn't be a problem. It's worth a call.

One bit of silver lining to the won's precipitous decline is that this would be a great time to buy a Mac in Korea: they haven't revised their price points to reflect the exchange rate trends. Granted, they are just about to release new models, but if you don't need the latest and greatest, 1 USD = 1200 KRW is your friend.

At the current exchange rate (1 USD = 1190 KRW via Yahoo as of this writing), and applying the education discount (no problem for public school or uni teachers, and probably no problem for hagwon folks as they apparently don't verify your position), you get the mid-level white MacBook (13"/2.4GHz/2GB/160GB/SuperDrive) for 1,290,000 KRW = 1,084 USD = 1,133 CAD . That's all in�taxes and delivery included. Compare that to $1299 (standard) / $1,199 (education discount) on the US Apple Store, recalling that you'll be charged sales tax on top of that, and you can start to see what a good deal this is.