Buying in Singapore

**p38arover** · 30th April 2010, 11:11 PM

I've just returned from a week in Singapore and I had a look around camera and electronics stores in Sim Lim Centre.

Frankly, I think impulse buying there is fraught with danger. I looked at some stuff and found it's no cheaper than Sydney - perhaps even more expensive. One really needs to know Oz prices before starting to shop.

I got annoyed with using my wife's iPhone and my PDA for surfing the 'Net so I went and bought a HP Netbook. I could have bought it cheaper at Harvey Norman here in Sydney!

Camera lenses seemed similarly priced to Oz.

At least I was able to buy a new battery for our video camera for a reasonable price - about 6-8 times cheaper than the genuine article here. I bought it from a shop that specialises in batteries so I'm expecting it to be of reasonable quality.

It's OK for blokes like Echidna who live there and know who to avoid.

**Yorkie** · 1st May 2010, 06:17 AM

don't worry ron, last time i was there i bought an ipod, paid $30 more than i could have got in sydney.

like you say know the aussie prices and exchange rate before and that bargin might not be so good.

**3toes** · 1st May 2010, 07:07 AM

Know your prices - shops are after all not profit free zones.

Last time I was home in Australia purchased Revo and Serengiti brand sunglasses there. They were considerably cheaper to buy than UK, Dubai (dearest) or Singapore prices.

**disco2hse** · 1st May 2010, 07:33 AM

I was there a few weeks ago. Electronics are more expensive than NZ by along chalk, even at duty free.

I was looking for sound deadening headphones for on the plane. The cheapest half-pie decent set in duty free was about USD250. I bought a better set in Auckland duty free (on return, go figure

) for NZD109, a saving of about NZD235, and for better quality and features!!!

Alan

**p38arover** · 1st May 2010, 09:14 AM

One problem is impulse buying - one sees something one hasn't considered before going.

In the case of my netbook purchase, after GST refunding it was much the same as an in-store purchase here. But had I purchased it here within 30 days of departure, I'd have had the GST refunded, too, thus making it cheaper than Singapore.

**loanrangie** · 1st May 2010, 08:09 PM

Singapore stopped being a good place to buy in the late 70's. HK is now better but even then you have to know your prices.

**LandyAndy** · 2nd May 2010, 11:17 AM

Do the battery and computer function correctly Ronald

Andrew

**p38arover** · 2nd May 2010, 11:25 AM

Thus far Andrew.

In both of the above, I didn't touch them before paying for them.

However, just before we went away I bought a new GPS....... It's showing every sign of being faulty.

I selected it off the shelf.

We won't talk about the new Microsoft webcam I also bought just before we went away. I selected it off the shelf, too.

**RichardK** · 2nd May 2010, 11:47 AM

I had the same experience in Singapore a couple of years ago, wanted a Sangean ATS909 SW radio, could only get the AST505 at a price that seemed expensive to me, didn't buy and confirmed when I came back that it was cheaper to buy in Oz. I ended up buying what I wanted (ATS909) over the internet from Taiwan around $170 cheaper than Oz and it arrived in 4 days!

**cartm58** · 2nd May 2010, 12:25 PM

Similar experience on our trip to Japan in APril with stop over in Kulua Lumpar and trip into town to their CBD shopping district hundreds of competing little stores in Department Store but price comparable to Australian retail.

Japan you could buy cheaper electronic goods but only domestic which meant operating software only display in Japanese not English.

On return to Australia managed to match best price for Panasonic TZ 7 in Japan from buying on net delivered to the door by Fedex

Thread: Buying in Singapore

Thread Tools

Buying in Singapore

Bookmarks

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions