Buying A New Laptop

[jfchandler]

Found a great deal online in the U.S. via Amazon for a new budget laptop...

Had it send to my mail forwarding address in the U.S., and then onto BKK via U.S.P.S. Global Express Mail, which is insured and trackable.

Paid about $80 U.S. in handling and postage fees on the U.S. end to send a 9-1/4 lbs. box, plus a total of 560 baht (VAT I believe) to pick the box up from the local Thai Post Office, after the delivery guy showed up at my home this afternoon with a money due slip.

Had declared the actual purchase value of the laptop to Thai customs, and was charged only 6+%...

Total price of the laptop and all shipping/handling/customs came in at $380, or about 12,000 for a 15.6 in laptop with licensed Win 7 64-bit preinstalled.

Box arrived fine, unblemished and with everything intact... I was a bit nervous about having it sent internationally, but everything seems to have worked out fine. Just glad I knew better than to use Fed-Ex, DHL or UPS...

[Digitalbanana]

Just glad I knew better than to use Fed-Ex, DHL or UPS...

Not sure what your issues are with these? I used Fedex to do much the same, ship an Amazon laptop to Thailand and no problems.

[NanLaew]

Nice thread here; thought the OP was really going to get the Asus... oh well. I have been Asus loyal for several years now and they have a pretty standard 2-year global warranty on most machines. I have used their warranty repairs in the US and Thailand and both did a fine job. I was reading an article in a US laptop magazine that compared customer service of all the major US players and Asus came out second... Apple was first but I won't go there.

My current U3 is now in it's third year and the 2-year warranty is gone. Typically, I agree with the earlier comment that a third of laptops go tits up between 2 and 3 years old. That's been my experience and why I am looking at a replacement. Asus in Singapore have a special offer with discounted prices and added freebies like cases, headphones, external HD's, a mouse, etc.. The one I have been eyeballing is the fully specced out U30Jc that comes in at S$1798 or US$1322 or THB41,500 approx. Interesting if anyone can price this machine in Bangkok (I am in KL right now).

Looks like this

Manufacturer: Asus

Full model #: U30Jc33i7H50D7PM

CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-620M Processor (2.66GHz, 4MB Cache, 1066MHz) with turbo boost to 3.33GHz

Memory: 4 GB DDR3 RAM

Hard Disk: 500 GB SATA

Display: 13.3" HD Color-Shine (Glare-type) Display

Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium (64-Bit)

Detailed Specifications

Network:

* 10/100/1000 BASE-T Ethernet LAN (Broadband Ready) 10/100/1000 BASE-T Ethernet LAN (Broadband Ready)

* Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n Wireless LAN 802.11b/g/n

* Bluetooth® 2.1+EDR Bluetooth® 2.1+EDR

Web Cam: WebCam 0.3MP

Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce 310M with dedicated 512Mb VRAM and Intel GMA

Ports: USB 2.0 x 3, 1 x HDMI, 1 x VGA Connector, 1 x LAN RJ-45, 1 x Microphone-in jack, 1 x Headphone-out jack, 4 in 1 card reader (SD,MMC,MS,MS-Pro)

Altec Lansing SRS Premium Sound

Weight: 2.0kg

Warranty: 2 Years International Warranty

sbk was asking about the refurb market. My only experience is with Dell where there's an Austin, Texas based refurbisher that purchases all Dells discontinued parts and stock. I had a couple of old Dells that after refurb, new motherboards, keyboards and cases lasted another 3 years all for about 800 bucks.

Edited August 31, 2010 by NanLaew

[jfchandler]

Every time I've used any of them for shipments here, the shipped items have been hit with duties taxes and fees that were as much as double the original cost of the item/items.

Every time I've used USPS to Thai Post, I've paid little or no duty... in today's case, no duty and only VAT.

Just glad I knew better than to use Fed-Ex, DHL or UPS...

Not sure what your issues are with these? I used Fedex to do much the same, ship an Amazon laptop to Thailand and no problems.

[Peterbigeyes]

The Fujitsu lifebook series are my recommandation. You should check it out, its like the 'Die Hard' of notebooks

[Digitalbanana]

Every time I've used any of them for shipments here, the shipped items have been hit with duties taxes and fees that were as much as double the original cost of the item/items.

Every time I've used USPS to Thai Post, I've paid little or no duty... in today's case, no duty and only VAT.

Just glad I knew better than to use Fed-Ex, DHL or UPS...

Not sure what your issues are with these? I used Fedex to do much the same, ship an Amazon laptop to Thailand and no problems.

Perhaps it depends on the situation, product, location, shipping method etc. I have experienced almost the opposite using USPS Vs Fedex to Thailand. Two years ago I shipped a laptop battery from US to Thailand via USPS and after a painfully long wait at the post office to claim it was hit for fees almost 50% value of product. Recently I shipped a laptop via Amazon using Fedex and paid exactly 7% VAT as stated on Fedex web site with door to door delivery.

[jfchandler]

That's an interesting account, DB...

I'll note that, if you read thru the various threads here about the different methods for shipping from the U.S. and customs/duties issue, the majority of the complaints about excessive duties and fees have come from people who've used the FedExs and DHL types, whereas most of the comment about the USPS to Thai Post method has been positive and recommending. That's certainly been my experience, thus far... Obviously, everyone has different experiences.