Electrical appliance

Posted by lovemy2children2000 (1040 days ago)

Should I ship over my small electrical appliance such as iron, eletric kettle, toaster, electric toothbrush, shaver etc? We are in Canada, so our voltage is 120 and the plug is different than those in China. Most importantly, my son wants to know if he should ship over his Playstation 2?

Hubby's company is providing shipping cost. Thanks.

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Posted by kaisatsu (1036 days ago)

For most small appliances, it will probably end up being cheaper to buy new ones here instead of buying voltage adaptors/transformers to handle them all. If you have any very nice appliances that you really like, go ahead and bring those, because it's not too hard to find adaptors. The toothbrush and shaver will take a small enough adaptor, that they'd be very easy to reuse here (we use an electric toothbrush and an epillator from the US).

As for the Playstation, there are a few things to consider. First, you'll still need to convert the voltage for it, and you'll need a good transformer since it's a electronics. They're out there, and they're not hard to find, but be prepared. Also, if you bring the Playstation, be sure to bring the games. Most of the console gaming systems sold in North America are designed for sale in North America only. A lot of the games sold here will not be usable on a North American system. This is due in part to display differences (your PS2 will use an NTSC TV display, while the Chinese machine will probably be PAL). Most televisions here are dual PAL/NTSC so using the NTSC system shouldn't be a problem.

Anyhow, to make a long story short... I'd recommend bringing the PS2 and getting a transformer to power it (be sure to find out the wattage so you get a big enough transformer). And bring plenty of games (and maybe some extra new ones to cut down on having new games shipped over later). I've heard plenty of people who found that China-bought games wouldn't work on their systems, and even if they do, there's a chance of them being in Chinese. [FYI - We didn't bring a PS2, but we brought both an XBox and a GameCube.]

Posted by goodws (1033 days ago)

Hi kaisatsu,
You mentioned it's easy to find voltage adaptors/transformers, can you tell me specifically what store you have in mind? I'm still looking for one to handle small appliances such as alarm clock, iron, etc.

Also, my sons have their GameCube here with us, can you buy games here and where?

Thanks!!!

Posted by rosa (1032 days ago)

We have shipped over my sons Playstation from he UK and although we had to pay 300RMB to put a converter in for the system to play the games here it was worth every penny. Our boys buy all the latest PS2 games and they only cost 10RMB against 30-40 pounds in the UK. So bring it and just bring the games he has unless he needs something special.

Posted by lovemy2children2000 (1028 days ago)

Rosa, Can you tell me where you go to get the transformer for the PS2 put in? And where do you go to get the games? Also are all PS2 compatible with the TVs in Beijing? Thanks.

Posted by rosa (1027 days ago)

Sorry for delay in replying. As we came from UK we didnt need to change voltage but transformers 120/240 are easy to get. For PS2 all stalls that sell games will sell and install the chip. You can then get games at any market. All PS2 will play on the TV. Whether you need the chip depends on when PS2 was made and you cant seem to find that out until you get here. Dont worry though your children will have no problem with their system and will be able to get many games. None of which will be the original though, you cant buy them here at any price, everthing is a copy

Posted by lovemy2children2000 (1026 days ago)

Thanks Rosa. We went to the "Buy Now" computer arcade at Lan Tau Ta Sha. I think someone there should be able to help if I need to get something installed. BTW, the cost of laptop computers in Beijing seemed more expensive than in Toronto!!