HP ENVY H8-1549

PCs in USA are cheap. Refurbished PCs are even cheaper. And since my CFO have approved my PC refresh strategy for 2013, I set my mind on importing one in.

My requirements are pretty simple. Main processor have to be Intel i7 quad core, with space to grow (as in RAM, PCI-E, 5.25" and 3.5" slots/bay) for future proofing. Graphics optional as I can always swap in a gaming-grade one later. Hopefully to have a 5.1 or 7.1 onboard sound so that I can take advantage of my existing Roccat Kave. Main reason for a desktop instead of notebook is to go back to gaming which I have put on hiatus to concentrate on kid-rearing. Now that they are older, I can also start introducing them to mainstream gaming.

After scouring the usual deals sites for a few days, by God's grace, I found the "one" at Woot. Its a commonly missed section called Moofi in Woot which consists on community sourced deals. Anyway, this is it - HP ENVY H8-1549 (Specs are listed on page). It meets almost all of my requirements except that the graphics card is a bit weak which I responded with an even more recent buy (More on that later, this post first to create some context).

It's pretty cheap at US$599.99 (not inclusive of US$5 Woot shipping). With some local comparisons at minimally S$1300 for an i5 or S$1700 for an i7. Even with shipping all in, I paid around S$900 for this. Yes, its refurbished, but refurbs by big brands are usually as good as new and its a very good way to save some dough.

Ordered from Woot on 23 Aug, delivered to HopShopGo on 03 Sep, 11 days total. Then shipped out from HopShopGo on 06 Sep, reached me on 10 Sep, 5 more days. Grand total days taken = 16 days.

I've been using this machine for a few weeks now and very happy with it. Have changed the main driver into an SSD which i imported previously and have ordered a graphics card which will reach me soon! 

Costs

Probably the main driver for my direction in import shopping and also the reason for this blog is the cost.

Comparatively, the cost of item is lower when compared to Singapore which is supposed to be the hub in Southeast Asia. But that is not very true. Even at the cheapest place, the venerable Sim Lim Square, the cost is still higher than importing even with the shipping included!

Without going into the nitty gritty on business costs, let's look at some of the things we need to look out for when import shopping.

1. Cost of Item
2. Shipping
3. GST

Without further ado, let's look at the first one:

Cost of Item
Of cos, this is the main driver of everything. So what is cheaper than local that made me do import shopping? Almost everything!

For example, the first generation Nexus 7 32GB 3G costs me around S$300 to import versus S$399 when it finally reached local retail. A pair of Levi's Men's 501 Jean cost me US$33.74 vs S$199 over here! I'm also a big fan of buying refurbished or factory reconditioned items. I'll touch more on it on a later post.

But on the other hand, certain items can actually cost more if you import it. A good example will be the Asus PCE-AC66. It is hovering around US$110 - US$137 and the local price is S$139. After the conversion and shipping, it ends up being more expensive than local!

As you can see, one of my favourite site to compare prices to is Amazon. Used to look through Ebay as well but things are quite subjective and the prices can vary to the extremes.

Shipping

A very important aspect that makes up the total cost of ownership of an imported item. You can ship direct from the online retailer or go through forwarders.

A very good money saver is the AmazonGlobal Saver program, once you hit US$125 on eligible items, its free shipping all the way to Singapore, yes! All the way! You have to put up with the estimated shipping wait of around 3 weeks, but usually items will reach within 2 weeks.

Otherwise, you have to rely on forwarders. Again, do your homework. Try to calculate the shipping costs with forwarders versus direct from retailer. From my experience, most of the time, forwarders will be slightly cheaper, especially with the various discounts you get every now and then with them.

GST

This is a pretty sensitive topic, so I'll just keep a neutral stance and you can decide for yourself.

The law states that you'll have to pay a 7% GST for imports that is more than S$400 inclusive of shipping. For example, if you buy a very heavy item say a rock that is S$200 but the shipping is $201, making the grand total S$401, you will have to pay S$28.07 of GST. Realistically speaking, sometimes, it is more worth it to split the shipping rather than combine and pay for the 7% GST.

Otherwise, you can always take the "other" way which is to under-declare on the value. But again, there are risks involved. One, should the item goes missing during transit, the insurance will only pay you based on your declared value. Which means, if you under-declare a S$500 item to say S$100, and if something happens to the item, the forwarder will only pay you S$100, according to your declared value and you kinda lose S$400. Two, you are trying your luck with the law.

That kind of sums up everything with regards to import shopping. And the bottomline is: Do your homework! Compare and research!

Hi and welcome!

Welcome to Singapore Import Shopaholic!

As a techie (and a poor guy), the thirst for gadgets is never-ending and honestly, Singapore is not the best place for the best prices. This blog shares tips, deals and chronicles my "adventures" in import shopping, mainly from USA, China/HK and occasionally UK and Japan. An avenue where I found savings that allows me to shop even more!

What you can expect here:

• Gadgets - Of cos!
• IT stuff - Must have!
• Toys - For myself and my kids.
• Home Improvement - I'm a family man.
• Lady stuff - I love my wife and wanna save money too!
• Misc - Here and there.

For a start, I'll be listing my most recent purchase and in reverse chronological order list out the rest. I'll give my unbiased, honest, non-sponsored review of the item as well as the savings I get when compared to the same if not similar item here in Singapore.

So stay tuned!