Pastor Flaps

Appart from the cost of buying a Laptop in the UK or NZ, is there a reason why I should buy it before I leave or when I arrive.
Ideally I would like to buy a laptop in the uk, load it with all the information I need and then bring it with me to NZ and get started straight away.

I have been advised that it will not work and the power supply would need to be a variable one. As far as I am aware a laptop will work as I found when I visited for 5 weeks back in 2003.

Again any help on this would be very much appreaciated.

Thanks

Paul

rupert_pumpkin

sounds like a lot of hassle to me, not to mention the cost of posting it or the room it'll take in your bag. you should be able to take any software on disk and can store your files on a USB memory stick (really small and can hold loads of data), if you buy a laptop over there you won't have to worry about the power supply or connection problems due to having UK settings

lapsed kiwi

I'd buy here - I have just done. That way, you can load all your apps, data email settings etc and get everything just right before you leave. Also, it means you'll have a PC to use for the 2-3 months your main one is in a container. Using it in NZ will be no more difficult than changing your dialup settings to your NZ ISP, and changing the UK plug for a kiwi one - all laptops have auto-voltage PSUs, and NZ is the same voltage anyway. If you buy a nice small laptop like a Toshiba Portege A200, it will go in your hand baggage or at worst take up a small fraction of a suitcase.
If you sign up with a NZ ISP in advance, you'll even have an email address to give out before you leave

NZ Climber

Buy in the UK and if you are sensible and buy a Mac, make sure you get the international adapter kit (loads of different plugs etc). Just saves hassle and it's MUCH cheaper for electronics in the Uk than it is here. You have been advised incorrectly in regards to the not working thing, that's tosh. All my electronics work here, it's 230V here and 240V in the Uk so it's not like you're going to the US or anything where it's 110V.

Oh, Software, accessories and peripherals are all more expensive here too. And there isn't the wide selection or ease of buying that you have in the UK. There are far less places to shop around.

The one pro of buying here (NZ) is that you can haggle and play one shop off against the other to get the best deal.

Personally i'd buy in the UK.

dlummis

I would buy in UK and it would be a DELL as they have the best world wide customer care. My parents moved around the world alot and took a dell comp where ever he went and each time he needed help they gave it no questions, and repairs where just amazing they could not do enough to help

NZ Climber

Each to their own. Like I said, i'd recommend a Mac and it's nothing to do with the DELL hardware...it's all about the sheer crappiness of Windoze combined with the awesomely stable, virus-free unix-based OS that is Tiger for the Mac

And IMHO, you're wrong about the customer service too, Oakley have the world's best customer service

But you're right about buying in the UK.

shepslady

Id definately be looking at buying one in the UK before you head to NZ. Im sure if compare prices you will get a better deal in th UK.

Personally I wouldnt touch a DELL though. I have a friend in NZ who is a computer repair person & he says if it wasnt for the high number of Dells he has to repair he would have to shut up shop & look for work in another area. Did find that rather strange though as Dell has a good name here in the US.

Once again it all comes down to personal preference I guess.

Biddy

I bought a compaq in the UK and brought as hand luggage - works fine and no hassles - apart from renting a flat without a telephone socket!

Price for the same model in Noel Leeming here is pretty much the same when converted back.

Pastor Flaps

Thanks everybody for all your help.
I am going to get a UK laptop, load it with all the software and data and then at least we will have a computer to communicate with straight away.

Paul

uk+kiwi

Hi Cindy,

I'm surprised too! Aren't DELL the global leaders of PC's now? I used to work in IT (9 years at Hewlett-Packard) and had competitive experience of the power of DELL and their great combination of quality, price and after sales service (but from a corporate point of view). And after many years of HP equipment in my home, I have to admit that our home PC is now a DELL!

To the original poster, would buy in the UK (after investigating duty free vs internet best buys) unless I could arrange a stopover en route in the Far East - Singapore/HK in which case I'd probably buy there.

grimm

Was just reading about the laptop situation.
We were thinking of buying one when we stop over in Singapore?
Again more or less expensive?

We've just ordered a new sofa from DFS to take with us and are buying loads of stuff from IKEA to fill the 20ft container we're paying £4k for.
Any suggestions on what to leave and to bring/buy new?
Cheers

shepslady

Thats exactly why I said I was surprised. I know plenty of people over here (USA) who have Dells & have nothing but good things to say about them & never seem to have any problems with them at all. Steve, my computer repair friend in NZ tells me he works on more Dells than any other brand & he personally wouldnt touch one for his own use.
I personally dont like any off the shelf ones hence the reason hubby & I built our last one & made everything in it fully upgradable but that is just a personal thing. We did look at buying a Dell ourselves but ended up building one from scratch which works well for us & gave us so much pleasure knowing we did it ourselves