GADGET SHOPPING WALKABOUT IN HONG KONG

Many people believe that Hong Kong is not the shopping mecca it once was and there are lots of good reasons to agree. But while you might not be tripping over mind-boggling steals, there are still some bargains around, if only because most imported products are duty-free. In addition, for sheer variety, particularly in the realm of electronic gadgets, and a real carnival atmosphere, there may be no better place for the enthusiastic shopper.

If ever a thing has been invented, it can be found in Hong Kong. This is a city in love with everything high-tech, and low-tech for that matter. A good place to start a search for gadgets is along Nathan Road, and its many labyrinthine tributaries, in Tsim Sha Tsui on the Kowloon side. Not as visually impressive as the soaring, brand-spanking new skyscraper neighbourhood in Central on Hong Kong Island, this area is on the whole a bit seedier with busy, crowded streets flanked by some older, deserves-to-be-condemned buildings.

On street level, once you recover from the assault of neon, and fight your way through the leaflet passer-outers, Indians trying to measure you for custom-tailored suits, Chinamen trying to hawk fake Rolexes in the manner of shady Amsterdam drug-dealers, and the mass of other bodies, you will discover an almost endless rank of shops selling electronics goods and photographic equipment. All are displayed on shelves which extend the length of the neon-electrified windows. Electronic organisers of every description (although Psion was noticeably absent), mobile phones, digitised camcorders, cameras and walkmen battle for the plum positions.

Cream of the Crop

Currently, traffic jams are backing up at a few privileged shops where punters can wave at themselves in the tiny screen of the Casio QV-10. This digital camera is the very latest and hottest product in town. It looks a bit like a miniaturised Sharp Viewcam, with a swivel lens and an LCD screen on the back. It is really impressive and only about the size of a normal instamatic. It comes complete with PC connection kit and Windows software. Prices start from HK$3200-3900 (approx. L300-350). If the technology appeals to you but the price tag doesn't, you can investigate its camcorder cousins. Here there is a whole litter of apparent progeny to the Viewcam and because of the category competition, you can get a lot more for your money.

Communication skills

Language translators are very much in vogue, but you really need to do some digging for what you want as the permutations of languages and features is staggering. Many are just glorified dictionaries, with the number of languages ranging anywhere from two to fourteen. Remarkably, most of these multi-language choices are confined to European languages, with Japanese occasionally thrown in for good measure. Handy perhaps for your next visit to France or Spain, but not so practical for local use. If you do want to improve your Chinese, your choices are mainly limited to English-Chinese products (both Mandarin and Cantonese varieties are available). But you have to be careful with these too, as the majority are only set up for native Chinese speakers learning English. Unless you're already comfortable working in Chinese as your base language, you may not get very far.

If you do want to plum for a Chinese translator, you should definitely invest in the speaking models. Spoken Chinese can sound completely alien to what its phonetically-written counterpart would indicate as pronunciation is dependent on not just syllabic sounds but also on four rising and falling tones, applied liberally throughout. A slightly different tone on a single syllable can change the entire meaning of a word. Although you might feel silly holding your contraption up to someone's ear, this feature could come in very useful.

If you're feeling really bold, you might even opt for a talking translator with a pen pad. V-Tech makes a nice one that allows you to draw - or perhaps attempt to draw - any Chinese characters you don't recognise (out of the more than 50,000 in the language, there will most likely be a few!) and have them converted into English. However attractive this might sound, these models are much more expensive and you'd have to be a pretty dab hand to replicate effectively many of these ornate characters. Starting prices on translators range from HK$1000-2500.

If faxing is your reason for living, you might want to check out a little gadget called the Handifax 1000 - 'fax anywhere, anytime, even with a cell phone!!'. This portable fax sender with built-in acoustic coupler starts at HK$1000 and exists solely to send faxes - why bother with something as silly as receiving them too? While the compact technology is clever, the application here is pretty one-dimensional to say the least and your money could be better spent elsewhere. Manufacturer Supafax obviously believes in sticking to core competencies and nothing else.

The weirder, the wackier

When you get bored with the remotely practical purchases, there are plenty of other weird and wacky gizmos to distract you. The Mind Activator from Novag, for instance. This rather mysterious mini-computer comes equipped with "20 scientifically developed training programs" that allow you to increase your intellectual capacity and energy levels and scale new heights of creativity, concentration and vitality. And of course you can kiss those pesky backaches, migraines and other mortal concerns goodbye. With no negative side effects. Honest - Dr E.G. Bittener researched it and everything. (Who?) Just strap the headphones on each night and you're away - Power Rangers watch out - that is, of course, if you can cough up the HK$3500 to buy them.

If you want to activate your mind and body in less expensive ways, have a look at StimuVit, the scalp massage stimulator (a.k.a. bald-no-more?), or Evertop's magnetic self acupuncture eye massager which will "provide you a very wonderful effects for your eyes" (sic). These and other similar gems can be found at the many Boots'-like chemists in the Tsim Sha Tsui area.

Night-time shopping and other options

Don't worry about getting locked in the store when the sun goes down. Most shops in Tsim Sha Tsui stay open until at least 9 or 10pm (and all day on Sunday). If you are still on your feet by that time, you might want to venture further down Nathan Road to find Temple Street in Yau Ma Tei where Hong Kong's most popular night market swings into action every evening from 8-11pm. Low-tech gadgetry is definitely the emphasis here. Wondering where all the world's unused calculators and electric alarm clocks wound up? They've migrated East. Bring some paracetemol with you as those annoyingly shrill alarm clocks are clanging constantly and most of the stall-holders do not seem very bothered about turning them off.

If gadget-hunting in Kowloon is wearing you out, hop the Star Ferry back over to Hong Kong Island. You'll discover scores of calmer and swisher malls,' department' stores and designer name shops in Admiralty and Wan Chai, particularly around the Convention and Exhibition Centre. For PCs, you'll have to go farther afield.' Such as the In Square Centre in Causeway Bay which has whole floors 'dedicated to 'computers. Because many are manufactured or assembled here to be sold abroad, you can find some competitive pricing, especially for laptops and notebooks.

BOX-OUT
BUYER BEWARE

The downside to variety in Hong Kong's case is, unfortunately, service and peace of mind. When you go shopping here, go prepared and be cautious as many of the sales practices are decidedly dodgy. In fact, compared to Nathan Road, the sharks on Tottenham Court Road in London look positively tame.

There are several important don't's to remember when you go swimming in the Tsim Sha Tsui waters:

  • don't's loiter too long in front of shop windows unless you're willing to be harrassed. Such demonstrated interest on your part quickly brings a salesman out onto the street and the bludgeoning can begin.

  • don't's ask too many questions and outrageous requests - like, could I look at it? These are treated suspiciously. And don't's be too obvious about shopping around either. When I whipped a pen and paper out at one establishment to jot down some prices, I was quickly chased off the premises.

  • don't's expect to trial the equipment. Playing is not allowed.*** The general policy seems to be that you do not earn the right to demo, hold or even touch a product until you commit to buying it. Cellophane is obviously a precious commodity and they can't afford to break it unless they've got a sure-sell.

  • don't's expect the salesman (there are no salewomen) to know what they're 'talking about. They usually don't and if by some small chance they do, they probably won't be able to articulate it very well in English.

  • don't's believe the first price you see. Prices fluctuate outrageously from shop to shop, hour to hour, minute to minute. And the frequent motion of the exchange rate doesn't help either. In any case, the advertised price is only a starting point for bargaining. Depending on how inflated the first price is, you can expect to knock off between 5-20% through haggling.

  • don't's just stick to Nathan Road. The rents are pricier here and, on the ' whole,' so are the products. Venture into tributaries like Carnarvon, Cameron and ' Mody 'Roads. But don't's trust your own sense of direction if you're trying to find 'the 'same place twice. These smaller streets are maze-like and all the shops look ' the 'same. If you've found a price you like, be sure to get a card from the shop.

  • don't's be surprised if you buy a fake. If ever a copyright was written, it was broken in Hong Kong. This is less a problem with cameras and computers. Equally, don't's expect extensive warranties and return policies. It won't be like taking something back to the Dixon's on the High Street.

    The Hong Kong Tourist Association suggests that, to avoid heartaches, you should deal only with reputable establishments as identified by those that wear the HKTA member logo (signified by a red Chinese 'junk', the distinctive local sailboat). To qualify, these members are meant to provide good, reliable service, value for money, an accurate representation of good and the prompt rectification of customer complaints. All well and good, but in my experience, even some of these shops have questionable practices.

    On the whole, if you know exactly what you're looking for, how much you're willing to pay, how to tell whether you're buying a dud, and how to bargain, you could do worse than searching for your gadgets in Hong Kong. On the other hand, if you need knowledgeable product advice and peace of mind is important to you, the most reliable place to buy is back at home where you can take the item back if anything goes wrong. If you're still worried about price, you can buy your gadgets in Duty-Free at Heathrow on your way back from Hong Kong.

    Hypertext to "Playing is not allowed"

    If you are in the mood for playing rather than just paying, the Hong Kong Science Museum in Kowloon is well worth a visit. Especially if the monsoons have interrupted other sightseeing plans as they're apt to do at this time of year. The museum is lauded as the best of its kind in the world and I believe it. Four floors of extremely interactive exhibits will keep you busy for hours. One of the four is dedicated solely to computers - in movies, in business, in communications, in whatever - and includes a sizeable PC lab, sponsored by IBM, where visitors can do anything from playing games to learning Visual Basic to surfing the Internet. If you aren't travelling with your own modem, this may also be one of the few places you can get online as the cybercafe trend has not yet hit the territory. Entry to the museum costs HK$25.