In NYC, Canal Street was known for several blocks of electronic surplus and new parts stores, they are gone. In Toronto, Canada, King/Queen street still have that today. More common today in Chinatown are phone repair, unlockers, etc.,.
What we have left are isolated stores selling a lot of parts, but it varies by region. Dave reviewed one of the last in CA, Apexs Electronics, is famous. In Canada, A1 Electronics.
i mentioned that blog entry when another member was planning a trip to china a few months back.
i wish we had something like that here in the US! or do we?
-sj