Anyone know good electronics store in Hongkong/Shenzen?

[Feanor]

I am going on holiday to Hongkong and maybe Shenzen in a couple of weeks. It is not my main reason for traveling there but I may do some shopping for electronics components and gear and save on the postage.

Mainly after the hobbyist stuff.

Resistors, capacitors and inductors, lots of values and power ratings.
Power MOSFETs or IGBTs - TO 264 or brick packages or the like.
Power MOSFET driver IC's.
SMD to through hole adapter boards.
Maybe an LCR meter or function generator if there is a decent cheap one going (I know that is a serious oxymoron).
2X16 LCD displays/ other LCD displays.
You know the usual.

I can not find much info online just try Google for "electronics shopping in Hongkong" and see what you get back.

[tycz]

I'm quite sure there's nothing like a Jaycar style hobbyist electroincs shop in Shenzhen. Of corse there's the electronics market, one of the largest in the world, but unless you speak Mandarin I think you'll have a hard time finding what you want.

I don't know about Hong Kong...

[sonicj]

check here: bunniestudios

"This is Digikey gone mad. It’s as if they let the monkeys into the warehouse at Thief River Falls, Minnesota and spilled it into a flea market in China, and then some."

[Feanor]

Wow, I think that shopping just became a fairly important part of my holiday. Getting to Shenzen legally could be a bit difficult with a Zimbabwean passport but I will give it a go, the SEG plaza looks like quite a sight to behold.

This type of shopping seems hard to find in Hong Kong so far this is all I have turned up.

http://www.weclonline.com/eng/about_new_releases.asp

I am sure this will also be quite an experience.

As for the speaking a Chinese language. I am sure I will get by. I will know what I want when I see it in most cases. After that we just need to agree on the price. A piece of paper and some gesturing should suffice. If it does not then oh well I will have a good time either way.

[sonicj]

not sure if you read through all the comments or not, but there were some other suggestions for shopping locations + some tips on how not to get screwed.
-sj

[Kiriakos-GR]

It looks that  @Feanor, are familiar with the East way of living , and so ,
if some one could help him , just by naming an known store , it would be enough as information to him.  


Feanor I will add, an universal tip .... ask the taxi drivers about such stores or locations with such stores.
I bet that you will find your way to them , and easy   ..  

[metalphreak]

I know you're not going to Japan, but I saw this and it makes me want to go to Japan even more!

http://www.tokyohackerspace.org/akihabara/

[Kiriakos-GR]

I like to go to Japan too, but for another reason ... I like to b?w out of the Honda factory . 

http://dhost.info/ax1/

[Feanor]

Asking the taxi drivers is a great idea! I will take a few samples of what I want to by in case they can not speak English.

I will just show them an IC and some resistors and hopefully they take me to the right place. I wonder what could go wrong with this approach? Where else might I end up after showing a taxi driver in Hong Kong an IC and some resistors?

[cybergibbons]

Apliu Street in Sham Shui Po is where you want to go in HK for most electronics. There are a lot of tool and component shops, a lot of tat on the market stalls, a few amateur radio shops. There's quite a few in Wanchai as well, but they are mostly not shops open to the street and are spread out.

There are other smaller patches of electronics shops. If you see something on ebay you like, it may be worth contacting the seller to see if they have a shop.

[Kiriakos-GR]

Where else might I end up after showing a taxi driver in Hong Kong an IC and some resistors?

DELL monitors Chinese division ..   

[rf-loop]

From Shenzhen to Guangzhou is short trawel with fast train. (and not expensive)

Guangzhou have lot of.  It is "electronics center". What ever you need you find it Guangzhou (or Guangzhou - Shenzhen area).
(If you want buy new electrnics equipments (outside china manufactured) maybe HK prices are more cheap... but other way HK is super expensive place if compare mainland China.)

Ask example some chinese ebay seller who location is Guangzhou (or also Shenzhen). Most of chinese peoples are very kind and maybe they help you if you tell you are visiting and need help for finding electronics (small business "super markets")

Western tourist itself is nearly impossible to find these places in China. (or you find just these places where you only lost you money.)
Take some chinese people to help you. With small money some kind chinese can call his friend and he call his frend and after half hour you know where they all are. Then take Taxi (DO NOT take fake taxi - this is first who you find) or citizen guide. With small money some guide can pick up you every place and he know friend who know etc.. (if you take guide look that he/she is honest) Do not try your self, you loose two days and you do not find anything. (they are not small 2 million peoples villages )

In Guangzhou I find this system example one old mediumbig building. Inside building was maybe several hudreds of small electronic shops. Outside this building you can not quess what is inside.  If you find this kind of place you need one week to look what all it have.
I can not tell address becouse I really do not know. It was not in "new centrum". Some "motorcycle "taxi" pick up me and my chinese wife to this place and after around thousand corners left and right.... Other problem is that if I tell one or two year old info... maybe there is not this street and building anymore and now over it is some modern 50 floor building.

[Feanor]

Thank you for the advice. You are telling me to hire a guide. Spend a few dollars on a guide and save days of searching, plus maybe he will find me some lower prices too. I think I will do this if I go into Mainland China. I will choose my guide carefully don't worry.

At the moment it seems that I will not be able to get a VISA  for mainland China . So I may be restricted to Hong Kong. Unless there is some other way to Shenzen that does not need a VISA, we will have to see.

[Kiriakos-GR]

Currently I have buy from ebay  ( Hong Kong ) lots of stuff ...
Hong Kong are full of gigantic warehouses full of everything . 

I bet that there is no need to search in the mainland at all . 

[rf-loop]

If you have no visa to mainland you can buy nearly all from quite small HK. (in mainland there are some gods and bads and HK some others)

Before someone tell some good street name for HK.

[Feanor]

Thanks for all advice guys I should be okay to find some cool electronics sites, sounds and hopefully bargains in Hong Kong! Only four days to go now! Wooohooo!

[Feanor]

Righto. So if you were wondering the place to buy electronic bits and pieces in Hong Kong cybergibbons was right. Nothing quite like the crazy AEG plaza in Shenzen. I could not visit this as I was bounced at the border.

Apliu Street in Sham Shui Po is where you want to go in HK for most electronics.

Prices are great but you need to walk around with a calculator to be sure. As they vary a bit from place to place but they all beat the pants off prices in Australia which is no surprise.

That calculator also comes in handy when communicating across the language barrier. My favorite find so far has been good old fashioned vero board sheets for HK$5 12cm by 8cm.

The experience is  awesome too, such a different world I have enjoyed every minute. (Well apart from a bowl of noodles who's chief ingredient was I believe mouth wash.)