So Gizmodo Australia has been here in Taipei all week for Computex — Asia’s largest computer expo (read all the breaking news). The show has been a blast, but we’ve also ventured out into the balmy night food markets and computer malls — including the famed Guang Hua Digital Plaza. Here’s a look inside six-storeys of technology madness and its surrounding streets.
Normally the place is absolutely packed, but we got there an hour or so before closing.
Organised chaos you might call it.
Australian To Taiwanese Dollars
As I write this, the conversion is about 27 TWD to 1x AUD. A PlayStation for $463 Australian? Not bad. But JB Hi-Fi is around $499. We spotted lots of Nexus 7s, including the 32GB Wi-Fi only model pictured below. $8990 converts to $320 — only a fraction under the official Australian $339 price. Other items like cameras and the Samsung Galaxy Fit didn’t fare much better.
That’s a big change from when I first visited these markets six years ago. Maybe Australians don’t have it so bad after all? One bright spot for tech bargain hunters going to Taipei: Taiwanese brands like Asus, Gigabyte and MSI were definitely a little cheaper. But, of course, buying overseas can make claiming warranty a nightmare.
Let us know in the comments about your experience looking for bargains in overseas computer markets…