Topic: South East Asia 3DS

So yeah, I'm currently living in S E Asia, what do you reckon is the best way for me to get (legally) a 3DS?

Any help appreciated, thanks.

Buy one. _{Stealing is bad mmk}

After the US 3DS launch they'll be all over the place in stores. (Depends what country you're living in, though.) You'll probably be able to get both NA and JP region ones. I doubt you'll find any EU region 3DSes though. If that's a problem then you'll have to import an EU one online.

I heard it was coming in April for South East Asia.

Right now I'm in Vietnam. Not sure how long I'll be in this region though, so I've kind of got to choose a region and stick to it as the 3DS isn't region free.

Buy an Australian or a US one

@JafriYakin Good local stores always import them ASAP though, if you know where to look. If it's April then it's just the official distribution date.

@CowLaunch Well there isn't a Southeast Asian region for the 3DS or most any game console, so I generally recommend going with NA for access to the most games in English. But if you plan on returning to and living in the UK, then an EU 3DS would be a better choice.

You should be able to find 3DSes in the cities in Vietnam once it's out, no problem. Make sure to check the region with the salesperson. You can usually ask to open the box and try the device out too, to check its language and condition.

i'd go NA/EU, but that's just me and my inability to read/comprehend southeast asian languages talking (and also my love of actually having games released in my region, which is why i didn't suggest AUS). as for where to buy one, is ordering from the internet an option?

@dragon: Isn't the Australian 3DS a PAL system anyway?

I guess internet is an option, but where on the internets?

Yeah I guess Asian stores will probably/always have 3DS' from the US.

@lz: it is, but they still get left out quite a bit. AUS may as well be its own region completely separate from EU, lol.

@lz The AU region is generally equivalent to EU, but the selection/availability of AU games is often slightly worse than the EU due to having their own censorship board, worse distribution and higher prices. Besides, there's no guarantee at this point that EU games will work on AU 3DSes since Nintendo may yet decide to separate those regions out. Silly move, but who knows.

@CowLaunch Play-Asia is the go-to site for imports in Asia. Beware a potential higher price and shipping costs when ordering hardware online though. It may be cheaper to buy a 3DS locally - I'd look around nearby stores a while after launch to check prices and availability first and then use the internet to compare the online price plus shipping. Then I could make an informed decision about it.

Personally I wouldn't order hardware online unless it was as a last resort. Larger, heavier packages cost more to ship and you'd probably want to use a courier with tracking and/or insurance to make sure it arrives safely.

If ordering online is an option, use www.playasia.com. They take major credit cards and ship worldwide (based in Hong Kong). They'll have US, Japanese, and EU systems. US systems will be cheapest, and they sell more US games than EU games. There's also a great selection of Japanese games, but they are more expensive. They do generally offer preorders too. I always got the cheapest shipping with DS games, which was horribly slow but reliable in China. Definitely get express/insured shipping for a system (but contact them and see if you can get cheaper rates, since you're so close).

If you can't order online, the place that would get it earliest in your neck of the woods would be HK. It is legal to sell modded consoles there, so just be aware of that. Hong Kong would also have the cheapest, most available US systems. Most of the systems I saw around SE asia were Japanese. If you're in Mainland SE Asia, I'm sure you'd eventually be able to find US systems in Bangkok - MAYBE Saigon or Hanoi, I don't know when they would have them - EU will be harder to find. They will also likely be more expensive than in HK.

Since there will probably be shortages in the US, there will definitely be shortages in the import market, which will raise prices to compensate. I'd order from playasia - especially if you'll have to travel significantly to find one, and could end up SOL anyways. You'll probably have to wait a while, but you'll have a guaranteed unit at a guaranteed price.

Okay, thanks guys. As I'm not desperate for any of the launch titles, I think I'll check out the prices in my locality, and if I deem them too expensive I'll wait until a stellar game comes out and pursue the channels you've suggested.

Thanks a lot.