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[jdforge]

For all us eager beavers in the UK and the rest of the PAL territories, we want to get our hands on a DS as soon as possible. Waiting until Q1 2005, for some just isn't an option.

I would really appreciate help from fellow importers, who have had previous experience importing from the US.

* What retailer is the most reliable.
* How can you avoid the Customs VAT.

Etc, etc.

 

[Falch]

I wondering whether a US DS can play wifi games with a Euro DS. If there's any issue concering region lock-outs of any kind, I won't import.

 

[darscot]

Nintendo has never had region lockout in there hand-helds. So I dont expect them to start now.

 

[KingV]

There are issues with Euro Wi-Fi and US Wi-Fi networks due to the differences in the Euro regulatory commissions and the FCC. There may be issues with the wireless networking between the territories, or they may have settled on a standard that works on both.

 

[MrPing1000]

There are issues with Euro Wi-Fi and US Wi-Fi networks due to the differences in the Euro regulatory commissions and the FCC. There may be issues with the wireless networking between the territories, or they may have settled on a standard that works on both.

bah dont say that make me all paranoid after i've preordered

 

[DeEJaYMiND]

There are issues with Euro Wi-Fi and US Wi-Fi networks due to the differences in the Euro regulatory commissions and the FCC. There may be issues with the wireless networking between the territories, or they may have settled on a standard that works on both.

Is this true??? ..........Link ???

 

[jdforge]

bah dont say that make me all paranoid after i've preordered

Where have you pre-ordered from ?

 

[Kola]

For all us eager beavers in the UK and the rest of the PAL territories, we want to get our hands on a DS as soon as possible. Waiting until Q1 2005, for some just isn't an option.

I would really appreciate help from fellow importers, who have had previous experience importing from the US.

* What retailer is the most reliable.
* How can you avoid the Customs VAT.

Etc, etc.

I'll order from videogamesplus.ca as I've had severe problems with dvdboxoffice.com the past months, although I've never ordered hardware from VG+ (so it might be some kind of gambit...). If the DS will be released in Japan sooner I'll try one of the Hong Kong suppliers like Lik-Sang or Playasia. Probably the latter.

It's quite hard to avoid customs, I think you'll have to deal with that. Thanks to the strong Euro importing will still be much cheaper than buying it somewhere in Euroland.

 

[Shiggy]

But there are no stars included (for the European stars catalogue)

 

[Fowler]

For VAT, the rules I heard were that it had to be valued at less than £30 and marked as a gift. Whether that's actually true or not I'm not sure, but it worked just fine for me while I was in London (left in 2003, in case they've changed it since).

Re: Wi-Fi, I haven't heard anything about any actual problems -- I used a Euro Wi-Fi set-up there, then brought it back to my American set-up here and it works just fine. Maybe it isn't a widespread issue?

 

[mrklaw]

I think the only difference for wifi is an extra one or two channels in either the US or Europe. Can't remember which way round it is.

So hopefully Nintendo would just go lowest common denominator and drop the extra channels. This would mean just one bit of hardware for the world.

It'd be quite easy for the hardware to check what region is connecting to it, and refuse if it doesn't match. But then it is portable hardware, so you could be on holiday and playing with friends.

I don't see region lockout being a problem on DS. On PSP, god only knows.

 

[Kola]

But there are no stars included (for the European stars catalogue)

Well, you've got to cope with that. To tell the truth, I'd surely be not fast enough to get anything from the stars catalogue, because everything that interests me is usually "sold out" when I visit the page.

 

[radioheadrule83]

802.11b should work just fine wherever there's a compatable reception/hardware. And of course I assume Nintendo's own proprietary wireless protocol will be the same the world over...

where you could be screwed is as they localize games. A US version of Mario 64 x 4 may not send / receive the same data as a European copy of the game after it's been fully localised.

Personally, I'm happy to buy the game now and buy a Euro version six months down the line to play with friends if necessary.

 

[MrPing1000]

Where have you pre-ordered from ?

dvdboxoffice but im thinking about cancelling now

 

[Memles]

where you could be screwed is as they localize games. A US version of Mario 64 x 4 may not send / receive the same data as a European copy of the game after it's been fully localised.

Unless you're trying to play over WiFi, I was under the impression you only need one copy of each game when using the BlueTooth wireless, so just use either the European or American Version, not both, case closed.

 

[Dragona Akehi]

No avoiding VAT here, unless you have it marked as a gift and under 30 Euro. And I doubt an online retailer is going to risk Customs on their ass to do you a favour.

Just think of it as your contribution to getting a cheaper DS overall.

 

[Falch]

where you could be screwed is as they localize games. A US version of Mario 64 x 4 may not send / receive the same data as a European copy of the game after it's been fully localised.

That's what I'm worried about.

Unless you're trying to play over WiFi, I was under the impression you only need one copy of each game when using the BlueTooth wireless, so just use either the European or American Version, not both, case closed.

I think Nintendo only implied that it is a possibility, not that every game will support it. Look at the GBA, for some multiplayer games you only need one cartridge (F-zero) but you'll only have a limited amount of options (like tracks, cars etc). If you want all available options, all players need their own copy. And that's where the problem may lie: interaction between US and Euro games.

On another note: how are you going to connect your DS with your PC?

 

[Bobety]

I'll order from videogamesplus.ca as I've had severe problems with dvdboxoffice.com the past months, although I've never ordered hardware from VG+ (so it might be some kind of gambit...). If the DS will be released in Japan sooner I'll try one of the Hong Kong suppliers like Lik-Sang or Playasia. Probably the latter.

It's quite hard to avoid customs, I think you'll have to deal with that. Thanks to the strong Euro importing will still be much cheaper than buying it somewhere in Euroland.

Uh oh... i just preordered SMT3: Nocturne from that site, first time i've ordered from there, what problems have you had with them? Now you've got me all paranoid

 

[Kola]

Uh oh... i just preordered SMT3: Nocturne from that site, first time i've ordered from there, what problems have you had with them? Now you've got me all paranoid

The problems seem to be resolved by now, but the last 3 or 4 weeks a lot of packages didn't arrive. In another very frequented forum, which I visit almost daily, many users had problems with DVDBO. In addition to that their "mail service" is non-existant or it takes up to a week until they answer your questions. By now I've lost two games on the shipping way (TOS and Animal Crossing) and honestly, I don't know if I'll get my money back. I rather pay 3€ for shipping & handling and receive all the infos I need than ordering anymore from DVDBO.

 

[cybamerc]

You may not have to pay VAT if the courier doesn't declare the package. UPS and Fed-Ex always make sure of that though.

 

[Falch]

So, fellow Europeans, where did you preorder? Dvdboxoffice and Videogamesplus both have DS marked down for 250 CAD, which is 200 USD. Pretty expensive. Same goes for DS games.

 

[cja]

Videogamesplus price includes courier shipping. Unfortunately that means getting charged 20% by customs (last time I checked it was 17.5% VAT + 2.2% customs charges on videogame related goods over £18 if not marked as a gift in the UK). Then DHL, UPS or whoever delivers will charge you for shopping you to customs, eh! So that £110 purchase climbs to £140+.

The lack of first party software for the US launch has probably put me off importing this time. If Nintendo offer the same ultra competitive pricing for DS launch as they did GC then a sub-£100 is a cert. Retailers will have some sweet bundling offers if supply isn't tight, that mains adaptor will not need a stepdown and Nintendo of Europe will surely give us some of the niche NCL goodies for launch that NoA do not. Questions over wireless compatibility and region-free software should also be answered by March.

 

[Chittagong]

So is Videogames Plus reliable? Their site looks dodgy. I was hoping to get also my US games from Play-Asia since I have all my other stuff on pre-order from there, but they don't seem to get any other US game than Super Mario 64 DS.

 

[Dynamite Shikoku]

250 CAD is ridiculous

 

[Falch]

Indeed it is. Any US/Canadian import stores with lower prices than that?

 

[Great King Bowser]

So is Videogames Plus reliable? Their site looks dodgy. I was hoping to get also my US games from Play-Asia since I have all my other stuff on pre-order from there, but they don't seem to get any other US game than Super Mario 64 DS.

I've always ordered my US imports from them and received them within 4 days to the UK, and the always marked down my packages.

Subsequently I went with them for my DS preorder, and a preorder of Super Mario 64 DS which was only £21 delivered. Seems Mario 64 DS is the only piece of DS software with a revised price, it was £30 like all the rest of them a few days ago.

But all this speak of customs charges and what not has gotten me a tad bit scared, I've never imported hardware before. Damn you, you fiends.

 

[Kweh]

videogamesplus.ca are fine for games, i haven't ever imported hardware from them. The only place I imported hardware was my GC from ncsx.com, and that arrive customs free.

 

[mrklaw]

how about play-asia.com?

I tried them for the first time recently for Made in Wario 2 and Katamary Damacy, and they delivered super quick.

Price for US DS works out at about £108 including TNT trackable courier delivery.

 

[Falch]

Thx, mr klaw, that seems like a good alternative.

 

[ferricide]

ncsx.com stocks US hardware and software and ships to europe, certainly.

sure, nobody much uses them for that, but i think they do, anyway. tronixweb.com does too, and i haven't used them in a few years but they used to be incredibly reliable, super excellent customer service.

 

[Falch]

Neither ncsx nor tronixweb have DS listed yet. I'll keep an eye on them though.

 

[Shao]

HAH I can't post my own threads yet (when does that activate anyways???!!!) so here I am reviving this ancient one.

I'm about to order a DS from http://www.videogamesplus.ca but something confuses me. You can set the website to show products in GBP, and when I check out it shows that amount.

However when you actually convert the canadian dollars via another service, its actually more expensive, usually by a good amount for example the DS is $199.99 CAD or £88.76GBP on the site, but its actually more than £90 if you convert or using xe.com or if they charge your credit card in $ it translates to higher in £.

So now I plan to pay by Paypal, but I'm not sure what currency to do this in. My basket shows GBP total figure, but is this the amount I can Paypal to them? Won't it show some kind of inconsistency when they change it to $CAD?

Any experience with this?

P.s. How are the pelican screen protectors? Do they stick on with glue? I'd rather not get my touchscreen all gooey.

Thanks guys. Any help is appreciated.

 

[Danj]

HAH I can't post my own threads yet (when does that activate anyways???!!!) so here I am reviving this ancient one.

When you become a "Member", which I believe is after you make 100 posts.

I'm about to order a DS from http://www.videogamesplus.ca but something confuses me. You can set the website to show products in GBP, and when I check out it shows that amount.

However when you actually convert the canadian dollars via another service, its actually more expensive, usually by a good amount for example the DS is $199.99 CAD or £88.76GBP on the site, but its actually more than £90 if you convert or using xe.com or if they charge your credit card in $ it translates to higher in £.

So now I plan to pay by Paypal, but I'm not sure what currency to do this in. My basket shows GBP total figure, but is this the amount I can Paypal to them? Won't it show some kind of inconsistency when they change it to $CAD?

Any experience with this?

This probably indicates that their exchange rate calculator sucks. You should pay them in CAD, since the GBP figure they indicate is for comparison purposes only and does not represent the real price (it'll likely say something similar in their terms and conditions). Also don't forget the shipping costs, if any.

 

[Dazzla]

VG+ are top quality, I've not got any experience in paying in Paypal, but if you buy in GBP that's the price you get charged.

Also when importing something like a DS into the UK for you they can (or by default, can't remember, I asked) mark the package down so there's no customs fees. Customer service is top notch as well, feels very personal.

 

[Deleted member 1235]

VG+ are top quality, I've not got any experience in paying in Paypal, but if you buy in GBP that's the price you get charged.

They really are good. I get DS games to NZ in under a week. and I always pay exactly what the bill says online, no customs malarky. don't know about the DS unit though. DS games always get through NZ customs marked as "toy" :lol no fees. costs me around 58 CAD for a game. which is about 15 dollars cheaper than what I get them for here, six months down the track. I'm not worried about going online with it either, it will be fine.

 

[aoi tsuki]

802.11b should work just fine wherever there's a compatable reception/hardware. And of course I assume Nintendo's own proprietary wireless protocol will be the same the world over...

where you could be screwed is as they localize games. A US version of Mario 64 x 4 may not send / receive the same data as a European copy of the game after it's been fully localised.

The data should be the same, but there's differences in the WiFi channels supported in the US and European flavors of WiFi. IIRC, US WiFi goes up to channel 13, whereas European only goes to 11. Theoretically, you'd be safer with a US unit as it would be a bit more flexible in terms of channel selection.

 

[Deleted member 1235]

also, I would like to point out that dvdboxoffice was absolutely shocking for me and my flatmate. I will never use them again. things sit as "pending" for a week plus and they don't reply to queries. Then you send them a rude email cancelling the order and a bot returns a message saying "thanks and don't hesistate to call again!"

dorks.