Singapore Expats

To take or not to take…

Moving to Singapore? Ask our regular expats in Singapore questions on relocation and their experience here. Ask about banking, employment pass, insurance, visa, work permit, citizenship or immigration issues.
Post Reply
IceWharf
Member
Member
Posts: 20
Joined: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 11:44 am

To take or not to take…

Post by IceWharf » Mon, 30 Apr 2007 11:47 am

Hi All,
Got a great job offer there in Singapore. They will pay for a 20ft container but I still have to make the right choices in what to pack and what not to bother with...

- TV (i.e. ship my old tube or buy a nice LCD) What are the 42inch LCD prices like there?
- Stereo
- Washing machine - would hate to sell there cheap here because tit's top of the range.
- Push bike - is it hell of heaven riding around Singapore?
- Anything that plugs in? Plugs and power output, we have 240v here what do you have there?

That should do for now.

Thanks!

User avatar
micknlea
Reporter
Reporter
Posts: 570
Joined: Fri, 09 Sep 2005 10:26 am
Location: Singapore

Post by micknlea » Mon, 30 Apr 2007 12:05 pm

Where are you coming from?
"My husband said it was him or the cat...I miss him sometimes." - Unknown

IceWharf
Member
Member
Posts: 20
Joined: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 11:44 am

Post by IceWharf » Mon, 30 Apr 2007 12:08 pm

Oops, forgot that bit..... Australia.

rhino
Regular
Regular
Posts: 113
Joined: Mon, 18 Sep 2006 11:14 pm
Location: Shanghai, China

Post by rhino » Mon, 30 Apr 2007 6:49 pm

Umm... can't answer everything but on:

LCDs - prices are same or cheaper in general than Australia. You can shop around and compare prices - I don't know if I would bother shipping an old tube tv (especially if its quite bulky). As an example I bought a 37" LCD about 6 months ago for A$1700, and got S$200 in store vouchers thrown in, and free delivery and setup.

With plugs and voltage, I remembered the movers I went with told me about some service where they change all the plugs for you on arrival. Despite the fact that this service never materialised when I got here, you can buy cheap adapters (about A$4 each) - all my Aussie appliances here work fine - its 220 / 240v in Singapore.

Stereo - you could buy a surround sound cinema set up and use that as a stereo as well as for TV / DVDs. Otherwise FM stereos from other countries work fine.

You'll be pleased to know that cable (Starhub) is a lot cheaper than Foxtel - packages start from about A$30, and if you sign up for 2 years, they usually have some special offer (free stereo, digital camera etc).

Washing machine - if you get a furnished place it will most likely include this.

Can't comment on cycling sorry!!

Hope that helps :-)

User avatar
micknlea
Reporter
Reporter
Posts: 570
Joined: Fri, 09 Sep 2005 10:26 am
Location: Singapore

Post by micknlea » Mon, 30 Apr 2007 10:19 pm

As rhino said, everything will work here just fine, TV is the same PAL etc as there. DVD region is different but if you already have multi region player you will be fine, otherwise you can pick one up in any price range you want here.

The plugs here are british style and so you can use adaptor or change them yourself if you are that way inclined. I did all my own. You might find that some of the clocks run a fraction faster than at home.

Starhub is cheaper than Foxtel, however range of programming leaves a lot to be desired :roll: you will get used to that though. Depends what you like to watch.

Almost all places have washing machine as part of the deal, even part furnished. Note though, that they will probably be front loader not top, so if yours is a top and you want that you might want to bring yours. If it is a large one it may not fit in the laundry area, some laundries are outside so rust is an issue also. Just something to think about.

Cycling on the road here is a bit dodgy. You can if you are brave, many do, but beware the drivers do not pay attention to you. Helmets are not law (!!!) here. There are cycling paths all over the place, mainly shared by joggers etc though, that are good. Mountain bike trails in Bukit Timah nature reserve and other places too. Cycling along east coast and west coast parks is OK, but busy with people who cannot really ride and lots of kids etc...good for fun slow ride, nice long tracks but not for serious riding.

Rhino is right with the TV info too, I saw them cheaper back home at Christmas at places like JBhifi than here, but Harvey Norman here is about equivalent to back home as are the other places.

Good luck with the move.
"My husband said it was him or the cat...I miss him sometimes." - Unknown

User avatar
sundaymorningstaple
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 40545
Joined: Thu, 11 Nov 2004 1:26 pm
Answers: 21
Location: Retired on the Little Red Dot

Post by sundaymorningstaple » Mon, 30 Apr 2007 11:09 pm

micknlea wrote:Where are you coming from?
I'm a yank I I guessed that one! :lol: I don't know of many places other than NZ & Oz that have "push bikes"!

I'm back, and after a week on the farm, the batteries are recharged again!
SOME PEOPLE TRY TO TURN BACK THEIR ODOMETERS. NOT ME. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHY I LOOK THIS WAY. I'VE TRAVELED A LONG WAY, AND SOME OF THE ROADS WEREN'T PAVED. ~ Will Rogers

User avatar
micknlea
Reporter
Reporter
Posts: 570
Joined: Fri, 09 Sep 2005 10:26 am
Location: Singapore

Post by micknlea » Tue, 01 May 2007 12:22 pm

OK, the UK has pushbikes, that's where the Oz & NZ got it from. :roll:
No harm in checking now is there??? :P

You went for only a week SMS?...you must have spent half that time travelling.
"My husband said it was him or the cat...I miss him sometimes." - Unknown

User avatar
sundaymorningstaple
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 40545
Joined: Thu, 11 Nov 2004 1:26 pm
Answers: 21
Location: Retired on the Little Red Dot

Post by sundaymorningstaple » Tue, 01 May 2007 6:23 pm

It was an emergency run with only 12 hours notice. My dad was diagnosed with both colon and lung cancer about a month ago. They decided to to the colon surgery which is a 98% success normal type of operation. Unfortunately it didn't go quite that way and between the setbacks and also acquiring a bilateral embolllism (each lung) he was in pretty bad shape. Fortunately he's pulled out of it and is now in a recuperative nursing home.

Never been to the UK so wasn't aware where the term came from. :oops:

sms
SOME PEOPLE TRY TO TURN BACK THEIR ODOMETERS. NOT ME. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHY I LOOK THIS WAY. I'VE TRAVELED A LONG WAY, AND SOME OF THE ROADS WEREN'T PAVED. ~ Will Rogers

User avatar
Plavt
Director
Director
Posts: 4278
Joined: Wed, 18 May 2005 2:13 pm
Location: United Kingdom

Post by Plavt » Tue, 01 May 2007 7:10 pm

sundaymorningstaple wrote: Never been to the UK so wasn't aware where the term came from. :oops:

sms


:o .......................................... [-X

huggybear
Chatter
Chatter
Posts: 414
Joined: Sun, 17 Dec 2006 9:07 am
Location: Hibernation

Post by huggybear » Tue, 01 May 2007 8:48 pm

i love how every post eventually veers about 180 degrees away from the original topic. anyways, sorry to hear about your father and good to hear he is recovering nicely.

with GBP:USD at 2:00, it's a fantastic time to head there. everything's a real bargain. maybe if you're lucky you may get the one day of sunshine per year haha.

i've never been to australia so can't advise you on what to bring...but since i've posted here i'll offer up some advice on some lesser known stuff to bring that may be cheaper where you are:
multi vitamins
sunscreen
if you work out, protein powder (my favorite is muscle milk)
also when you arrive off the aeroplane make sure to hit duty free and buy your one bottle of liquor, three cans of beer and one bottle of wine.

User avatar
micknlea
Reporter
Reporter
Posts: 570
Joined: Fri, 09 Sep 2005 10:26 am
Location: Singapore

Post by micknlea » Wed, 02 May 2007 12:53 am

Hear hear to all that huggybear mentioned! Very expensive items all here.


(Sad to hear that your trip home was not for good reasons SMS)
"My husband said it was him or the cat...I miss him sometimes." - Unknown

Jeppo
Chatter
Chatter
Posts: 365
Joined: Wed, 14 Mar 2007 9:13 am
Contact:

Post by Jeppo » Tue, 08 May 2007 10:57 am

If you want to compare prices on electronic goods check out www.bargaincity.com.sg which give a relative idea of prices here. Then if you find it's cheaper in Aus you can get it there and ship over (you're not paying for it afterall :D )

LLyap
Newbie
Newbie
Posts: 3
Joined: Fri, 08 Jun 2007 9:14 pm

Post by LLyap » Sun, 17 Jun 2007 6:21 am

I hope my reply did not come to late. Buying electronic products from Singapore is definitely cheaper than import from Australia. Audio House near Clarke Quay has the largest range of products and it is so cheap.

User avatar
sundaymorningstaple
Moderator
Moderator
Posts: 40545
Joined: Thu, 11 Nov 2004 1:26 pm
Answers: 21
Location: Retired on the Little Red Dot

Post by sundaymorningstaple » Mon, 25 Jun 2007 8:59 pm

LLyap wrote:I hope my reply did not come to late. Buying electronic products from Singapore is definitely cheaper than import from Australia. Audio House near Clarke Quay has the largest range of products and it is so cheap.
Somehow I think you are advertising or are just a very poor stupid liar. Here is your latest post a week after the one above. Says there you haven't even arrived in Singapore so bye-bye LLYap.

http://www.singaporeexpats.com/forum/su ... ht=#265685

Oh yeah, this one is for you Shanker, I've got my moderator hat on at the moment.

I would have to agree with Saint on this one. I'm not sure which other board he was talking about but I would assume it was the SF one as I spotted you or your twin their as well.

Moderator
SOME PEOPLE TRY TO TURN BACK THEIR ODOMETERS. NOT ME. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHY I LOOK THIS WAY. I'VE TRAVELED A LONG WAY, AND SOME OF THE ROADS WEREN'T PAVED. ~ Will Rogers

User avatar
micknlea
Reporter
Reporter
Posts: 570
Joined: Fri, 09 Sep 2005 10:26 am
Location: Singapore

Post by micknlea » Tue, 26 Jun 2007 1:00 am

Nice of you to catch up there SMS... :wink: :P
"My husband said it was him or the cat...I miss him sometimes." - Unknown

Post Reply
  • Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post

Return to “Relocating, Moving to Singapore”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 3 guests

cron