Shipping electronics to the DR from the UK

I haven't but perhaps you can use converters to change the current? They sell them at hardware stores/ electronic shops.

DVD and VCR players in the UK work on PAL system, over here everything runs on NTSC, meaning if you could find a way to convert the volts/cycles (even that is doubtful at best) you would still not be able to play local DVD's and videos. In short, leave them there.

The computer - oh heck, by the time you pay customs and shipping and theft - and then it might not work - i would just leave them at home.

Most modern electronic items work fine on both 110 and 220 volt, but just check the range indicated on your computer. My European laptop (made in Asia ) works fine in the DR. What you should worry about is the DVD-player, most only work in one region of the world with a particular region code. So you would most probably not be able to play DVDs you rent or buy here.

Don't do it!........

In Feb I bought a brand new computer with flat screen Dell monitor, CD burner, etc speakers and wireless internet card for about 23750 pesos. I bought it from the computer shop in Sosua. The good thing is that if I have any probs (no probs yet!) then they're easy to sort out with the guy at the shop who's really helpful. He builds the computers himself so can make whatever adjustments you might need. He suggested not to buy a laptop unless it was absolutely necessary because they're difficult to sort out if things go wrong. I've already been back and replaced the keyboard (290 pesos) because of spillages! I think the price was pretty reasonable compared to UK, but the American people I've spoken to think that's expensive....
He also had a reconditioned computer there, which would have been fine for Internet only, for 6500 pesos!

I bought an Akai DVD player here in Sosua for about 3500 pesos last Aug and it's still working. It does play the DVD's (and CD's) I bought from UK along with the local DVD's even though people said it wouldn't.

Obviously any warranty you have on your computer isn't worth having once you're out here anyway. I just wouldn't bother shipping anything (at all!). By all accounts it's just not worth the hassle! My 'father-in-law' took 3 days trying to get his small consignment out of port and it ended up costing him the same again in port fees (etc!) as it cost to ship it!

tish said:

. So, I'm wandering whether anybody else from the UK had shipped electronical goods and whether they had experienced any problems with the workings of them.

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Not blooming likely (speaking personally, that is). We didn't do it 15 years ago & we wouldn't do it now. I did bring my electric carving knife on a much later trip back to UK, but that went into my suitcase. We have 220 in our house as well as 110 so it works.

I didn't ship anything. I put everything (inc lots of English books for my children and myself because I knew they'd be in short supply here) in suitcases. We arrived with 7 x 30 kilos suitcases plus two huge dive/travel bags. The excess baggage I paid with Thomson and First Choice (I made another trip on my own a few weeks later) was 8 pounds sterling per kilo ONE way. Nobody checked our bags and I had nothing stolen. I felt that this was the easiest way to do things, but I kind of wanted to downsize and 'shed' a lot of things before I came here because I was a serious hoarder in UK! You can book excess baggage in advance if you want to. The airlines won't carry suitcases over 30k each so be careful.

If you book the premium service with First Choice you get an extra 10k baggage allowance. I booked this the second time and it only cost me an extra 60 pounds online (making my flight price 269 return!) so I paid an extra 60 pounds but saved 80 pounds in excess baggage charges. The premium service was well worth it, priority check in/baggage reclaim, roomier seats, free drinks (inc alcohol), glass champagne/fresh fruit on take off, choice of meals, extras like ice cream during films, individual films/games to rewind, pause at your convenience, plus all the staff I encountered were fantastic. Well worth it! Very impressed!

I left it till the last minute (as always!) to sell off my stuff in UK, but I should have been more organised and put things on ebay so that I got the best prices I could. Hope this info helps.

Oh, nearly forgot! The warranty on my computer.....because the guy builds them himself (except the monitors of course) I'd expect him to fix or replace things up to about a year. I see him and talk to him fairly often, so it's a fairly casual arrangement....as are a lot of things here. Probably different if you buy in the bigger cities like Santo Domingo or Santiago.

Sharlene said:

I bought an Akai DVD player here in Sosua for about 3500 pesos last Aug and it's still working. It does play the DVD's (and CD's) I bought from UK along with the local DVD's even though people said it would

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The reason you can play your dvd is because your Akai is probably region free.

DVD is split into 5 regions for different parts of the world.The OP will have more of a problem with the VCR portion of their dvd/vcr combo that being Pal or Secam.

Consider yourself lucky most brands will be coded with the appropriate region code for their region.
No offense but we find that the low quailty dvd players tend to be region free..go figure.
hifiman

You can bring both your computer and DVD player if you wish to.
1.The computer in UK works on 220, (some of the older ones have both 110and 240 settings) but you can get a 110 power supply unit (PSU) here and replace the UK one (not expensive)
2,. DVD players work on 110-240 watts, the cheaper ones you get in Tesco's etc are for worldwide usage which means they are not set for UK use only. and if you buy the more exspensive ones you can go on line and find the code to unlock them, so they will play any type of DVD NTSC or PAL. This is not possible with all makes and models but the majority can be cracked. Just type in DVD code crackers on search engine and it will bring up couple of sites, type in make and model and it will tell you if it if possible to unlock the DVD from which ever it is set on i.e PAL only or NTSC only.
How do I know all this is becaus of 2 things, one I brought my computer (self built) and DVD player with me and two I was a computer repairman in a past life for 10 yrs so know what I am talking about.
Whirley's other alf

hifiman said:

Consider yourself lucky most brands will be coded with the appropriate region code for their region.
No offense but we find that the low quailty dvd players tend to be region free..go figure.
hifiman

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I always find it strange when people start a sentence with 'no offense' and then proceed to do exactly the opposite!

Actually the dvd player that I have is perfect quality. The picture's perfect, the sound's perfect - what am I missing? I don't understand what the 'go figure' comment means.....

Actually, now that I've read whirleybird's info, it appears that it is possible to crack these codes so that everybody can be as 'lucky' as me!

tish said:

Hi Sharlene,

You had 7 suitcases? Between how many of you? I think I would definitely go over 30 kilos, because of the amount and size of text books I possess.

Carrying the excess baggage with you in suitcases sounds alot easier, but unfortunately I've already ordered and filled 6 t-chests. I'm not planning on shipping anything more now. Definitely not shipping my computer or DVD player based on the advice I've been provided with on this message board.

Thanks alot for the info. The premium service with First Choice sounds like a plan, since the airline provide an extra 10k baggage allowance.

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Just for the record that was Charlie's info as I know nothing about electronic equipment - even have trouble working our own TV!

How are you planning to get your 6 T chests to DR Tish?

Leave the electronic equipment back in the UK, DO NOT waste your time shipping it here. Despite the voltage differences and video differences, many electronic items here are built for the Latin American market. e.g. Voltage regulators that can handle higher voltage swings. Plus when you buy here in some cases you have warranty

Okay, I've checked with the guy at the shop I bought my computer from and verified that it does have a year's warranty It's not something I worried about too much when I bought it, because I already knew the man at the shop through a friend and knew that he provided good back up service if there were any problems. That's really why I chose to buy locally rather than going to Santiago for example. He's also carried out repairs for friend's computers which weren't purchased from him (for a fee of course).

Sorry Tish, didn't answer your question about 'how many' of us there were re: number of suitcases. There was me, my partner, my 5yrs and 2yrs old daughters. My youngest daughter wasn't 2 at the time of flying, but purchased a seat for her anyway a) because I had flown with her on my lap previously and it was an absolute nightmare and b) to get the extra baggage allowance. In theory, compared to basic shipping cost, it was probably not the 'cheapest' way of doing things, but I wanted everything with me when I arrived and just didn't want the hassle of shipping and not knowing how much extra I was going to have to pay on collection.

The TV & DVD that I bought in PoP for the apartment are dual multi region, PAL/NTSC so will play DVD's that you bring with you but you need to check when you purchase because not all are. Desktop computers generally have a switch on the back where the power supply is which you move from/to 110v/240v. Laptops are fine.