TV, radio, dvd, video
These are often supplied by your landlord and set up by your agent / residential management. If not, there are plenty of places to buy them. We have used Wang Jing supermarket, Makro supermarket (you need a free membership card first), Beijing World Electronic Market (look for the sign with the red bell - there's one next to Ikea and one at Dashanzi), Landao, Lufthansa, etc.
DVD players are very cheap in China and are generally of good quality, but be careful when buying that the DVD player you choose does not support regional encoding (a system which prevents DVDs from being played in certain countries). To be sure, try a few DVDs in the shop before you buy.
Computers, internet, and phone
When negotiating your house contract ask if free ADSL is included. Make sure there is a separate phone line for your computer. Johnson at Pinnacle Plaza has been recommended by many people for help with installing computers and solving related problems.
Ask lots of questions. For example, one family bought a computer here, doing all their negotiations in English. When the computer arrived, it was set up in Chinese and unusable for them. They assumed it was obvious they needed everything in English, but they did not specifically ask for it and therefore did not get it! |
Equal Housing
Opportunity.