Mong Kok Computer Centre

Of the several technology shopping centres in HK, so far, I have visited Sham Shui Po, with the next on the list being the Mong Kok Computer Centre, so after the usual breakfast fuel up and a quick trip on the MTR, I arrived at Mong Kok station and, not having a clue which exit to take, went hunting for signage.

Shock horror, I found a local map in the station with the computer centre clearly marked, so I headed for the specified exit.

Getting to the exit, I find it's raining, and no, I do not have an umbrella with me. Not good ☔

But right in front of me was a street seller who had some, so after a short run in the rain, I had both hydration and a new umbrella.

So, umbrella in hand, I head down the street in search of the computer centre; thankfully, it's not that far, about a 10-minute walk.

Getting to the computer centre was the next problem for the day; it was around 11:30 in the morning, so I expected most of the centre stores to be open.

But for some reason, the whole place was dead, with only one store in the process of opening.

Hmmmmm, after a quick discussion with the store owner, it seems this centre usually opens in the afternoon.

Interesting, as I had visited other centres around this time, and everything was open. I have no idea why this one is different, and the store owner I was talking to did not know.

No real problem, as it was only about 20 minutes to wait, so even with the rain, I decided to go for a wander around the area.

Not really much to see, just market stalls in the process of slowly opening.

Anyhow, I found a public park and wandered in to see what was there.

Not much, just a sitting area, some public restrooms, and a small play area for kids. A few locals were wandering around; some gave me the crazy tourist look, which I responded to with the usual smile.

Anyhow, the rain had finally stopped, and it was afternoon, so I headed back to the computer centre.

That was the next problem of the day; I got myself turned around and was basically lost.

With the help of Google Maps and talking to several very helpful locals, I got myself oriented and found my way back to the computer centre.

And yes, I did walk past the huge sign several times, oh well, now I know the area way better than I did before. 🤦‍♂️

This centre is smaller than the last one I visited in Sham Shui Po, but very organised. The security at the entrance was a good sign.

Heading in, past the security, who nodded hello to me as I walked past them, the first thing I noticed was the lack of escalators, which, this being HK, was more than a little unusual.

Not a real problem as I need the exercise 🪜

Anyhow, heading up to the first level, it was a repeat of the Golden Computer Centre in Sham Shui Po, on a much smaller scale.

Wandering around, I noticed the same products on offer: bits and pieces, laptops, lots of gaming tech, etc.

Hint: Check out this shot; see all those flyers on the wall; they are usually worth checking out, as these shops have limited space to show everything they have. Skip these flyers, and you may miss a bargain. 💡

So, checking out the shops, most were the same as others that I have visited, with the exception of one, which had some home automation offerings.

Finding this sort of thing in a retail centre was very much unexpected but most welcome, as I did not expect to see anything.

This is one of my interests, as I am implementing this sort of thing back home, so I go in and start looking around; one of the staff said hello and asked if I needed any help.

I just answered that I was looking, and the staff left me alone. It was a very positive interaction, with zero sign of being pushy.

So, after some looking around, I found a few items that were of interest and engaged the staff with some questions.

The staff member I spoke to did not know, but went away and found someone to help me.

After some discussion, we haggled a little, and I made some purchases.

As for the prices for the items I purchased, the prices I ended up paying were a little lower than back home. Not a killer bargain, but still worth it.

The experience with this specific shop was excellent: no pushy salespeople, reasonable prices, and the staff were happy to help.

After that good experience, I continued to look around and check out the prices.

This time, I did have some specific items I was looking for, which were a 512GB SD card for my DSLR and several micro-SD cards for a project I am working on.

I had some reference prices from the Golden Computer Centre, so I prepared well for this.

Interestingly, all the prices I found in this centre for the specific SD card I was looking for were higher than my references and way more expensive than back home.

So, no SD card purchase today, not in this centre anyway. And no haggling would get me the discount I wanted; the listed prices were too high. Remember, do not low-ball.

As for the other micro-SD cards I was looking for, several stores had these, but again, the prices were higher than my references.

Oh well, you cannot get everything.

Not sure why this centre was more expensive than the Golden Computer Centre. Maybe it's something specific to the items I was looking for.

No step counts for this visit, as I totally forgot to enable the counter on my phone.

And yes, I left my new umbrella at one of the shops I visited, oh well and not the first time; it's usually Sydney buses that eat them. 🤦‍♂️

Next comes a visit to the Wan Chai Computer Centre, and a new one which various local friends tell me to visit at 298 Hennessy Road.