Feb 20, 2015

Amateur Radio / HAM Shopping scene in HongKong : A first hand experience!!!!

I recently visited Hongkong on an official trip so tried to take some time out to check for some HAM stuff and look at what items you get and any price benefit . Contrary to what people say that that are plenty of shops , technically there is only one street in Hongkong where you get some decent amateur radio stuff and that too hardly 4 to 5 shops which have the true amateur range . Offcourse for someone from India where I don't think you even have even one decent dedicated Amateur radio shop , its still felt like paradise with such wide range and display . Offcourse the overall market had items which felt like a gizmo world all together from some science fiction movie . Apliu Street runs parallel to Cheung Sha Wan Road between Yen Chow Street and Nam Cheong Street. An easy way to reach it is to get off at the MTR Sham Shui Po Station. Use the A2 or C2 exit and you will be ascending directly into Apliu Street. You can easily take a taxi and show the driver the location on map or phone. 
Apliu Street has a huge flea market containing electronicselectrical components, and related items. A shopper can find both new and used merchandise in the area. Apliu Street is well known for geek shopping, and at one time it had an unsavory reputation as a "thieves' market".
Firstly the available few shops mostly stock only some cheap Chinese brand like BAOFENG , TYT etc . Wouxun I guess is considered a high end chinese brand known for quality and hence only available if you specifically ask for and not readily displayed or stocked . A typical display in the showcase is as below with models starting from 150 HKD upwards and defenitely cheaper than you get in India , you can bargain to some extent. 
While Apliu Street is famous for electronic parts, the Golden Shopping Arcade found on the other side of Cheung Sha Wan Road is famous for computer hardware and related items.


Two shops I visited are below , first one owned by Mr.Alan and other is this lovely lady called Ms.Yu . I was looking for specific models and both were courteous and kind enough to help me with arranging those models. Spoke to both for quite some time and Ms.Yu was very pleasing in explaining various products, clarifying doubts and offcourse giving some decent discounts also. Picked up the new Wouxun KGUV8D handy plus some accessories at HKD 900.


One another shop which sells on Japanese or US make and offcourse expensive but quality stuff is CQ Shop Hongkong and has very good display and the Manager Mr.Hung is a very professional and knowledgeable person. The shop pics as below.  

CQ Shop
Mr Simon, H.K. Hung, Manager
252 Apliu St, Sham Shui Po, Kowloon, Hong Kong / HOURS: 11AM-7:30PM Mon-Sat/ CLOSED SUNDAY
(852) 2708-7161 or 2728 1180 Fax 2708-7164
E-mail: Info@CQShopHK.com
http://www.cqshophk.com/


Anybody visiting Hongkong and wanting to check out some HAM stuff can directly go to Apliu Street and visit these shops which are only true shops selling Amateur stuff in Hongkong. 

G.Vipin Shankar
VU3NKQ
ChennaiHamsBlogspot Team

3 comments:

  1. Hi,im Javier, CX5DN
    I will be in hong kong next June and I'm looking for some good Ham Radio Store there. Im thinking in CQSHOP, do you have visited this store? Would you recomend it?
    thanks a lot!
    73s.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Offcourse I would recommend it , its one of the best HAM radio shops I have come across

      Delete
  2. Dear Sirs Do you stock Tecsun Radios? I am interested in S-8800

    ReplyDelete