Importing a PS3?

Scooby-Doo

Scooby-Doo

CAGiversary!
I did a search on this, and couldn't find any recent topics, unless I missed something...

I am interested in importing a PS3 and have some questions about it. I noticed that there was White Japanese PS3 from play-asia.com, and I would like to be prepared in case a similar model comes out.

First off, is www.play-asia.com a reliable website? This is where I saw the White Japanese PS3. It is no longer in stock, but I see a few other deals I am interested in...
Maybe there is another website you guys suggest to import from? What do you guys think about the Japanese Amazon website: www.amazon.co.jp ? Any others?

When they say a PS3 is region free, that means it can play both American and Japanese games and movies? Or does it only apply to games (and not movies)? Which types of movie discs does this refer to (BR, DVD,...)?

Also, how different is the electrical hookups? I have a Samsung LNS1952W 19" TV. Unfortunately, I bought this right before they came out with a version that had HDMI capabilities (I know, kills me everytime I think about it). It has a component hookup, regular A/V hookup, DVI Input, and S-Video.

Would the Japanese component cables work with my TV...as in, would I be able to connect them properly with no problems? I read that the power supply of the Japanese PS3 is not compatible with American outletse. Is this true? If so, how could I fix this? And if there is a fix, is it dangerous? Can it hurt the system?
 
Play-asia is a very reliable website. I actually imported my japanese ps3 from them earlier this year (have since sold it). The PS3 is region free for only PS3 games. Everything else is region locked. However, Japan and the US is in the same Blu-ray region so you don't need to worry about that. PS2, PSX, and DVD titles are still region locked though.

As for the hookups, everything is the same. Both US and Japan use the same power and tv connectors. There is an addional wire on the power cable, but it is unused and doesn't effect anything. The US and Japan use the same voltage from outlets. Make sure you are getting the Japanese version and not the Asian version though. The Asian version uses a different voltage standard.

I'm am not completely sure about the component cables, but I would guess that they would work fine. I do know however, that you could use US component cables and there wouldn't be a problem.
 
Thanks for the info. Is there any reason, in terms of quality, capabilities, or functionality, (things that concern this thread) that made you sell it?

Since it seems that I could use a Japanese PS3 without compatability issues, I really want to try and get that White PS3. Although, it seems play-asia.com limited their pre-orders.

Does anyone know if www.amazon.co.jp will ship a white PS3 to the US? If so, would you just enter your credit card like normal and it will automatically do the currency conversion?
 
I'm not sure if amazon japan will ship to america (a quick search would find that out). But I do know that if you buy something from Japan with a credit card it will automatically convert the currency. You don't necessarily get a good exchange and there is usually a fee.
For example, I live in Japan right now, and my wife and I bought a TV at an electronics store and I paid with my credit card. No problem, but there was a 16 dollar exchange charge I think from my bank...maybe. But there was an extra charge.
 
I'm sure I'm pointing out the obvious, but the Japanese PS3 cannot play PS2 or PSX games from other regions. The PS3 games however, are region free. You probably already know this, though...just a little FYI.
 
[quote name='Scooby-Doo']Thanks for the info. Is there any reason, in terms of quality, capabilities, or functionality, (things that concern this thread) that made you sell it?

Since it seems that I could use a Japanese PS3 without compatability issues, I really want to try and get that White PS3. Although, it seems play-asia.com limited their pre-orders.

Does anyone know if www.amazon.co.jp will ship a white PS3 to the US? If so, would you just enter your credit card like normal and it will automatically do the currency conversion?[/quote]

the main reason i sold it was because i decided that I wanted backwards compatability for US games. I also wanted to be able to upscale my Region 1 DVDs.

What really helped though, was that I was able to get $450 for it right after the drop was first anounced. I then turned around and applied for the Sony Card and got an US version off of amazon for $500. Making $50 to switch systems helped the decision.:D
 
how about the online thingy.... will the Imported ps3 be able to acces the US marketplace, PSN or whetever they call it for the ps3 ?

Will the import one be able to play with us players etc etc..... sorry im kinda noobish bout this part
 
[quote name='yuckfou']how about the online thingy.... will the Imported ps3 be able to acces the US marketplace, PSN or whetever they call it for the ps3 ?

Will the import one be able to play with us players etc etc..... sorry im kinda noobish bout this part[/quote]

You will be able to use the US marketplace by creating a US PSN account. Whether or not you can play with US players I'm not sure about. When I did have it, none of my friends had one so I didn't really care. Nobody was using a mic in the games I played so I couldn't tell from the voices. I want to say yes as long as you have a US PSN account, but you might want to get a second opinion.
 
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