Computers and gadgets shown off in Korean capital

SOUTH KOREA is breathing down Japan's neck in electronics and information technology development, and its capital, Seoul is a gigantic metropolis comparable to Tokyo in size.

So, there should be some geek excitement here besides the ultra-spicy kimchi and girlie bars originally aimed at US soldiers? I took a look during this current visit to, kind of, summarise the state of componentry and gadget shopping here.

Firstly, Seoul has no Akihabara - by the time Korea took its place near the top of the IT pyramid, the classic "dedicated electronics arrondisement" walkathon shopping sprees diminished in popularity to the online search and comfy air-conditioned shopping malls.

Secondly, Seoul's climate is of a harsher, continental variety compared to near Mediterranean but somewhat polluted Tokyo weather - it is more like, say, New York City. That means hot summers and truly cold winters and, again, running to the enclosed shopping mall safety.

There are several "Digital Complex" areas around the periphery of Seoul, two of them having their own metro stations even - these aren't exactly shopping areas, but more like the places like Neihu or Chungho City in Taipei, where component OEMs have their offices, manufacturing and, in some cases, retail outlets all in one. The two well known ones, with the subways of their own, are Gasan Digital Complex and Guro Digital Complex, both in the south west part of the town.

If you're here for just a few days and don't have time to run around, the best bet is a visit to TechnoMart, a gigantic 12-storey mainly-electronics shopping mall on top of the Gangbyeon subway station. Besides several big outlets and three floors of decent food, it has a zillion small cubicle-like vendor stalls, many specialising in particular areas, like cables, heat sinks, boards, LCDs etc.

Again, it is all air conditioned, and its multiple batteries of lifts and escalators make running around easy. As for navigating around, many sellers can speak some rudimentary English, but good knowledge of Korean - which I don't have - is essential for in-depth negotiations.

Now, what can be unique to the locale, and worth seeing and, maybe, buying? Well, surely not mainboards or graphic cards - Taiwanese took that field entirely.

I'd suggest looking at things like LCDs (Samsung, Lucky Goldstar and a few more), high-end heatsinks like Zalman, and others and mobile phone stuff. Here are some interesting sightings from today's walkabout:

3-D enabled GPS driving assistants: literally every car has them and, yes, according to the sales guys (does one trust a salesguy?) made in Korea. You'll find them in the taxis too and yes, they are kind of pseudo-3D.

I like the idea and the massive spread of these, but somehow still don't believe they're really locally made.

Local phones, cameras & media players: Samsung and the gang lead here - Korea is at the forefront of 3G, 3.5G and all those (barely usable in many places) new-generation phone technologies. However, here, there are plenty of contents to make use of that high-bandwidth connection and occupy your time, and not just Net stuff. Even in the city trains, you'll see many carrying those high-end handsets and even watching digital TV on them. The assortiment of locally made media players is equally matching with funky designs, but the features are standard - I feel Taiwan has an edge on the media gadget front. However, Samsung cameras seem to be, spec wise, on a par with Japan stuff.

LCD displays and TVs: Samsung an LG are biiig international brands, but interestingly, their own TV sets in Korea aren't marketed under those names. Instead, the big ones created specific brands like PAVV for Samsung, and Xcanvas for LG units. However, when you look at the back serial number plate, you find out the real manufacturer. There are also few other local LCD TV and monitor brands, like NexWide, for instance.

Notice the LCD TV and monitor sales there - for a simple conversion, count 1 US$ = 920 Won, so an LG 42-inch plasma screen at US$ 800 must sound interesting. Basically, they're dumping the 1024x768 plasma and 1366x768 LCD screens, but even the 1920x1080 Full HD 42-inch unit is on sale too (see photos). As this place has most main TV channels in full HD, such sets are the main sales focus now.

As for LCD monitors, besides some really square looking units on the photos (all on sale as well - around US$ 200 upwards), I was attracted to the Samsung 24-inch WUXGA 1920x1200 LCD, with more of that 'hi-fi button-rich' look than the similar Dell or Viewsonic units. At around US$700, it's not exactly a bargain, though.

Funny looking notebooks: Oh boy, huge square - again - screen on a notebook - haven't seen this anywhere else in this era of widescreen everything, even when it makes no sense. These big units by Samsung and LG weigh like a metric ton, surely not to be carried around in hot Korean - or European - summer weather, but they give you the perfect screen real estate for a, say, medical laptop? Look at the price, around US$ 1,200 - seems this is also a fire sale of the last of their breed...

Korean widescreen notebooks, the huge ones, even have a numeric keypad built in. The small ones have now the 'skin texture' gadget fashion fad as well - look at the Samsung notebook choices here.

In summary, come here if you want to see some local things not available outside Korea, and to gawk at one of world's biggest electronics shopping malls under one roof. It's also an interesting indicator of upcoming trends for some of the goodies where Korea is one of the main producer, like the LCD screen price dumps.

However, keep in mind the voltage, language, standard and other differences - not to mention the price before and after haggling - prior to buying one for home. In any case, the big city of Seoul has quite some soul, and it's quite worth visiting on its own. µ