20th Dec 2005 (News)
The XBOX 360 does not officially exist in Malaysia. There is no official release date for Malaysia by Microsoft! When Microsoft recently announced it's Asia release dates, it was only for Japan, Korea & Singapore. Well, Malaysians are saying that they do not need to wait like the Koreans and Singaporeans for the Feb & Mar release dates. We can get it NOW!!
I started looking for the XBOX 360 at online sites, Lik-Sang.com and Play-Asia.com. These are established Hong Kong based online gaming stores. They were ready to ship Japanese version of the XBOX 360 (Commemoration Pack) on the day of the Japanese launch day. Their price were roughly US$440-450, which was close to the US price of US$399 for the XBOX 360 premium pack. This was at a time when Ebay was selling the premium packs for around US$1000.00!
I found that Lik-Sang.com had the best online catalogue and shopping cart system. However they would not accept credit card transactions from me. Apparently this is for high risk countries like Malaysia! Even when I said i would use my Australian issued Visa card, they flatly refused, insisting that I T.T. the money to them. This was a hassle and cost extra. So I tried PlayAsia.com next. They said they would accept my credit card with some extra validation, which was fine. I then proceeded to order. Even though the shopping cart said the console was ready for shipping within 24 hours, after I had placed the order and asked via email they told me the console had sold out and could not fufill the order. They could not confirm if I would get my XBOX 360 before christmas. I then found out that there were XBOX 360 consoles available in Kuala Lumpur, Johor Bahru & Singapore.
So I tried to cancel my order with Play-Asia.com. They asked me if there was a problem and I said that I had to cancel because I could not receive my XBOX 360 in the time frame that I require it. They then tried to process my credit card and requested extra verification a few hours later! I would not confirm the transactions and later that day, they said my order was cancelled.
Via forums like low-yat.net, I found that PC & Gaming shops in Sungai Wang, Imbi Plaza and 1 Utama were selling Japanese XBOX 360 consoles. The price was roughly RM1850 to RM2200 for the console, a power convertor (you need this for Japanese XBOX 360), and a free game. I also heard that there were XBOX 360 for sale in JB & Singapore. At Holiday Plaza JB, I found 2 gaming shops selling XBOX 360. Their price was slightly cheaper than in KL. Around RM1800 - RM1850. This was for the console, power adapter and 1 game (not the Final Fantasy XI beta). As they did not come with any official warranty, I got the shop to test the console to make sure it was working. I got a console with a 500W step up/down power convertor and Ridge Racer 6. There were not many games to choose from. I could not get Call of Duty 2 or Perfect Dark Zero. They will have to wait tille I get to KL or Singapore next.
So is it possible to have an XBOX 360 in Malaysia before Xmas 2005 and not pay extortionate prices in Ebay? Yes! Malaysia Boleh....
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