Electronics

Read this before packing your videos and DVDs. Thailand uses the PAL system for tape coding while the United States uses NTSC. Multi system VCRs can be purchased in Thailand for around US$100. This means that you can play tapes from the United States, however, some homemade videotapes from the United States (NTSC) may not play back on some of the Multi-system VCRs.

VHS-C and 8mm blank tapes for camcorders are available in Thailand. Even if the label says PAL, you can use these blank tapes in an NTSC camcorder. However, if you are planning on bringing a camcorder from the United States you will not be able to make copies of tapes using the Multi-system VCRs in Thailand.
If you plan on buying a camcorder in Thailand (PAL- for at least 50% more than USA prices), you will not be able to play your homemade tapes on VCRs in the United States. Basically, homemade and camcorder tapes need to be converted from PAL to NTSC or from NTSC to PAL. This can be expensive as stores in the United States charge about $30 per tape to transfer. If you bring a digital video camera and buy a desktop computer here for US$600, you can avoid the whole format issue and use software to make CDs of any format you like.

Non-Educational DVDs are widely available and very reasonably priced. If you wanted to bring educational DVDs remember that DVDs in the US play on Zone 1 players. DVD players in Thailand are technically supposed to be Zone 3, but most models play DVDs from all zones. It is possible to convert a one-zone DVD player to play all zones. Many licensed and unlicensed DVDs sold in Thailand nowadays are "all-zones."

Digital and film cameras are 30-50% more expensive here, but there has been some recent reduction in prices. (Fuji and Kodak films are widely available and processing is the normal price if not a bit cheaper than in the US.) The prices are because of import duties, so bring your own camera and don’t claim it on the customs form you will be given on the airplane!

Stereos and Walkmans get the same taxation, so bring your own and double check the adapter before you plug it into the wall! You can get any voltage adapter you need here at a low price. Before you hoist that home theater receiver into a crate though, be aware that good audio equipment is also available here for that same 30-50% more than USA prices, in other words cheaper than the cost of shipping the heavy things!