Research
- It's a good idea to research what's available, and what you're trying to buy. e.g. Will it work with what I have? Are there different versions? How do they differ? Will I need anything extra?
- When researching a specific item you want to buy, take a note of the catalogue number if there's one available. With differing transliterations and spelling, search by catalogue number can be especially useful.
- Despite most of the shops I list in my document below being entirely in English, it's a good idea to learn to read enough Japanese for you to navigate through things, and find the Japanese names of what you want to buy. At least katakana (because you will be able to recognise English words), and hiragana for basic Japanese. At least はい meaning "yes" and いいえ meaning "no". I found http://lrnj.com/ useful, a little RPG game where you defend yourself from things by typing the right thing to match the character on screen.
Stuff you should know
- It's a bad idea to call yourself an otaku.
- For exchange rates, use http://www.xe.com/
- Custom rates are harsh. Here in the UK, if they spot it, they will tax everything valued £16 and above, and the customs fee is £8 handling plus the amount taxable. And they will sometimes kick the box around a bit for fun.
- Read up on region restrictions for media - some basics - for DVD, UK is in the same region as Japan and not US, for Blu-Ray US is in the same region as Japan. Video game region territories - depends on the system but usually Japan and Asia are one, Europe and Australasia is one, North America is one.
- The price difference between anime bought from the UK/US and from Japan is incredible. Japanese prices are much much higher. Bandai try and sell in the US at Japanese prices and I don't think anyone is biting. Some Japanese anime fans "reverse import" from America because it's cheaper than buying the Japanese version. However, when it comes to DVDs, if there are 2 episodes per disc for the Japanese version and 7 episodes for the US version, the Japanese version is likely to have better video quality because the US version is compressed down to fit.
- Places like www.crunchyroll.com/, www.viki.com/, www.daisuki.net/ and www.crackle.com/ let you legally watch anime streamed, some free of charge, which is the best price of all. If you're in North America, you can use animesols.com/ too.
- When it comes to shipping from Japan, your options are often: SAL / registered SAL, Air Mail / registered Air Mail, Fed Ex, EMS. Now, SAL is surface; your package will come to you upon the oceans and seas. This is cheap but takes ages and things go missing, so registered is good. Air Mail is faster. Fed Ex and EMS are fastest of all, most reliable, are most expensive, and are almost certainly going to get caught by customs. In the case of Fed Ex, they will pay the customs fee for you to get the package to you faster, but you have to then pay Fed Ex the customs fee, which might have a mark-up.
- Before you think "an art book would be nice", or "some manga would be nice", or "poster-sized calendars would be nice" - watch out, they cost a lot in shipping due to weight, and bulk. But they are so worth it!
- If shopping from ebay, Amazon 3rd party or other small seller hiding behind a big name, research how to spot bootlegs before you commit to buy (especially concerning CDs, GBA and DS games).
- Obey your local laws. Don't try to import anything that's illegal in your country!
Shops
See:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AqwQHfPogTpcdE4wOGVlOGpoOVJMNHNicnJBdUg1bGc#gid=0
Rule of thumb
If I wanted to watch an anime series, I would look for a streaming site. If I wanted to buy an anime series to keep on DVD / Blu-ray, with English dub/sub options, I'd have a look on Amazon, or RightStuf (especially if it was in a Rightstuf sale).
If it hadn't been released in English and I really really liked it, or there was some other reason I'd rather buy the Japanese version, I would go to Anime Jungle to see if I could get the DVD / Blu-rays 2nd hand but in top condition with possible first-press extras.
If I wanted a brand new regular edition CD / DVD / Blu-ray / console game from Japan or Asia, I would go to Play-Asia.
If I wanted to buy a brand new Blu-ray, DVD or CD direct from Japan, or pre-order, and have a chance of getting bonus first-press items, or a limited edition copy, I would go to CD Japan. I would also go there for calendars and regular editions, if the pricing is good or I have loyalty points to spend.
If I wanted to buy brand new import console games, I would go to Play-Asia. I don't mind Asia-edition games, they are often slightly cheaper and come with a quick start sheet in English for Hong Kong players.
If I wanted to buy a second-hand console game or brand new doujin game, I would go to Palet Web. I might also try Japanese Retro Video Games for second hand video games.
IMPORTANT EDIT 11th February 2014: I recently discovered a new favourite importing shop, which I thoroughly recommend. It's Nin Nin Game, they sell games and figures, and a small selection of CDs etc. The reason I like them is because they will ship goods through Amazon France, which guarantees no custom fees. So far I've bought one item from them (an Ika Musume Figma!), and it took a little while to arrive it was worth it.
IMPORTANT EDIT 11th February 2014: I recently discovered a new favourite importing shop, which I thoroughly recommend. It's Nin Nin Game, they sell games and figures, and a small selection of CDs etc. The reason I like them is because they will ship goods through Amazon France, which guarantees no custom fees. So far I've bought one item from them (an Ika Musume Figma!), and it took a little while to arrive it was worth it.
