Hong Kong iPad lovers: Paying for the hype

Hong Kong iPad fans barely blinked when they paid around US$950 for the device, a significant mark-up from the US retail price of $500. The enthusiastic, such as Hongkie Town, think the grey market prices are totally justified.

The same Apple-crazed gadget geeks probably paid US$1,300 for an iPhone on the grey market when it first launched in the US in 2007. The iPad is a bargain in comparison.

But the value of the iPad on Hong Kong's grey market is already slipping. The Financial Times attributes low demand to the availability of parallel products, like the "shanzhai" copy-cat iPads available just a hop and skip away in Shenzhen, and the fact that Hong Kongers cannot input traditional Chinese characters into the iPad.

Fans who have bought the device have some interesting things to say about it, such as the two Hong Kong reviewers who posted on Neonpunch.

Ben Cheng, founder of Oursky.com, called the iPad an "ergonomic disaster" and lamented the lack of Flash support making it impossible to watch shows from tvb.com.

iPhone game developer Jeff Lyndon of Humble Gaming says the iPad is a decent replacement for his visual portfolio and that he's "in love" with reading on the device.

Got something to say about the iPad? Let everyone know in the comments box below.