Category: Starting Up in Shenzhen

Starting Up in Shenzhen

Dispatch from Shenzhen: selfie sticks, karaoke mics and Shenzhen-speed urbanization

Posted on by An Xiao Mina

Editor’s note: As part of her ongoing research, An Xiao Mina was recently in Shenzhen, visiting makers, manufacturers and the Shenzhen Biennale of Urbanism/Architecture. Below are some highlights from her recent Instagram posts, and stay tuned for the follow up post.

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Starting Up in Shenzhen

Robots, Diaper Monitors and Putin: What We Saw at Maker Faire Shenzhen 2015

Posted on by Jason Li

Photo of Maker Faire mascot

Now in its fourth year, the Maker Faire Shenzhen was bigger than ever. Aside from ever-larger booths and robot sculptures (see above), there was also a much larger corporate presence from sponsors, and, given Premier Li Keiqiang’s recent interest in “maker culture,” probably a great leap in government support. In short, Maker Faire Shenzhen has grown up.

As…

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Starting Up in Shenzhen

Hardware Makers Thrive in the Grey Area of Chinese IP Rights

Posted on by Jason Li

From bunnie’s blog:

About a year and a half ago, I wrote about a $12 “Gongkai” cell phone… that I stumbled across in the markets of Shenzhen, China. My most striking impression was that Chinese entrepreneurs had relatively unfettered access to cutting-edge technology, enabling start-ups to innovate while bootstrapping. Meanwhile, Western entrepreneurs often find themselves trapped in a spiderweb…

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Starting Up in Shenzhen

Shanzhai Meets Open Source

Posted on by Jason Li

From Hacked Matter’s feature in the Atlantic:

Take, World Peace Industrial (WPI), a Taiwanese electronic sourcing company located in Shenzhen, as an example. The company’s application technology unit (ATU) spends millions annually to develop reference circuit boards, called gongban 公板 (“public board”). A gongban can be used by a variety of different companies, who either incorporate it in…

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Starting Up in Shenzhen

Join us at Maker Faire Shenzhen in April!

Posted on by Jason Li

mommyhacker

Join us at the upcoming April 6th Maker Faire in Shenzhen!

For starters, Lyn will be speaking there alongside an international cast of researchers, hackers and entrepreneurs. And there are also a series of great workshops, including a course by a “mommy hacker” (pictured above) for kids interested in electronics.

More information…

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Starting Up in Shenzhen

The Hardware Fairyland of Huaqiangbei Road, Shenzhen

Posted on by Jason Li

Huaqiangbei1

Huaqiangbei2

Huaqiangbei3

Photos by Windell H. Oksay, from an Evil Mad Scientist post in 2009. From the hours I spent there last year, it hasn’t changed since then. Note the heavy advertising expenditure from Samsung, who were out there back in 2009 already. 

The electronics markets around Huaqiangbei Road (华强北路) in Shenzhen…

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Starting Up in Shenzhen

An old culture of repair in the underbelly of Shenzhen

Posted on by Jason Li

I currently spend half my week in Shenzhen at my new gig, and am lucky enough to experience life in a new city. I’m based in a residential neighborhood out west; the sound of kids sing-chanting often wakes me up unexpectedly during the week. In addition, I also happen to be part of a large estate with 20+ buildings.…

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Starting Up in Shenzhen

Highlights from the cutting edge of Chinese consumer electronics

Posted on by Jason Li

My picks from the Segbuy (赛格网), an online electronics marketplace with zero shipping fees and a seven-day buy-back guarantee. The online “trading platform” is run by the same company who own one of the famously large electronics malls in Shenzhen (the SEG Building 赛格广场).

Click on the images to go to the product page with more information.

At…

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Starting Up in Shenzhen

Shanzai darling rankles some, faces potential lawsuits

Posted on by Jason Li

Definition: shanzai

Shanzhai (simplified Chinese: 山寨; pinyin: shānzhài) (alternative spelling shanzai or shan zhai) refers to Chinese imitation and pirated brands and goods, particularly electronics.[1] Literally “mountain village” or “mountain stronghold”, the term refers to the mountain stockades of regional warlords or bandits,…

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