IT'S a mission I regarded with trepidation.

Reams of advice have been published - how to beat the crowd, find great bargains and above all, get out unscathed and satisfied. With this in mind, I went down to Suntec Convention Centre to check out the PC show. 

My main aim? Buy an external hard drive to alleviate the pressure on my desktop hard disk, which is bursting at the seams with music, movies and television shows. Surely not too tall an order, even if it was to be my first experience at a PC show.

As it turned out, I emerged after two hours with nothing to show for my efforts. Why am I not among the thousands at home now gawking at the sharp picture on their new HDTVs, or blasting music on their new hi-fi systems? 

Definitely not my colleague Sherwin, whom I went to the show with. He gave plenty of good advice as we pushed  through the crowds, most of whom were bargain-hunters: Keep taking brochures, make notes on interesting products for future reference; always remember the location of booths you may want return to later; and, focus on the product you want and dutifuly make comparisons across brands.

Easier said than done for a newbie like me. I turned into a minnow in a very small pond, swept around by the legions of bargain-hunters. My eyes strayed from dollar signs and product specifications to gawk at the "lelong" salespersons offering five cut-price sets of LCD televisions every hour. And who can ignore the salesgirls clad in revealing outfits? 

There was no lack of offers and heavily discounted merchandise. There were exhibitors offering all manner of PC and console games at reduced prices. Sales presentors were shouting their special prices and freebies. After a while, the sound of people moving around, making their enquiries and haggling for good prices started to blend into one.

It wasn't long before I felt  overwhelmed. My eyes couldn't decide on what they wanted to focus on.

Go for just over $100 for a 640GB, externally-powered hard drive? Or settle for a 320GB gizmo but reap the benefits of having that hard drive with portability?

I was too preoccupied shielding my slingbag and valuables from every person suspiciously bumping into me to think about my decision.

I left empty-handed and tired. I couldn't be 100% sure there wasn't a better deal somewhere in big exhibition halls and just couldn't decide.

On the whole, the PC Show was an enlightening first experience. My biggest mistake was letting the number-crunching, the $10 price differences here and there get to me.

As a student I've limited financial means. Next time I'll focus on what I want to buy and ignore the rest.

Ian Poh is an intern with Digital Life.