For me the biggest changes in Akiba were the closure of Yamagiwa and the buy-up of Softmap by Bic and the following creation of that monstrosity of a store on Chuo-dori.

I think Yodobashi was well enough out of the way to leave most of Akiba untouched.

Softmap used to be great for used media (Do you remember Softmap U-shop at the end of the small street, and U-shop 2? They had great deals on stuff.), grey market parts for your equipment and other not 100% official stuff.

Now they are just loud, nothing special but powerful, due to their Bic Camera connection.

This, and the facelift of JR Akiba to something modern instead of the run-down wreck it was, has done more to change Akiba from what it was then Yodobashi in the background has.

However, the main reason for stores like that closing in Akiba is the advance of internet shopping. You can buy most of that stuff on-line and cheaper then in those small shops.

   I went to Akiba on the 2nd weekend of November 2011 and found it a big disappointment. There are lots of big name stores which are clones of other big name stores found in every corner of the globe. It is pretty lame!

You want a deal?  Go online or  go a store closest to your house in your own country and you’d bound to get better deals and better equipment. 

Equipment made in Japan for the local market will NOT work anywhere else.  Because a.) It works on 100V AC  b.) menus are in Nihongo, so unless you’ve got native level proficiency you might as well forget it!  

c.) I don’t see the wisdom in buying an “International” version of anything. ..if you do,  feel to enlighten me.

Furthermore Japanese cellphones will NOT work anywhere else in the world because the Japanese figured that they’d just best leave that market to the likes of Apple, Nokia, Samsung and HTC.