So apparently there are different formats for DVDs depending on which country you live in...

[redqueen]

dangit!

I was all set to order a birthday present for someone. And now it's gotta get all complicated.

x(

[Rabrrrrrr]

1. Yep. Stupid, isn't it?

But that's the way it goes.

[redqueen]

2. It's very annoying!

Especially when Amazon screws up and mysteriously changes the quantity of items I've ordered and I end up having to re-enter stuff three separate times just to get to this point.

:crazy:

[Forkboy]

3. Do you know what kind of DVD player the recipient has?

Some, especially many newer ones, are region free, meaning you can watch any country's DVDs on your player. Some older ones can be adapted by burning a program onto a CD and putting in the DVD player and "flashing" the DVD player bios to allow it to play other region discs as well.

You can even find relatively cheap region free DVD players these days. A bare bones one could probably be found for under $50.

[redqueen]

4. Nope... but he has a computer that can play it...

so he said just order it anyway.

Stupid formats. :P

[Lydia Leftcoast]

5. Yes, I was going to suggest that if all else fails, most newer computers

will play any format of DVD.

When I got paid for a big job this spring, I bought a region-free player from an outfit in Chicago and an amazing number of DVDs from Amazon UK (mostly older TV series) for a low price.

[Forkboy]

6. Hey, he could do that, too.

:)

[Twillig]

9. Yes, What he said. I got a cheap region-free one.

It also does PAL to NTSC.

For about that magic price of under 50 bucks.

Not as slick to use compared to my other dvd/vcr player, but it plays everything.

Looking online now for my player I see:

Phillips dvp5140/37
$45.95

Putting the brand and model number and the word 'hack' into google finds me the way to make it region free. It's done just using the remote control.

Bingo!

[Redstone]

7. Not surprising that you didn't know that, given that it's so illogical.

You can try to figure out what the point of "regional" DVDs is until it gives you a migraine, and you'll still never make sense of it.

Redstone

[sentelle]

10. the 'point' to region coding

Is $$$

Some places are able to charge more for dvd's. Some less, the reason for this, is so that you cannot buy a movie set for purchase for $1 from HK, and bring it to the US. The $1 dvd won't work here, so spend the $75 for the same movie (in region 1 rather than region 3) as in a legit store in HK

[jberryhill]

11. ...and so the producers can cut deals with different distributors in different regions /nt

[MrCoffee]

8. Totally off topic: redqueen, I posted this for you yesterday

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x8017701

yet noticed that somehow you failed to comment. :cry:


i thought you of all people would find that hilarious.