# Best value multi-region DVD player ?



## zag (10 Jan 2008)

Our old Black Diamond cheapo DVD player gave up the ghost recently and we need to get a replacement.  We got it originally in Power City for something like €49 a few years back.  I know Dunnes & Tesco sell equivalents but it seems technology has moved on a little since we last bought.

I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions for a good, workable player that does multi-region and supports most of these new things like DIVX that didn't seem to be around last time I bought.

I know I could go have a look around the shops, but I thought a recommendation from AAM would help shortcut the procedure.

Thanks,

z


----------



## truthseeker (10 Jan 2008)

Hi Zag,
I bought a multi region dvd player sunday a week ago for 49 euro - in Power City. Its PowerPoint.
It seems to do all the 'new' stuff (not that Im using it for any of it but the facility is there). I would suggest to you to go to Power City (or local equivalent) and ask for a run down on the multi region dvd players and what they do - they are all pretty cheap - I cant see you spending more than 50/60 euro.
Truthseeker


----------



## michaelm (14 Jan 2008)

I'd recommend a Philips DVD/DivX player (one with a USB connection), not dissimilar to  one or  one.  Powercity have the latter for €99 but unless you have, or plan to get, a fancy new telly then the cheaper one would do fine.


----------



## CCOVICH (14 Jan 2008)

michaelm said:


> I'd recommend a Philips DVD/DivX player (one with a USB connection)


 
What devices are compatible via USB?

I bought a Samsung Home Cinema system with a USB port and the number of devices that can be used is very limited.


----------



## ClubMan (14 Jan 2008)

A common issue is that only _FAT/FAT32 _partitions up to _32GB _can be accessed. If you have a large storage device with a single large partition then some players will not recognise it in which case you may need to partition it with multiple 32GB partitions. Some players will deal with > 32GB _FAT32 _partitions. To partition this way you will need the _FDISK _from _W9x _or some other free or commercial partitioning tool because, as far as I know, the _FDISK _in _W2K, XP _and _Vista _won't do it for you. I don't think that many players will recognise filesystems other than _FAT/FAT32 _(e.g. _NTFS _or _Unix _style partitions). Another issue that I have heard mention of is that it can take several minutes for some players to scan and display the contents of very large storage devices.


----------



## diarmuidc (14 Jan 2008)

michaelm said:


> I'd recommend a Philips DVD/DivX player (one with a USB connection), not dissimilar to  one or  one.  Powercity have the latter for €99 but unless you have, or plan to get, a fancy new telly then the cheaper one would do fine.


I'll second the Philips but get the 5960 if you have a HDMI capable TV. It's got the best upscaling implementation for the price. DVD's look great with them. To be honest, even with blank hard drives lying around, I haven't bothered with the USB connection (yet)


----------



## wavejumper (14 Jan 2008)

bought the philips dvp5160 last month. the usb port accepted my 1gb memory stick and it plays back avi's, divx's and mp3 files no problem.  also it plays back cd-r's with the above filetypes.

I use the component output into a sony lcd and experienced no problems.  also there's very sinple instructions on the amazon website to unlock the multiregion option.  I did it and had no problems playing back a dvd purchased from the states.

was about 50 euro...very good value and trouble free thus far...


----------



## zag (15 Jan 2008)

Thanks for the replies.  I actually went out and bought before I saw all the recommendations for Philips.  I ended up with a Philips DVDR-3480 which has so far not had any issues with anything I threw at it (which admittedly wasn't a lot . . .).  I think it cost €85 in PowerCity.

I went for a DVD recorder since I reckoned it would be usefull for copying stuff from my camcorder direct to DVD.  The man in the shop said it wasn't multi-region (said none of the writers were) when I bought it, although as expected it took me all of 30 seconds on the web to find out the code.  This whole region thing is a joke - it's not as if someone worked out a cunning way to remove the protection, this code (as with many others) had to be written into the firmware by the manufacturer.

I was going to buy one of those DVD/VCR combo yokes so I could record to tape but then I thought about it and realised that it would be a whole lot easier to just forget about video and record straight to DVD.

z


----------



## ClubMan (15 Jan 2008)

zag said:


> This whole region thing is a joke - it's not as if someone worked out a cunning way to remove the protection, this code (as with many others) had to be written into the firmware by the manufacturer.


The hardware manufacturers just play along with the stupid game to keep the media producers happy. It's is all pointless.


----------



## spinal_tap (16 Jan 2008)

Phillips multi-regional in Currys before the Xmas for 44.97. Can't rmemeber the model number, can get it if you need it. It's called the 'one plays all' or something like that. Normally 49.99. Nice, slim bit of kit.


----------



## SunshineSupe (17 Jan 2008)

As noted above, pretty much any DVD player these days can easily be made multi-regional. It's usually a matter of plugging a few keystrokes on the remote control and it should work to play all regions' DVDs.

Just google your DVD's manufacturer and model number along with words like "multiregional" and "unlock" (or something like this) and it should come up with pages that contain the codes for unlocking.

What I found particularly shocking is when we found that the Alba portable DVD cheapo that we bought from Argos was set for Region 1.  It seems to me that a portable player that is meant to travel should also be capable of playing DVDs from around the world.  It took awhile to find the code (especially for a no-names brand such as Alba). But when I did find them, worked like a charm and the Alba plays everything now.


----------



## swally (24 Jan 2008)

zag said:


> I went for a DVD recorder since I reckoned it would be usefull for copying stuff from my camcorder direct to DVD. The man in the shop said it wasn't multi-region (said none of the writers were) when I bought it, although as expected it took me all of 30 seconds on the web to find out the code. This whole region thing is a joke - it's not as if someone worked out a cunning way to remove the protection, this code (as with many others) had to be written into the firmware by the manufacturer.
> 
> 
> z


 
Zag I have this DVD recorder, can you direct me to the site you found the code. Thanks


----------



## ClubMan (24 Jan 2008)

?


----------



## zag (24 Jan 2008)

http://www.videohelp.com/dvdhacks/philips-dvdr3480/8616

You just have to press the keys slowly - not really slow, just enough to make sure that the key presses are registered.  The final 0 in the code is the bit that sets the region to 0 (or no region).

Also note that you may have problems tuning BBC2 on this device.  It seems there is a slight glitch on the tuner when set to Ireland.  If you have this problem, go into the device setup and select Germany as the country, then re-tune.  This info is from the Philips site - http://www.p4c.philips.com/cgi-bin/dcbint/cpindex.pl?ctn=DVDR3480/05&scy=IE&slg=en

Has anyone else noticed that when you put a DVD in and press play with the tray open, the device seems to go into standby mode instead of playing ?

z


----------

