Phillips BDP2100

[sintiow]

thks to this site, i managed to get my BDP to be code free !
now i can watch all my BR discs.

one more problem... when i tried playing the BBC "LIFE" (blu ray) narrated by David Attenborough, the player just could not read any of the 4 discs.

is this a region issue?

the discs are new and good and they work well on my other Sony BDP player

would appreciate some help

thks

[hech54]

thks to this site, i managed to get my BDP to be code free !
now i can watch all my BR discs.

Except these right?:

when i tried playing the BBC "LIFE" (blu ray) narrated by David Attenborough, the player just could not read any of the 4 discs.

is this a region issue?

You MAY HAVE made the player "Region Free"(for DVD), but you didn't make it "Zone Free" (for Blu Ray).

[sintiow]

hi hech54

i guessed as much
can you point me the way to make it so?
what is the code for bluray region free?

thks

[hech54]

Nope. You can count on one hand the number of Blu Ray players that can be made Zone Free for Blu Ray playback.

[sintiow]

ok...thks...
i must say this is the first time i heard blu-ray players are zone coded
always thot that applied to dvds only
such a pain

thks anyway

[hech54]

Some retailers and manufacturers alike have resorted to calling Blu Ray zones "regions", supposedly to end confusion somehow. However there are far fewer Blu Ray "Zones" then there are DVD "regions", and they are letters vs. numbers.
Either way...99% of Blu Ray players require HARDWARE modifications to allow them to play Blu Rays from everywhere.
Many people will come along and say that it doesn't matter because most Blu Rays are "zone free/region free" anyway, then they get shot down by people like you with a region/zone problem. They won't be commenting in this thread obviously.

[jman98]

I admit to just being completely baffled by this. OP says the discs work fine in his Sony but not his Philips. I would have expected the exact opposite. If it is a region or zone problem, why can the Sony play them when Sony players are as notorious as they come for NOT being able to be made region free?

Typically when a user encounters a zone problem, the disc or the player will give an error message. Some BluRays show a special screen that explains that the disc wasn't coded for the region the player is in. Sometimes the player gives an error message that may or may not be helpful. What exactly is happening with the Philips when you play them? What region are the BluRay discs coded for? The box will say A, B or C or all 3. Is there anything special about the Sony that you aren't telling us, like it was bought in Europe or you bought it from a re-seller who made it region free for DVD and BD playback?

Finally, I don't think this is the case but I'll mention it just in case. In the past year or so it's become apparent that BluRay allows for type of region or zone coding that goes beyond the usual A, B or C. We've had reports of some zone A BluRays made by Criterion in the USA that won't play on zone A players in other parts of the world. Similarly we've had reports from anime fans that Japanese zone A BluRays they've bought refuse to play on US players. Nobody seems to understand this. If I had to guess, I'd guess that the BluRay is checking the DVD region somehow and refusing to play if the DVD region doesn't match the one where the BluRay was licensed as Criterion is only allowed to produce BluRays for the USA and Canada. Years ago this was not being done. If something was licensed for region A, for example, then every region A country could play it.

It is possible to rip (but only with commercial software like AnyDVD HD) and re-burn BluRays to make the region free, but I am still at a complete loss to explain why this Sony player can play the discs if that (region or zone problems) is really the problem here.

[sintiow]

hi jm98

my other bdp is at my main house in the city
let me bring the LIFE discs back there to try again just to confirm
and i will let you folks know the sony model number.... i remember is it the low end model...but it works well (except the poor designed eject button.... it is so so flimsy it looks like it will break anytime)

the phillips bdp 2100 will just crank and whirl to try to load but will not load ..till it gives up
the error message displayed is "Unknown Disc" !
btw, both players were bought in australia
i got the LIFE bluray discs in a box....off eBay.... cannot recall from where.

the info listed on the 4 disc bluray box is as follows

video format : High Definition 1080p
audio format : english DTS HD
disc format : 4x BD50

no mention at all about regions

i was told this particular show was special as the source material were recorded with blu ray quality equipment
other documentary movies used older format equipment during the shooting
could this be the reason?
that still does not account for why it worked for the Sony player (it is a low end basic model but it works!)

another comment i like to add is the outputs for newer players.....always hdmi or optical
it is a bane for folks like me with very good older amplifiers with only RCA inputs
and to make matters worst, even the 42cmLG tv is so new it only has optical audio output ...
if not, i could have just got the RED WHITE audio output from the tv

now i have to buy a $20 converter to get the optical output converted to good old rca audio format to connect to my av reciever
and i have to buy a power supply 5A for the converter.... webs of cables all over.... and i am no spiderman

thks

[jman98]

Any official BluRay will have the zone info on the box. You just may not know what it looks like. It can often be small and hard to see, but it will be there.

Go here and scroll down about 3/4 of the page to see the A B and C zone codes to have an idea what they look like.
http://forum.blu-ray.com/showthread.php?t=220423
Note that on some boxes, particularly with dark blue backgrounds, the zone information can be VERY difficult to see without something like a magnifying glass.

No, your problem has nothing to do with how the shows were recorded by the BBC. "Unknown disc" is often how players try to tell you "Hey - that disc is from a region I don't support". But again, as Sony players typically aren't region free unless someone willfully modified the hardware, I am at a loss still to explain this unless maybe the Sony player is older and for some reason I don't know about it really and truly is region free for BD playback. If you bought this on Ebay then likely it came from another part of the world and we'll need to know what zone the discs are coded for.

Analog outputs are now officially dead on current model BluRay players. Hollywood honestly feared that people might somehow use them for copying discs so they killed them. Just FYI. Like it or not, you're going to have to get on the HDMI bandwagon eventually.

[sintiow]

hi

this is the one i bought

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/LIFE-Complete-Series-David-Attenborough-NEW-BLU-RAY/1707208...2%26rkt%3D4%26

funny thing is i looked with a magnifying glass...cannot find the region anywhere
but it is stated in this ebay listing as Region B
the sony player i got is from goodguys...which is australian
that must explain why i got no problems watching the bluray disc

the phillips player i got second hand from some one else
he must have bought it from an overseas country
i assumed he bought it locally
i must be wrong then

i guess that explains it all

thks for all the help

cheers

[jman98]

Yeah, probably should have mentioned to begin with that the Philips wasn't bought by you originally... oh well.

That model is sold in the USA. Philips does have a very small number of BluRay players sold in the USA that can be unlocked, but they only unlock for DVD playback, not BluRay. So yes, I think we now have an explanation - the BluRay discs are zone B and your USA/Canada market Philips BluRay player can't play them for that reason.

[marlboro_man]

Try to upgrade the firmware.
The latest firmware (BDP2100 all strokes except /F7, /F8) - http://download.p4c.philips.com/files/b/bdp2100_79/bdp2100_79_fus_eng.zip
Installation instructions - http://www.p4c.philips.com/cgi-bin/cpcontent.pl?ctn=BDP2100/79&dct=FUS&did=ENG&reldct=...scy=AU&slg=ENG

That model is sold in the USA

That model is sold all around the world. BDP2100/F7 is the USA version. BDP2100/79 - Australian version. BDP2100/12 - EU version.

[sintiow]

Ok...thks.
I will try first thing tomorrow to see if it works.
Cheers

[jman98]

Upgrading the firmware will NOT fix a zone problem. I don't know why he even suggested it. In fact, upgrading the firmware may well break any ability the player has to even play DVDs region free. You've been warned. Proceed at your own risk and know that you may not be able to downgrade the firmware if you don't like the new one as some player don't allow this at all. I don't know whether Philips has this restriction or not but if you do apply it, you should do so under the assumption that you can't go back, it may not help, and it may make things worse.

[marlboro_man]

What "zone problem"? Did you even read what the OP said? The OP said:

"the phillips bdp 2100 will just crank and whirl to try to load but will not load ..till it gives up
the error message displayed is "Unknown Disc" !"

Does THAT look to you like a "zone problem"? Not to even mention that the BBC "LIFE" Blu ray is region free!

In fact, upgrading the firmware may well break any ability the player has to even play DVDs region free.

Upgrading to the current Philips firmware will NOT break anything - it's not an old Insignia or LG player. But it may actually fix the playability issue of the OP's discs.


p.s. I think I'm having a deja vu.

[sintiow]

Hmmmm..... So, do I upgrade the firmware?

[sintiow]

the mystery deepens..

this morning i read the manual for the first time (oops)

it states it will play BluRay discs from Region B...ie australia and nz

funny...my LIFE discs are also meant for Region B as stated in earlier post
only possibility now is the disc was damaged for some reason from the last time i played in on my Sony
i will try this in a couple of days time in my city home

will report accordingly

ps. has not updated the software for now till i am sure it will not affect my dvd "0" region playability

Yeah, probably should have mentioned to begin with that the Philips wasn't bought by you originally... oh well.

That model is sold in the USA. Philips does have a very small number of BluRay players sold in the USA that can be unlocked, but they only unlock for DVD playback, not BluRay. So yes, I think we now have an explanation - the BluRay discs are zone B and your USA/Canada market Philips BluRay player can't play them for that reason.

[marlboro_man]

ps. has not updated the software for now till i am sure it will not affect my dvd "0" region playability

It will not affect the DVD region. I have a lot of experience with Philips BDP players, so unlike jman98 I know what I'm talking about.
The latest firmware fixed a lot of issues, including the non-functioning menu on Taxi Driver Blu ray and some SMB network access issues. I don't know if it will fix the problem with your discs but it's sure worth a try.

[sintiow]

ok...will update the firmware then
thks for your response

will let you kind folks know how it goes

cheers

ps. has not updated the software for now till i am sure it will not affect my dvd "0" region playability

It will not affect the DVD region. I have a lot of experience with Philips BDP players, so unlike jman98 I know what I'm talking about.
The latest firmware fixed a lot of issues, including the non-functioning menu on Taxi Driver Blu ray and some SMB network access issues. I don't know if it will fix the problem with your discs but it's sure worth a try.