Recommendations for DVD Hackable Blu Ray Player?

[naritai]

Been lurking around the forums and the DVD hacks list for a few days, trying to figure out which blu ray/DVD player is best for me and my new HDTV. I've seen threads start out very similar to this, but I never really got any sort of clear answer.

I'm currently in North America (region 1), looking for a decent, relatively speedy and reliable good-quality blu ray player that can also be made to play DVDs from all regions. I don't so much care about making the blu ray side all-region as I don't own any blu ray discs yet, but I have several DVDs that are from different regions.

My options seem to be few. Sony and Samsung are right out, but I read that Insignias are decently hackable. Are they good quality? I've seen mixed reviews...

Or should I just ditch the blu ray altogether and buy a reliable brand DVD player that I can unlock?

Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

[jman98]

Thank you for telling us that you live in North America. That's critical to know. Momitsu has abandoned the North American marketplace but they used to make BluRay players that the sellers had hardware modified to be region free for BluRay and DVD playback. I don't know if anyone still has any left.

Yes, Sony and Samsung cannot be hacked in North America.

Oppo is expensive but it plays everything (VCD, SACD, etc. etc.). It requires a hardware mod to be region free. Some sellers do it for you. Some make you do it.

Insignia doesn't support older formats like VCD and SVCD but if you don't need them it could be an affordable option. I have a friend who has one and while he cares nothing about region free playback, I've seen discs played on his player and they looked fine to me. I don't remember if Insignia plays Divx/Xvid or not but if you can you can look it up.

That's it. You have no other choices in North America.

[oldfart13]

North America being Canada, USA or Mexico? Very important as your choices may be different...

[naritai]

@jman98

Thanks for the info! I decided on the Insignia, but the Best Buy I went to didn't have them, so I just bought a Samsung DVD-C500 and unlocked it. Like I said, I don't have any blu ray discs at the moment, so it's not super-imperative to get a blu ray player now. But when I do look for one, I'll see if I can suss out a Momitsu or like clone.

@oldfart13

Sorry, in the US.

If anyone has any other recs, I'd love to hear them as I'll eventually be in the market for a blu ray player, though this will tide me over for a little while.

[jman98]

I didn't think it was possible to unlock ANY Samsung or Sony players currently sold in the USA so you beat some long odds on that DVD player.

BluRay licensing forbids manufacturers from making BluRay players that can be made region free for DVD or BluRay playback. That's why the North American situation is so grim. Oppo and Momitsu need somebody to put replacement hardware on them to do this. Insignia is out of China and they seem to really not care about Hollywood's anti-region free fetish. But everyone else who sells in this market plays along.

[wulf109]

Look at this

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-DVD-C500-Region-Player-CONVERSION/dp/B0047ESP3E/ref=sr_1...3945152&sr=8-2

[Noahtuck]

Look at this

http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-DVD-C500-Region-Player-CONVERSION/dp/B0047ESP3E/ref=sr_1...3945152&sr=8-2

Recommendations for DVD Hackable Blu Ray Player?

[wulf109]

The original poster bought one of these,not a BR player.

[naritai]

@jman98

I don't think there was any odds to be beaten on this one. I did my research ahead of time. (https://www.videohelp.com/dvdhacks/samsung-dvd-c500/11033)

Not upgrading the firmware also helps.

It's my bday in a few months, so maybe some generous soul to find an Insignia or Momitsu for me. I just don't need blu ray OMGthisverysecond. The upscaling on the Samsung is beautiful-- of course, I'm probably very easily impressed seeing as this is my first HDTV.

@wulf109

There's that. Or you could just buy one at the store and do this: https://www.videohelp.com/dvdhacks/samsung-dvd-c500/11033

Which is what I did. (I also had a coupon for Best Buy )

[Seeker47]

Insignia is out of China and they seem to really not care about Hollywood's anti-region free fetish. But everyone else who sells in this market plays along.

Isn't Insignia one of the house brands of Best Buy ? If that's correct, perhaps a bit surprising that Hollywood hasn't lowered the boom on this major retailer.

[jman98]

@jman98

I don't think there was any odds to be beaten on this one. I did my research ahead of time.

Few do their research, but you might be surprised at how many people post saying that the tried the listed hack for some random model and it doesn't work on their player, so doing the research is no guarantee. You still beat the odds. You maybe lowered the odds a bit with your research, but you still got lucky that the hack still worked. They don't always.

[turk690]

Or should I just ditch the blu ray altogether and buy a reliable brand DVD player that I can unlock?

Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!

At some point you will pony up to blu-ray. When you do, and have some $$ to throw around, sites like bluraymods.com can help. Failing Oppo and Momitsu, they offer real true-blue BD region ABC and DVD region1-6 of any the current popular brands and models (Sony, LG, etc). These players cost an arm and/or a leg, but hey, they are key to finally finding genuine region-free BD and DVD nirvana