Region change

[ndreichner]

Region coding is how Hollywood studios stagger DVD movie releases across the planet. These codes ensure that one country doesn't get a DVD movie before the same movie is out in that country's theatres. In their corporate omniscience, movie studios have carved the planet into regions with each region having a specific code.

All DVD players and discs have region codes. A DVD player and disc must be of the same region or the disc will not play.

If you want to watch movies from other countries, you need a multiregion DVD player. This will allow you to play any disc from any region. However, because TV standards differ, you might need a specialized NTSC/SECAM/PAL TV or a DVD player that can output any signal to the standard your TV accepts. TechTV

Is it possible to decode a DVD player from Region 4(Australia) to a region
free Dvd player? If yes, how to do it?

[redwudz]

I moved your post from our Glossary Forum. It's just for definitions, not questions.

What player are you asking about? Some have hacks to make them region free. Some don't. The hacks may have several ways to implement, again depending on the player.

We have a 'DVD Hacks' page to the left. <<< You may be able to find your player there and some info for modifiying it.

And welcome to our forums.

[jman98]

Note that all players cannot be hacked and if you have a player that cannot be hacked, you are simply out of luck here. Hardware changes by the manufacturer during production may break hacks that used to work.

Worst case, you can rip a DVD to your hard drive and burn it to a new DVD. Ripping removes region coding from the disc.

[filmboss80]

Some of the foreign DVDs I buy do not have a domestic counterpart available, and so I'm stuck with several region 2 and 3 DVDs in a region 1 country (US). Instead of worrying about hacking the player, I simply back up each foreign DVD I own to a region-free DVD-R using DVDFabHDDecrypter. This is probably the only solution when there is no region hack to a specific player. Otherwise, you can always buy a region-free unit. It costs a bit more, but not an outrageous amount more.

[victoriabears]

Many Philips and cheap chinese players can be hacked via the remote, I see sellers selling region free Philips machines that take me 60 seconds to make region free myself.

There is no need to pay more unless you really want a specific model.