Region free Blu-ray player

Forums › Home Theatre (including HTPC and EPG Collector) › Region free Blu-ray player

Trunks2

224 posts

Master Geek

#168595 19-Mar-2015 13:35

Looking for a region free blu-ray player to play imported Anime discs as my ps3/ps4 isn't able.

Seems they are pretty rare so I only found these two:
http://magnessbenrow.co.nz/video/blu-ray-products/panasonic-dmpbdt330gn-3d-bluray-player.html
http://www.pp.co.nz/products.php?pp_id=AA52902&ref=pricespy

The Panasonic is a bit old and pricey and the Laser seems a bit budget and I would like something that would use my current Sony smart TV's remote through HDMI-CEC like my playstation.

Perhaps I should import a Samsung/Sony/name brand player from Amazon?

Glassboy

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#1262404 19-Mar-2015 13:41

Hi there was a thread about this a couple of months ago. The basic fact is that no one really knows about the current crop of players, but you're bound to get multiple replies from people dressing up supposition as fact.

The best thing you could do is go into a local store who will let you test play one of your discs, as hypothetically if we're getting the same models as Australia they should all be region free.

ilovemusic

1439 posts

Uber Geek

#1262436 19-Mar-2015 14:15

No region-free for Blu-ray, they are strictly region-locked unless it's some third tier brand like Laser.

DVD playback varies from brand to brand.

Where did the Trunks2 get the info that the Panasonic is region free ?

For many years now Panasonic BDPs have been region locked for BD and DVD, with DVD capable of being unlocked by a factory service shop.

BD region free usually involves a hardware modification.

Trunks2

224 posts

Master Geek

#1262449 19-Mar-2015 14:23

ilovemusic: No region-free for Blu-ray, they are strictly region-locked unless it's some third tier brand like Laser.

DVD playback varies from brand to brand.

Where did the Trunks2 get the info that the Panasonic is region free ?

For many years now Panasonic BDPs have been region locked for BD and DVD, with DVD capable of being unlocked by a factory service shop.

BD region free usually involves a hardware modification.

I think I'm mistaken on the Panasonic, may have been looking at a modified one on Amazon.

I'm leaning towards importing a name brand one from the USA and just use that for region A blu-rays and my NZ PS4 for region B.

graemeh

2078 posts

Uber Geek

#1262471 19-Mar-2015 14:41

Our Toshiba bluray player came with instructions on how to change the region and how to make it region free for DVD.

The best advice is that from Glassboy, ask at your local shop.

ilovemusic

1439 posts

Uber Geek

#1263476 19-Mar-2015 15:18

yes, the toshiba bdx3200ky, no longer available new unfortunately.

early ones came with a cdr to make it region ree for bd and dvd, later ones removed it but the firmware is readily available online.

the firmware also works for the bdx1200ky model but not the later x300 models.

importing a bdp from the us is probably the most cost effective solution.

be mindful that most us electronics do not have multi-voltage power supplies, so double check before buying.

old3eyes

9119 posts

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#1263515 19-Mar-2015 16:12

One of the good things about HD-DVD is that it was region free..

Regards,

Old3eyes

MarkX

109 posts

Master Geek

#1264196 20-Mar-2015 16:57

Oppo blu ray players can be bought and modified to region free. They are pricy but they come with stunning picture and sound quality.

They are available from Rapallo or AV World and possibly other stores in New Zealand

I couldn't live without a region free blu ray player as there are so many movies released in America that are not released in New Zealand. Also a lot of the US releases are superior to the NZ release of those movies, when it comes to audio and picture quality and extra features.

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bfginger

1267 posts

Uber Geek

#1264355 20-Mar-2015 23:18

A third party has been selling hacked firmware for Panasonic Blu-rays so it was probably a unit with that hacked firmware on it for sale.

Some Panasonic Blu-ray players can play out of zone BDs by playing with the remote control at the right time, you can Google it. I don't think you'll find any other major brand players that can play out of zone.

Also a lot of the US releases are superior to the NZ release of those movies, when it comes to audio and picture quality and extra features.

Before buying a title it's a good idea to research to find the best release as different companies may do the releases for different parts of the world. Within the same BD zone different countries can have different releases. Sometimes a release has bad sound, more compression, cropping, or even an abridged version of the film.

lchiu7

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#1265316 22-Mar-2015 20:22

MarkX: Oppo blu ray players can be bought and modified to region free. They are pricy but they come with stunning picture and sound quality.

.

I also have an Oppo which I bought from Oppo directly in the US. This is an earlier model. I made it region free by installing a card I purhased from eBay. The region can then be set via a remote control sequence.

I must admit I normally leave it in Region A mode since I rarely if ever purchase BD's locally and if I encounter one that is region locked I would normally just rip it and put the files on my server.

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geekiegeek

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#1265385 23-Mar-2015 05:35

You could move away from shiny disks altogether. I rip mine to my media server using MakeMKV. it preserves chapters, HD sound and full resolution. It just removes all of the protection and changes the container to .mkv

Another option is to rip to .iso using AnyDVD which does the same thing but creates a disk image.

I realise these are not actually legal in NZ but I don't think the police will be knocking on your door for making a backup of disks you own.

Glassboy

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#1266078 23-Mar-2015 18:34

geekiegeek: You could move away from shiny disks altogether. I rip mine to my media server using MakeMKV. it preserves chapters, HD sound and full resolution. It just removes all of the protection and changes the container to .mkv
.

I just tested MakeMKV ripping a movie to MKV. It definitely is a slick little app. Only problem is that MKV file was 5.7GB. The same movie ripped using Handbrake's "normal" profile was 1.7GB. So a slick app if you have heaps of disk space and something to play on that doesn't struggle with large files.

mentalinc

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#1266080 23-Mar-2015 18:38

Glassboy:
geekiegeek: You could move away from shiny disks altogether. I rip mine to my media server using MakeMKV. it preserves chapters, HD sound and full resolution. It just removes all of the protection and changes the container to .mkv
.

I just tested MakeMKV ripping a movie to MKV. It definitely is a slick little app. Only problem is that MKV file was 5.7GB. The same movie ripped using Handbrake's "normal" profile was 1.7GB. So a slick app if you have heaps of disk space and something to play on that doesn't struggle with large files.

You might as well not bother with Bluray if you're going to rip it down to a 5.7GB file.
They should be closer to 40GB for most movies assuming the full space on the disc has been used.

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Glassboy

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#1266102 23-Mar-2015 19:19

It was a DVD that came in at 5.7Gb.