A question about DVD's

[Asmodeus]

Ok, I may be flying up on cloud 9 with Jim Morrison on this, but this is what I have heard from somewhere:

That basically, each country has a psuedo different kind of DVD. Like a DVD movie bought in England won't work on a DVD player in America... etc.

Is there any truth to this?

I am asking because I am planning on putting a DVD player in my laptop for my trip to Korea.

Or should I just put one in and buy alot of DVD's movies before I leave???

[D_I]

Check the 'region codes' link (http://www.pioneeraus.com.au/multimedia/dvd/dvd_general_info.htm#Region Codes.)

Hope that was what you were looking for.

[skalie]

There is a zone lock thingy, not every country, but like, europe, asia, america, or someit, so be wary.

On the other hand don't they make a lot of stuff in Korea?

Would it not be possible to get a lot of cheap stuff, hardware wise, during your travels?

[Asmodeus]

Region Codes.
Regional codes allow movie studios to control the release of home video titles in different parts of the world. The DVD specification provides codes used to prevent playback of discs in various geographical regions. Each player is given a code for the region in which it's sold. A player coded for one region won't play discs that aren't allowed in that region. Regional codes are optional. Discs can be made with multiple codes or no codes; discs without codes will play on all players, regardless of country. Regional codes also apply to DVD-ROM systems, but only apply to DVD-Video discs, which also play back on ROM drives. There are six regions with codes:
(1) Canada, the U.S., and its territories
(2) Japan, Europe, South Africa, and the Middle East
(3) Southeast and East Asia (including Hong Kong)
(4) Australia, New Zealand, Pacific Islands, Central America, Mexico, South America, and the Caribbean
(5) the former Soviet Union, Indian subcontinent, Africa, North Korea, and Mongolia
(6) China.

So I take that as a yes...

Now the question: so I can buy a dvd WITHOUT regional codes? And if so, any and all dvds will work in it?

And skalie- I was asking exactly becaue of that. I can probably get hardware rather cheap. But, what good is it if when I come back, I can't get anything to work... *scratching head*

Gees I don't know this stuff...

[D_I]

Quick search. (http://www.dvdcity.com/codefree/codefree-dvd-info.html)

Any 'questionable' suggestions should be confined to e-mails. Just a reminder. I am pretty clueless about this stuff too but it seems to be shaky ground. Please, no cracks or hacks posted in this forum. If I come across any more info to help, Asmodeus, I'll let you know.

[Billyman]

Try this. (http://forums.dvdreview.com/msgboard/) I found it helped me choose my dvd player and I get some cool reviews and how to find hidden footage on some movies amoung other stuff.

[skalie]

It is possible un-zonelock a dvd player, if anyone can, the Koreans can.

I only know this because I've seen someone advertising a laptop with an un-zoned dvd player.

Travelling to Korea to watch dvd's bought in the US seems like a wierd concept.

I'd throw some time into a search engine on this one if I was you.

[Asmodeus]

Thanks guys...

And Dead_Inside- thanks alot. That was what I was looking for. It says I can buy a code free dvd, but I have to specifically ask for it... etc. Not sure how much more $$ it will cost me, but will probably be worth it.

Gotta start making phone calls...