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Regionless DVD?
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Junior Member
Join Date: Mar 2003
Location: Tokyo
Status:
Offline
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I'm thinking of buying a PowerBook this summer (likely the 15" 1GHz model) and in the fall I'll be moving to Tokyo for a year.
Now, I'm bound to find tons of neat DVDs not available on this side of the Pacific, but won't be able to watch them with my region 1 DVD drive.
I've heard that you can hack the DVD firmware so that regions don't matter, but that it can be dangerous -- break your drive, void the warrenty, etc. Has anyone tried this? Is it safe on the PowerBook DVD drives?
Thanks,
Mike
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Mac Enthusiast
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Sydney, Australia
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Caught in a web of deceit.
Status:
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Forum Regular
Join Date: Jul 2001
Location: Tokyo
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I suggest to you a much better option is to wait until you are here, and buy a firewire dvd rom drive that is region 2. and keep yr dvd in yr computer as region 1.
you will find that you will have many many more DVDs sent to you from the USA than you purchase here in Japan.
you will not find "tons of neat DVDs" in Japan.
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Caught in a web of deceit.
Status:
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By the way, one guy has said he'll be working on an RPC-1 solution off that firmware. 
Not sure how long it will take though.
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Grizzled Veteran
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Singapore
Status:
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I thought VLC (Video Lan Client) allows you to bypass the region codes?
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mac.goodies webstore / Switched to an iBook in November 2002. Never looking back.
iBook R.I.P. 20 Nov 2002 - 2 Aug 2005
Hello Leopard! On iMac 17" Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz 2GB, iPod 5th gen 30GB and iPhone
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Caught in a web of deceit.
Status:
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Originally posted by andretan:
I thought VLC (Video Lan Client) allows you to bypass the region codes?
Region coding is both hardware and software. Dunno if VLC bypasses the software side or not, but even if it did that wouldn't solve the hardware issue.
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Grizzled Veteran
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Singapore
Status:
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Originally posted by Eug:
Region coding is both hardware and software. Dunno if VLC bypasses the software side or not, but even if it did that wouldn't solve the hardware issue.
Okies.
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mac.goodies webstore / Switched to an iBook in November 2002. Never looking back.
iBook R.I.P. 20 Nov 2002 - 2 Aug 2005
Hello Leopard! On iMac 17" Intel Core Duo 1.83GHz 2GB, iPod 5th gen 30GB and iPhone
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Fresh-Faced Recruit
Join Date: Feb 2003
Status:
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Originally posted by andretan:
Okies.
VLC does play other region dvd's i have successfully played 7 PAL dvd's from the UK ... on my US region superdrive with this program.
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Clinically Insane
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Caught in a web of deceit.
Status:
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Originally posted by vanwyklr:
VLC does play other region dvd's i have successfully played 7 PAL dvd's from the UK ... on my US region superdrive with this program.
How many times have you tried it?
It could very well be that VLC is simply changing the hardware setting on your drive when you stick in an alternate region DVD. If that's the case, then it's a very dangerous thing, since after 4-5 changes it will lock to that setting, permanently.
That said, there is reportedly one commercial app on the PC side that can completely bypass the hardware issue through software. Never tried it myself though.
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