Region Free DVD Player

Would you like to be able to buy DVD's from anywhere in the world without wondering if they will play on your DVD player or not. With a Region Free DVD Player, you would not have to wonder!

• You are in the USA and at last, you have got hold of that British TV series DVD that you have been after for ages. Now, after a long wait, it has arrived from the auction seller in the UK.
• Eager to watch the series, you put the disc into your DVD player and then... Nothing apart from a message on the display saying 'Wrong Region' or words to that effect.
• Is the DVD faulty? Is there something wrong with my DVD player? Why won't it play on my system?. The box says the DVD disc is Region Free (or Region Zero or All Region) - That means that the DVD will play anywhere in the world doesn't it?

Well, the good news is that there is nothing wrong with your DVD Player or the DVD disc. The bad news is that you have just discovered the wonderful world of DVD Region Coding or Region Locking as it is sometimes referred to. So I hear you ask, what is DVD Region Coding and why is it needed. Our DVD Regions Explained page will reveal all.

Although a Region Free, Region Zero or All Region disc will play fine on any Region Locked player, there is the added compatibility issue between PAL and NTSC video formats. For example, a Region Free DVD purchased in the UK will not play correctly on a US NTSC DVD player because the DVD would be in the PAL video format. It is a common misconception that simply because a video format is digital, as is the case of DVD's, it is no longer PAL or NTSC. All digital video formats, including DVD are still based on the PAL or NTSC video systems. But what are PAL and NTSC video systems?. Check out our DVD Video Formats page to find out more

Similar to multisystem VCR's, DVD players will NOT convert video standards. When you play a PAL standard DVD, it will output a PAL signal and when you are playing an NTSC standard DVD, it will output an NTSC signal. DVD's are not produced in the SECAM video format.

Solutions

There are three ways to watch both PAL and NTSC DVD's.

• You can view your DVD's on a Multi-System Television. A multi-system TV has the ability to receive and display both PAL and NTSC video signals.
• You could use a video standards converter which would receive a video signal and convert that signal into the desired video standard. So if you wanted to watch a PAL DVD disc and you are in the USA with a standard NTSC television, the converter could convert the signal from PAL to NTSC, which would then be viewable on your television.
• You can purchase a Region Free DVD Player (Also known as a Multi Region DVD Player or a Code Free DVD Player) with a built in video standards converter.