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Brits in Oklahoma

Playing UK (Region 2) DVDs in the USA

If you've brought over your DVD collection with you from the UK, you'll find that as the UK uses DVD region 2, your US DVD player won't play them. Fear not, as this can be resolved without having to sell them before you leave! You just have to know where to look! There are no specific details here, though they are easily located with search engines.

Playback on your PC

Most PC DVD-ROM and DVD-RW drives can be unlocked using an RPC II unlock utility, at which point they will play any region you ask them to. LiteOn drives are always good for this.

Unlocking a player

There are lots of players on the market. I bought a Philips DVP642 a couple of years ago which could be made region free by pressing a sequence of digits on the controller. It has been superseded by the Philips DVP5990 which has HDMI support. Both play DivX, WMA, mpeg movies, and mp3s without a hitch.

Other players I'm aware of that can be made region free include the Pioneer DV-410V (HDMI) and Sampo DVE 612N. Various though not all Apex AD players can be unlocked in similar fashion.

Where to Buy a Region Free Player

As player models and availability change frequently, I've included a links to the latest stuff Amazon has in stock below.