I was very clear in my remark about the US for two reasons: first, unless you do have a high-end HD projector (in the US) you are indeed going to experience a great deal of issues. And second, I am going to assume that indeed you have no idea what sort of limitations the hardware manufacturers favor in the US. With other words this isn't an issue of old vs. new as even the latest Baravias, CUROs, etc are not capable of proper 50hz conversion. And I can bring up at least 3 different 2900$ + upscallers that will not achieve the results you are looking for. So, yes, if you are in the US and looking for a universal machine that would handle everything flawlessly you are probably 6-8 months ahead of the curve. There is a manufacturer, two in fact, that will offer an acceptable solution but tech specs that have been discussed thus far are largely unconfirmed. With other words in the US an HD projector is just about your only affordable ticket. If you live in the EU then that is an entirely different case which was excluded by my initial remark.

Pro-B

I have an HD projector and its not really high end. Most 16:9 projectors from all the major manufactures (Sony, Mitsubishi, Panasonic, Sharp, Samsung, JVC, Espon) for the last two generations (years) can handle 50hz, 60hz and 24hz (and often multiples thereof) and all resolutions from 480p to 1080P. And these are all models of home theater projectors that are stocked in the USA and internationally (there is no difference in 1080p projector models in this area). And for the 6.3 billion people not in the USA even lowly TVs can handle 50 or 60 hz and have done so for well over a decade.

But I think your response was intended to be more generic and not aimed at me or people clued in about this stuff, but maybe the joe-six-pack Americans who know little about any of this, perhaps as a caution so they dont buy a multiregion player that doesnt work with their 60 hz TV?

But even if they did buy a multiregion Blu-ray player they could still view hidef 1080P content on Blu-rays from any region on their existing 60 hz equipment, the only thing they miss out on is 576p extras or PAL DVDs (the main feature will still play).

For anyone interested in Lust, Caution on Blu-Ray, Amazon has it in stock for 33.95. It's direct fulfillment, not some third party seller. Pretty good price considering I just spent 36.99 for it from Yesasia and it took forever to get to me (18 days).

I don't think spending $750-800 for a player is a common sense and obvious step for the rest of the world at all. Hell, most people haven't been willing to spend the amount that Blu-ray players are selling for now!

I dont know where you are pulling that price from - the highest price you could find for an already modded unit on the internet?

Locally, the mod for a Panasonic BD30 is USD$165 INCLUDING installation. If you order the part and are willing to do it yourself it can be had for cheaper still. Cost of BD30 + $165 = fully multiregion player. Beats buying multiple players, which is what a few people have done.

750$ is the cheapest price I saw, but I didn't really dig to find the best possible deal. The deal you got sounds better for sure but will still end up at around 500$ with shipping.

If I didn't already had a player (PS3) I would probably bug you to know where to get that deal, but since I have one it's just not a priority for now...

Thanks for the heads up! Have you watched it yet? What were your thoughts (of the disc, not the film, I've already seen it)?

Sorry I haven't watched it - my HT is offline until I get my basement refurnished.

I've read favorable things online which led to my purchase.

HUMANMEDIA,
where did you buy this? Post links. Does this play Blu Rays and DVDs from everywhere??

Yes it does. Not sure about RCE discs. BTW the mod is USD$100 before postage for a Panasonic player.

The key to getting it cheaply is to buy a player locally, mail order the mod, then get someone to install (or do it yourself with basic soldering skills).

Ive Personal messaged you the details so as to keep the discussion on track.

The Panasonic players are the only one someone with some soldering skills could modify himself, the others (Pioneer, Sony) need SMD-techniques, it's quite difficult.

Installation grade: Very difficult

It's adviced to let the modifications in this category only be performed by people with a lot of soldering experience. Especially SMD-techniques. The connection points are accessible but very close together (average space between pins: 0.5mm or 0,002inch). There is no room for failures. The whole player has to be disassembled to add a 56pin TSOP chip to the players mainboard. Doing this the wrong way will damage or worst case break the player.

79€ in Europe, 179€ modification included. :(

Luc Besson's Big Blue extended version + Atlantis
http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/8500/resizedx9.jpg

I just pulled the price that someone else quoted ...

... but this pretty much seals it that for MOST people it would not just be the price of a player + $165. Most people are not going to be able to do the soldering on their own and maybe don't even know someone who could.

This was never suggested as a mass market solution, but one for people who are willing to put a little effort in AND risk voided warranty. I can heartily recommend the Panasonic mod as that the easy one to do yourself and DOESN'T require surface mount soldering skills. The installation was a no brainer for me to do. As I've said above there are people who will do the mod for you if you are uncomfortable with opening the unit up. In Europe and Australia there are services you can mail the unit to and have it done for you, all for the USD$165 quoted (mod and labour). Their suggestion is to buy a local unit run it for a month to make sure it works then send it in for the mod.

Im sure there are a number of people doing it in the USA also but if you were really interested you might have to actually use Google to find out where they are. And no definitely not for the Joe-Six-pack - but I dont think many people here in the "Foreign Cinema for Blu" are average Joes, and its a great way of having one player that will play all of those Foreign cinema titles not available in the USA and without buying a second player.

Anyway I think thats more than enough info for those who are interested to follow up with, for those who its all too much for, we can all just move on with info on foreign titles.

In case it hasn't been mentioned in this thread, the LG BH200 "Super Blu" combi player can be made region-free for Blu-ray with a remote control hack. There are instructions for this on AVSForum.

Best Buy is currently clearancing the player for $399.

A few updates:

Tyson has been moved to March 09
The Wackness isn't getting a BluRay release now
Baraka (UK edition) is region free

I can do this on my hddvd/blu ray drive quite easily.

Scorpion is french only:

http://img116.imageshack.us/img116/4...ay3d350vb9.gif
FORMAT RESPECTÉ HAUTE DÉFINITION (1.85:1) 1920 x 1080p - 16/9
AUDIO : VF - 5.1 DTS-HD MASTER AUDIO
MASTER HAUTE DÉFINITION - ENCODAGE AVC - DURÉE : 1h35 - COULEUR


http://img55.imageshack.us/img55/429...ay3d350no4.png
FORMAT RESPECTÉ HAUTE DÉFINITION (2.35:1) 1920 X 1080P - 16/9
AUDIO : VF/VOSTF (Anglais) 5.1 DTS-HD MASTER AUDIO
MASTER HAUTE DÉFINITION - ENCODAGE AVC - DURÉE : 1h35 - COULEUR

Thanks Josh - I nabbed a floor model for $315.

totally Region-free? Able to play blu rays from Region A,B, or C?

Wow, I didn't know one existed like that. I may have to pick it up. Are we getting any more tax return money soon?

Yes, but you have to switch manually between them. There is no "all region" setting.

The details are available on AVSForum.

Fanny & Alexander 15 October
 

The 3-hour theatrical version of Fanny & Alexander is released on Blu-ray in Norway next week. The film has undergone sound and picture restauration according to the distributor (SF Norge). The Swedish release which will be identical is not scheduled until 3 December.

1080p; DTS-HDMA mono; no info on region coding. English, Dutch, Finnish, Swedish and Norwegian subtitles. The running time is listed as 181 minutes, the same as the PAL DVD, which is probably a mistake in copying info between the two releases.