DVD regions

[Francis Asis]

If I film a short video clip with my phone and download it to my PC, then burn it to a DVD and send it to Canada, will they be able to play it?

[Headtime]

I believe, the region settings are applied only to commercial DVD's. As films are released at different times in different territories, the region system is supposed to stop someone say in the UK buying the DVD of a film from say the US before it is released in the Cinemas here.

I would think that any DVD you made would be region-free.

As the video from a phone, and quality is not so much of an issue, You could also burn it as a Video CD on CD-ROM instead. This will be region free, and will play in all but the oldest DVD's.

[Buenchico]

There are a few 'ifs & buts' here.

Stage 1 - you download the movie from your phone to your PC. Now, I'm no expert on mobile phones but I'm guessing the phone will use something like MP3 format for its video files.

Stage 2 - you burn the file to DVD. Now, the question here is exactly what are you going to burn to DVD? If you burn the file directly to DVD you will have effectively created a data disc (rather than a 'proper' DVD like you buy from Amazon). If this is what you send to Canada, then regions won't come into it. What will matter is whether the recipient's DVD player supports MP3 format. (Most modern players do but it might be worth checking).

Alternatively, if you want to make a 'proper' DVD from your MP3 file then you're going to have to convert the file first. The software for doing this might be integrated into your DVD burning program or you might have to use independent software. The chances are, however, that - depending on your software - you might end up with something in DVD-R or, less likely, DVD+R format rather than 'true' DVD. Once again regions don't come into play but, in this case, it would be necessary to check that the recipient's DVD player supports DVD-R (or whatever)format. (Most modern players do). Even if your software does let you burn a 'true' DVD, it's likely to be 'region-free'. (If you're prompted for a region number, select '0').

So, don't worry about regions but do check the compatability of the recipient's DVD player first.

OR: Why not just try it? DVDs don't cost much. The postage to Canada isn't much, so just give it a go! (Remember to attach a customs declaration form to the package, stating 'Data DVD' or whatever).

OR: If the recipient is online why don't you just e-mail the file?


Chris

[Francis Asis]

Thank you both for these answers. i think I will try it and see.