A region 1 BD-P1600 bought in the US or Canada CANNOT be hacked using the remote control code, at least not without a firmware update. Here's what I did:
I downloaded the USB firmware update from the Singapore Samsung web site (
http://www.samsung.com/sg/support/main/supportSupportMain.do) and unzipped the file. I then downloaded a hex editor and used that to open the .RUF file. Within the first few lines of ASCII code are the letters "XSS." These need to be changed to "XAA" in order to trick the region 1 dvd player to load the firmware. I then saved the .RUF file to a USB device and loaded the USB driver into the player using the slot on the front panel. I followed the instructions and it worked perfectly.
I then employed the remote control code - press open/close, wait for the "NO DISC" message and press REPEAT, 5, 6, 7, 3, 2 in succession. Once the region code is displayed, press "9".
That's all there is to it, and I promise it works. I can play both NTSC and PAL DVDs, and my Blu-Ray discs seem to work as well.
One thing that annoys me, however, is that I have lost the ability to play Netflix movies and Pandora music.
It's worth noting here an issue to beware of when flashing with firmwares from another country - if your tv does not support PAL (if you bought it in the US it probably does not), DO NOT flash your player with a firmware from a PAL country (such as Singapore) - it will switch the output to PAL and you won't be able to see it, even the menu.
I was able to get around this by putting in a bluray disk, which switched the output to 'film' mode (24hz), which modern TVs can display, and then ejecting the disk.
The menu for the BD-P1600 remained in film mode, and thus viewable, and from there you can flash it back to an NTSC firmware.
