Web Talk

After the recent PSP update, Sony has just taken the new PS3 firmware to version 2.4 thanks to a brand new update. Gamers can download it through PlayStation Network directly or the system software updates from the Official PlayStation website.

Here is a  comprehensive list of improvements and new features available in the new PS3 system software v2.4:

Settings Changes

• You can now set the PlayStation 3 system to turn off automatically after updating the system software.
• [Reassign Controllers] and [Controller Vibration Function] have been added as options under [Accessory Settings].

Game changes

• You can now access the (XrossMediaBar) screen while playing PlayStation 3 format software.
  • Only some of the XMB functions can be used during gameplay.
  • If you press the PS button for more than two seconds, the screen showing options to quit the game, turn off the system and other settings will be displayed.
  • The XMB screen is not displayed when you are playing PlayStation 2 or PlayStation format software.
  • The XMB screen cannot be displayed when you are playing certain PlayStation 3 format software titles.
• The procedure for quitting PlayStation 3 format software has been changed.
• You can now collect trophies in games that support the trophy feature.

System changes

• A new “view mode” has been added to the Playstation Store
• [Search] has been added as an option in the browse mode menu of the Internet Browser.
• The [Information] screen has been redesigned and renamed as [Profile].
• You can now perform an Internet search directly from the XMB screen.
• You can now see the system clock on the XMB screen. The date and time that were set under [Settings] > [Date and Time] are displayed.
• When using a keyboard, you can now clear the entire text entry field at once.
• An icon is now displayed when you press the PS button for an operation that cannot be performed.
• You can now turn off the PlayStation 3 system from the XMB screen using the [Turn Off System] option.
• The number of Friends who can be added to a Friends list has been increased from 50 to 100.

Media Changes

• You can now sort items that are grouped in a folder by month or year using the [Film Date] option.
• You can now print images from a playlist that was created under (Photo).
• You can now use a mini-size control panel while playing music.
• You can now play music content encoded in MP3 Surround format.
  • MP3 Surround can only be played in Linear PCM output.
• You can now use the [Frame Noise Reduction] and [Block Noise Reduction] settings for video content that is saved on the hard disk or storage media.
• You can now play upscaled video content that is saved on the hard disk or storage media. When the video content is played, it is upscaled automatically to fit the screen size.
• Upscaling of Blu-ray Disc (BDAV) video content is now supported
• For DTS playback on DVD-Video and Blu-ray Disc media, DTS-ES and DTS 96/24 for DVD-Video and DTS-ES Matrix for Blu-ray Discs are now supported.

If you want to download the new Playstation 3 update version 2.4 visit the official Playstation update page here.

Sony has recently released a new firmware (version 4.0) for  Playstation Portable (PSP). What makes this new firmware release worth being installed is the new Google search feature, which will let people use the Google search engine straight from the XMB (XrossMediaBar). Basically, the well-known Google website will be added to the device’s options, allowing users to browse through different websites and blogs and make specific searches. Another feature available after the installation of the firmware is the ability to speed up and slow down playback of video files that are stored on the Memory Stick PRO Duo. If you want to download the new PSP firmware 4.0 click here (for USA users), here (for Asia English users), here (for Australia users), here (for New Zealand users) or here (for United Kingdom users)

Sony has recently unveiled its new USB flash drive rich of features and highly performing. First of all let me clarify what “click” means. Basically this word is referred to its innovative, retractable design which lets users uncover and retract the USB connector for quick and easy use. I like this idea, mainly because people won’t loose their USB dongle’s cap anymore. I can’t think of how many of them I have lost during my “computer-life”! But let’s see into detail the most appealing features of this new USB dongle:

• Nice design.
• Blinky light when connected to the computer.
• Windows® ReadyBoost™ compatibility.
• 32MBps read and 11MBps write speed.
• Storage capacity from 2GB up to 8GB (what about 16GB? I am really disappointed)

If you want to know more about this USB flash drive, click here.

If you are a big fan of the “Make-it-yourself” category, here is a step-by-step guide teaching you how to change your Playstation Portable speakers! Despite this is in french (but a full translation is available here), the guide is well made and lets you, in a few easy steps, remove and replace the tiny speakers in your PSP! Watch the video now!

That’s one of those news which could make somebody really happy or really thunderstruck! The endless war between the two giants namely Sony and Microsoft has come to an end, at least in Europe. In fact a few days ago Sony stated “We have sold more PlayStation 3s throughout Europe than Xbox 360 even though they launched 16 months before us.” Mr Reeves, head of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, also said 12 million PSP handheld consoles and 48 million PlayStation 2s had been sold in Europe. Anyway despite all this fanfare both Sony and Microsoft are well behind the fabulous Nintendo Wii.

Source: news.bbc.co.uk

If you are a real geek who likes hacking everything then this video tutorial is for you. Basically, it teaches you how to turn your PSP into a iPhone. Of course it is rather difficult to have the same iPhone feel on the Play Station Portable because, among other things, PSP doesn’t have the touchscreen nor any cellphone antenna. Anyway here are the tutorials. Here instead you can find the software to hack your portable console!

So this is the funniest news I have ever reported. You have to know that everytime a person buys a laptop from Sony, the company itself has the wonderful idea to stuff the nice brand new machine with a lot of crapware. I had this bad experience last year when I decided to buy a Sony Vaio at BestBuy (it was not for me, but for a relative of mine). When I got it ,well, it was so full of bloatware namely shareware software, free software I didn’t care about, software inviting you to buy other software etc that to just turn it on, it took me some minutes. I had to spend a good hour to uninstall all that stuff, just to find out that Windows Vista was so compromised because of that software I removed, that in the end I had to make a fresh install. Of course what I went through was also true for all those people buying a new laptop from Sony as well, and I bet the company received many complaints. Now the company, which is not deaf to people’s complaints, but at the same time thinks users are like cows to milk, has got the nice idea to deliver you a free-crapware laptop just if you pay 50 bucks!!! This nasty thing is called “Fresh Start” and it is available as an option for TZ2000. Of course it will be extended to all its laptops as well. Is Sony going nuts or are they just thinking we are stupid? I don’t really know. The only thing I know is that Sony is full of…crapware!

It was going to happen of course. After Wii, Nintendo Ds and iPhone it is now the turn of PlayStation 3 to be hacked for homebrew purposes! The guy who made it, is called Dragula96 and it is a very famous PSP hacker. Basically he managed to bypass all PlayStation protections and write a little Hello World proof of concept on the screen, thanks to a 60GB and 40GB PS3, running the current 2.20 firmware. Well, it is not what you were expecting, right? Keep in mind that PS3 homebrew is a pretty new thing, so you will have to wait some more time before seeing games and stuff like that. In the meantime watch the video to discover how it was possible to hack the PS3.