Rumor Mill: PS3 2.0?

During my surfings, I stumbled upon a rumor about PS3 firmware 2.0. It was first reported on October 12th so I’m a bit off the ball, but hey, I’m not a professional journalist, so don’t expect things to be instant.

Anyway, looks like 2.0 is going to address some of my complaints with the PS3, including PSP features that it lacks. RSS 2.0 is one such feature. I like it since I can stream live audio. I do this with my PSP a lot using RSS Streaming Tools. I can hook my XM into my PC in the den and listen to broadcasts anywhere in the house. Better than wireless headphones since there’s no noise. Of course that’s not all. I’m not going to talk about it though until it comes out.

If this rumor is true, when can we expect Firmware 2.0? Some reports say today (October 30th). Sony just released 1.94 with Rachet and Clank to give Dualshock 3 support. According to the PS3 update service, there are no updates as of now, 7:00 pm EST. 1.93 is the latest available online. If 2.0 is coming soon, expect it on November 2nd or 3rd. That’s the date the 40gb PS3 is out. I expect it will be the initial firmware for the 40gb. Where do I base that? Well, PSP 3.70 was released the day after the Slim was released. Also, under video, one of the supposed updates allows for the use of USB memory card readers on “certain models”. The 40gb is the only model without a built in memory card reader.

According to PSU, the following updates are expected.

– Users

* You can now password-protect user accounts.

– Settings

* [Dynamic Normalizer] has been added as an option under [Sound Settings].
* [Energy Saver] has been added as an option.
* [Equalizer] has been added as a feature under [Music Settings].
* [Full] has been added as an option for [DVD Wide Display] under [BD / DVD Settings].
* [Photo Settings] has been added as an option.
* [PS / PS2 Settings] has been added as an option.
* [RSS Channel Settings] has been added as an option.
* [Sample Rate] has been added to [Audio CD Import] under [Music Settings].
* [Screen Saver] has been expanded under [Display Settings].
* The method of selecting an output resolution has been changed in [Video Output Settings] under [Display Settings].
* [Theme Settings] has been added as an option.
* [Zero Unused Disk Space] has been added as an option under [System Settings] > [Format Utility].

– Photo

* Additional slideshows have been added.
* [Photo Effects] have been added as a feature.
* Wallpaper feature has been added.
* [Zoom] has been added as a feature.

– Music

* Additional visualizations have been added.
* CD information can now be entered.
* Three-speed fast forward and fast reverse has been added as a feature.

– Video

* Files can now be played sequentially.
* Three-speed fast forward and fast reverse has been added as a feature.
* You can now select [Zoom] under [Screen Mode] when playing video files saved on the hard disk or storage media.
*An appropriate USB adapter (not included) is required to use storage media with some models.

– Game

* Support for PlayStation 3 format software titles has been expanded (PS3 will support more PS3 titles? An engineering marvel!)
* XMB (XrossMediaBar) is now accessible during gameplay.

– Network

* [RSS Channel] has been added as a feature.

– Friends

* You can now have multiple chat sessions.
* You can now select an image to use as your Avatar from [Photo].

– Other

* Date & Time is now shown when the PS button is pressed.
* File sorting has been changed.
* [Help] has been added as a feature.
* Playability status with the PS3 system has changed for some PlayStation and PlayStation 2 format titles.
* [Secure Delete] has been added as an option.
* Some PlayStation Network features have been revised.

The list is truly impressive and includes some badly needed updates. Lack of some of these features has severely limited the PS3. Hopefully, this will be out soon.