We PS3 owners are one of the most vocal groups when it comes to making the most of our consoles. This is in part due to Sony’s marketing campaign which depicts the PS3 as a full media machine - rightfully so, with its abundance of features right out of the box. Sony’s support of the system has been consistent with regular System Updates and a free (for the time being) online network.
2007 updates granted the PS3 the ability to upscale PSOne and PS2-era game video, and 2008’s trophy support were great additions to the system. Sony has also remotely upgraded the Blu-ray player making the PS3 more valuable as a movie machine than most of the dedicated players out on the market today. Unfortunately, updates of this caliber are few and far between. The PS3 system, now on version 3.15, which has had 35 updates since its inception in 2006 (as logged by Xtreme PS3), is still lacking in several fundamental areas that would make the system stronger in its mission to be a fully capable media machine.
Here, we’ll break down the Game Rant PS3 Update want list, in no particular order. The primary criteria are that the updates should be directed towards making the machine a more capable media unit, or that updates should increase user satisfaction and enjoyment. Also note that many of these updates are born of the concept that most PS3 owners run their system using Sony’s stock architecture, rather than incorporating an operating system such as Windows.
1. Disk Defragmenter
The PS3 has been around for 4 years now. This is long enough that owners are either filling their stock hard drives, or have upgraded to a higher capacity drive. Whichever drive you are using, Sony would be doing you a favor through a disk defragmenter. One argument is that if you aren’t using an operating system (i.e., Windows or Linux) then you won’t need to defragment. However, any system back up or restores tend to defragment the drive, as will the removal and additions of large groups of files. A defragmenter would speed up the retrieval of data, and also free up space on those now cluttered drives that contain large video files, saved game data, picture albums and entire music catalogs.
2. PS3 Friends Organizer
Our Friends lists are growing! It would be helpful to have the ability to group your friends into categories on the XMB. Organizing your Network friends into categories such as "Game Ranters, or "Modern Warfare Clan" would really clean that long, hard to search friends list up!
3. Cross-Game Chat
This is something that PS3 owners have been asking for since the system’s launch! The Sixth Axis describes this addition as “the rumor that will never die!” Sony themselves has recognized the need for this upgrade for some time now, but now seems to be pushing it back as a feature for their new, paid network subscription service.
4. Flash Player Updates
Can you believe that there was a period of time where a user could not access the Sony PlayStation home page using a Sony PS3 because the system hadn’t received a Flash player update? These updates have typically been a product of a Firmware Update from Sony, but why not just release a patch that allows the user to update the Flash Player on our own rather than having to wait for the corporate “Okay”?
5. 3D Support
James Cameron’s Avatar breathed new life into the aging 3D movie formula over the Holidays. It was so successful that NPD group, DisplaySearch forecasts 64 million 3D ready T.V.s to ship by 2018. Sony’s media machine should be a part of this movement with a great 3D upgrade via Firmware! Current rumors show a 3D upgrade in the 3.20 update sometime later this year.
6. Bravia Sync
It’s both understandable and expected that not all Sony PS3 users also use one of Sony’s great Bravia engine HD-TV’s. However, PS3 owners who do support Sony electronics have been left out in the cold without Sony’s Bravia Sync program! Bravia Sync is great for our home theaters, so why isn’t it available for our all of our PS3 media machines and not just the Slim model for the latest Bravia sets? Imagine being able to run both your HD-TV and PS3 through one controller! Future updates could allow the devices to communicate and adjust together for film or video content, or automatically adjust the resolution or color depending on the game you were playing. It’s a bit scary that Sony hasn't supported their Bravia program through the PS3 from the start… an omission that they should remedy soon.
7. Trophy Sorting Between Disc-Based Games and DLC
As a trophy hunter, nothing drives me crazier than landing 100% Platinum on a game, only to have my 100% taken away because a publisher has released an add-on with trophies that I’ll never buy. Give us the ability to separate our trophies based on DLC and disc based games! Also, why am I always forced to see the trophy spot for Super Stardust HD just because I downloaded the demo? If I don’t own a game, I don’t want to see it’s trophies on my XMB!
8. Last Game Played
We can already see when the last times our friends accessed their systems online, but unless I catch them online I don’t know what they’ve been playing. Leave a tag next to the last access time that indicates a friend’s latest game! I’ll be able to send them a message about it, or create conversation with another gamer I met during a different online game.
9. Audio Messaging
Sony has upgraded the system to incorporate live chat, but how about the ability to send quick audio messages to people on my friends list? It would be fun to send a quick shout out to a friend, or a 10 second verbal message requesting that someone joins you in a game. Or better yet... give us an upgrade to….
10. Skype
How is this missing from the PS3? We received a nearly useless Facebook app, but Sony hasn’t arranged for Skype? Our media machines could be so much more capable if we could add phone connectivity to our repertoire! Imagine, using the PS3’s blue tooth capability to call anyone around the world over the internet as your household phone line. Lose the Facebook and add the Skype, Sony!
As I said earlier, not all of the Firmware updates have been meaningless, but many of them have lacked truly meaningful content. Most importantly, these things would have to be implemented with strict quality control so as to avoid situations where system updates have caused problems. I’d love to see Sony fulfill the list above in an effort to make our PS3's the capable full service computers that they were intended to be. What’s on your firmware want list?