Hi everyone, PlayStation 3 (PS3) firmware update (v3.00) adds a number of great new features that we’re excited to share with you. The latest update incorporates changes that improve navigation on your PS3. First, you’ll notice some cosmetic changes to the design of the XMB (Xross Media Bar). We’ve enhanced the look and feel of the XMB so that it’s easier and even more intuitive to use. We’ve also added network improvements and personalization options to help enhance your PS3 experience.
Additional highlights from update 3.00 include:
- “What’s New” – The “Information Board” will be replaced with a “What’s New” section, which allows you to enjoy interactive PlayStation news every time you start the PS3 system. Located under the PlayStation Network icon, “What’s New” displays the latest and greatest game, video, PlayStation Network and PlayStation news and releases, as well as your recently played games, in a sleek, new animated format.
- Status Indicator – In the top right corner we’ve added an indicator bar, which displays your user icon, friend icon, the number of friends you have online and a small message icon to let you know if you have any new messages. The indicator also includes a scrolling ticker that features the latest news from PlayStation Network. In addition, when you press the PS button, the battery life indicator will no longer cover up the clock.
- Friends List – Now your PlayStation Network friends will appear in a slightly redesigned format on your Friends List. Also, messages will now be viewable from each of your friends’ respective profiles.
- PlayStation Store Shortcuts – We’ve added a handy shortcut icon to the PlayStation Store under both the Game and Video categories so you can access the latest content quickly and easily.
- Personalization – Personalize your PS3 with new dynamic custom themes and avatars. Dynamic themes as well as free and premium avatars will be available through PlayStation Store. A dynamic theme takes your screen to a whole new level as it incorporates animated objects into the background.
- Trophies – Showcasing your hard earned trophies just got better. Update 3.00 gives game developers the ability to modify how they display trophies for add-on content. Base and add-on game trophies will continue to be combined into a single list so you can see where you stand in a game as a whole. Within that list, trophies will be broken out into subcategories—base trophies and add-on trophies—that way, you can easily view the percentage of your base game trophy collection, and separately track your trophy progress in add-on packs. Look for this enhancement to be included in upcoming games.
To get a preview of what’s coming in update 3.00, check out the video below:
We’re looking forward to releasing firmware update 3.00 soon. As always, we appreciate your feedback.
Sorry, cross game voice chat :)
Sweet, keep those updates coming, love the new themes ..and finally new avatars! =)
I am not impressed. It was already idiot proofed to find out new content and purchase it with ease, now you have made that easier? This isn’t progress, this is just making crap already easy to find/buy slightly easier. More avatars? Wow, lame guys.
Did you say….new avatars! Thank you so much!
Everything in this update is great, i can’t wait till we get it. Best one since 2.40
@211
He said they will be releasing free AND Premium avatars.
Try too listen.
When will they quite with all the retarded stuff and get to the dang cross game chat. You only have your entire base of users yelling at you to implement it.
It looks very nice!
Hope we can try it soon!!
Hey Mr. Eric Lempel your “strategic planning” isn’t very strategic, GET A CLUE!!!! People want features that add to the gameplay experience not fluff!
This is disappointing, i was expecting much more from this update. Instead of getting one step ahead of the 360, you took 1 step forward and 2 backwards Sony. Where is Voice Chat? where is Backwards capabilities? Where is the PS2 classics in the store? No your more worried about themes and avatars? This is almost laughable now, i guess you truly get what you pay for (XBL vs PSN)
Are you going to put up a pic of the slim ps3?? id love to see it side by side to the old version!!
Where is the cross game voice chat?!!!
Having new avatars is awesome… but now we have to pay for them?!
I love how you’re implementing dynamic themes… finally (good job)
BUT YOU NEED TO IMPLEMENT THINGS THAT PEOPLE WANT; NO ONE EVEN SUGGESTED PAYING FOR AVATARS AND EASY ACCESS TO THE PS STORE!
Oh well, descent update… =)
It was a good conference…but what about people who ALREADY have a PS3? Let’s wait for TGS…
Wow Eric, finally some news YOU can be proud of and you show it in the video. is there anyway in the future to implement Controller and peripheral charging while your PS3 phat or PS3 slim is in standby mode? This would definitely help cut down on extra electricity usage. Great Update, hope to see it go Live tonight. Oh and PS3 Slim is going to KILL XBUX and take a censored words on the Wiiz.
LONG LIVE SONY, Viva La Revolution!
Not as awesome an upgrade as 2.0 was, but the dynamic themes look cool (although I’d choose the classic XMB over the new sparkly one any time :p ).
awsome! when will it come out?
where’s the cross game chat..we need private chat seriously like 4 way that would be good anybody agree with me ?….the update is nice and all but we need a private chat system. :(
i was playing killzone 2 online and i got disconnected and now i can log back in…constant errors..any1 know how to fix it?
LOVE THAT LBP THEME I NEED IT!
Better yet will we have tools to create our own dynamic custom themes?
I cant find the update on my ps3… how can i get it?
I have to say clearly that the video doesn’t show any good features of a newer firmware which the “users requested”
-okay the clock has been moved (about time) together with an “ugly border” and rss flooding which hopefully could be disabled.
-player icon larger as friends icon and clock font!
“this looks ugly”
btw let me count psn store icon in 4 sections!
whats new, games, video and the normal position?
Sorry I go to the psn store once a week and see whats new.
I don’t see the sense of this additional icons, if they are only displaying 6 items
-there’s a whats new section with direct links to:
*videos
*latest played games (aren’t they in the gameing list on top ??)
*news
*another icon to the store which is 3 icons below??
-Icons in whats new section which flips in?(what with ingame xmb?)
We need speed and faster access not flipping icons to wait for.
If you really want to speed up the games selection use that kind of displaystyle of “whats new” for the games listing instead of the “item by item listing”
maybe switchable like in the psn store
@ 274
Speak for yourself before you insult others views, i was fully willing to pay 400$ for a B/C ps3, however sony saw fit to give us who wanted it the middle finger.
really it is really cool that they have fixed so much but how about those people all waiting for gt5? i cant begin to tell you how disappointing this is for the gt community atleast for me. the slim is great but what about the people who already have a ps3? i gave up on FW’s a long time ago because just about everyone has messed up my console. atleast more footage of gt5 would ahve been nice… very let down sony…
Very cool indeed, BUT WHERE THE HECK IS OWN IN GAME CHAT OR VOICE MAILS? We are supposed to feel connected to our community of friends, plus we don’t want to get arthritis in our fingers from texting all the time!
Great Update but We Really Need Is PS2 Backwards Compatibility And Cross Game CHAT
and to play ur Music in the Hard Drive in all yopur games allso not really need it but it be cool Video Mail
My 2nd comment and just wanted to exclaim “Yatta!”
Fantastic. As always.
I love that new design so much. O:
And that LBP theme was amazing.
Still no cross game chat and partying… WHY???
Awesome, for me its great, better cloak dynamic themes, messages indicator. For those who wanted BC, i dont know if yoyu have bought PS3 for playing ps2 games but i havent and i dont care about it.
Nice, but where the heck is PS2 Backwards Compatibility? Get off your butts and make this happen!
I’m thinking this post will have more comments than when that guy from Capcom gives stuff away for every nth post. But unlike that kind of post, this post will have 20 pages of comments and not one reply.
oh the joy i have for sony
liking the new themes and whats new section
So do we get Cross game chat?
Sony: No.
Will this update let us leave voice messages?
Sony: Ummm, no.
So I take it we won’t be able to have a party voice chat?
Sony: No…
So basically the features that we want, you aren’t going to give us.
Sony: Ummmm correct.
FAIL, EPIC FAIL.
Who cares that the battery indicator is no longer in the way of the clock. Big whoop!!
This is the big firmware update?!!?!?
You want my feedback? Well here it is…
THIS UPDATE SUCKS!!!
You might as well just tell us that you can’t compete with Xbox Live.
WHAT A JOKE!!!
OMG
Thank God.. .Finally we’re not like lightyears behind the other console..
But yes.. Cross game chat.. I think its coming though.
OMG can the complainers please just shut the hell up. You all know they are working on the Cross game chat. It just takes time for them to get it to work properly.
Everything else except the cross game chat that has been just announced for Firmware 3.0 has been what the community has been asking for, eg. More avatars, PSN more integrated into the XMB, better themes etc etc.
So all you complainers just shut up. Sony tries to make the PS3 better with every firmware and all you complainers have to say is ” wha wha wheres teh cross game chat. Its an epic fail without cross game chat, wha wha.”
Sometimes I wonder if its just 360 fanboys complaining. Plus cross game chat isn’t all that great, if you hadn’t noticed. Its just something 360 fanboys praise because its the only feature that the 360 has compaired to the numerous better features the PS3 has.
CLEARLY this update is missing cross-game voice chat. I’m reading all the comments and about 80% of them say they want cross-game chat. ARE YOU BLIND, SONY!?
Sparkles in the background? Seriously, Sony spent time adding sparkles in the background, instead of the stuff fans have been asking for:
– PS2 backwards compatibility
– cross game voice chat
– Canadian video store
– support for more video formats (e.g. MKV)
They are clearly not listening to their fans.
it’s amazing how much buzz these firmware updates create.
Sparkles, dynamic themes, and battery icon replacement are nice. Everything else was a waste of time to create.
I really hope this is not the complete feature list. With every new firmware update I keep hoping for native MKV video file playback and am always disappointed.
sorry you and the other 5 people in canada that want the video store are just gonna have to deal with it.
Come to think of it, I find it kinda useless to see the number of friends online, since its already easily accessible on the XMB, anyways you would have to press the PS button ingame to show this status box. I think they were just trying to find stuff to fill in the box. The number of unread messages would be better, or better the number of new lines in the text chat room?
Will there be development tools released for the community to create dynamic themes?
Once again i have to see this stupid face and listen about useless things for my PS3.
Gamescom conference was for future users but nothing for PS3 owners.
It´s a waste of time request for features, so bye Mr. Lempel, keep living in your fantastic world with your crappy features.
Great stuff. Hope the pricing on themes is good. You guys always seem fair on that stuff. Don’t let me down.
stop it with the.MKV support animefags, learn to convert.
Oh Eric one more thing. Can I get a MAG beta key please? I just found out today that I am getting full funding for school(Business and Animation and programming) so getting into MAG would possibly be the only thing that could top it. The ps3 slim really got my attention as did the 3.00fw news. Keep doing the great job that you are.
Hmmm I wonder where javkinov is at?
@345
i love u man!!
People always find something to complain about. Anyways, for what it’s worth, this is a fantastic update! Can’t wait until September 1! Keep up the Good Work, Sony!