PlayStation 5 is about to receive a big firmware update tomorrow with some quality-of-life changes to the user experience. Also coming is the much anticipated enabling of internal storage expansion allowing PS5 owners to install their own SSD to the console. What else in this update? A lot, actually! PlayStation has everything detailed in a blog post, but we’ll go over some of the more considerable changes for you here.
We’ll get to the juicy storage expansion in a bit, but first, a very welcome change is coming to how games are sorted in your library and quick launch. Cross-generation games will now show as separate titles for their respective PlayStation 5 and 4 versions. A console-appropriate logo will appear next to the game’s title, making it clear you have the correct platform. This change is undoubtedly a huge relief to those (like me!) who mistakenly download or launch the PS4 version of a game or fumble through menus to figure out if the correct edition is selected. You’d be surprised how often it happens!
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Control Center – AKA the menu you use to turn the console off – can now be customized. Players can move the featured icons like power, audio, viewing downloads, and more can shuffle around to your liking. Additionally, icons can be hidden or unhidden to further make the menu your own. Anything to make the Control Center more manageable is a great addition.
Finally coming to the PlayStation 5 console is the option to add more internal storage. Those looking to make more room for upcoming games (or space to always keep your favorites on hand) will have to install an M.2 SSD storage device with the appropriate specifications and a recommended cooling unit or heat sync. Sony has the specifics on what will work in the PS5 here. Make sure to take their recommendations seriously. You don’t want to waste money on hardware that won’t work, and you certainly don’t want to risk damaging your hard-to-come-by console.
Here are some of the other highlighted changes arriving in the firmware update:
- New controls for Screen Reading functionality
- 3D audio for built-in TV speakers
- Preferred resolution selection (720p or 1080p) for PlayStation Now streaming
- Auto video capture for “personal bests”
- An enhanced Game Base with new controls for party and chat
- PS App Remote Play and Screen Sharing updates
- PS4 users can now view PS5 trophies
We’re coming up on a year of having the PlayStation 5 out in the wild, and some pain points are now seeing some resolutions. How does this update look to you? Are you going to install some extra storage to fit more games on your PS5? If so, which SSD will you choose? Which games do you never want to uninstall? Let’s talk it out in the comments.
