The PlayStation Portable system software is the official firmware for the PlayStation Portable. It uses the XrossMediaBar (XMB) as its user interface, similar to the PlayStation 3 console. Updates add new functionality as well as security patches to prevent homebrew applications and plugins from being executed on the system. Updates can be obtained in four ways:
Direct download to the PSP over Wi-Fi. This can be performed by choosing [Settings], [System Update] from the XMB.
Download to a PC, then transfer to the PSP via a USB cable or Memory Stick.
Included on the UMD of some games. These games may not run with earlier firmware than the version on their UMD. See also List of PlayStation Portable system software compatibilities.
Download from a PS3 to a PSP system via USB cable. (Japanese and American version only)
While system software updates can be used with consoles from any region, Sony recommends only downloading system software updates released for the region corresponding to the system's place of purchase. System software updates have added various features including a web browser, Adobe Flash Player 6 support, additional codecs for images, audio, and video, PlayStation 3 connectivity, as well as patches against several security exploits, vulnerabilities, and execution of homebrew programs.[2] The battery must be at least 50% charged or else the system will prevent the update from installing. If the power supply is lost while writing to the system software, the console will no longer be able to operate unless the system is booted in service mode or sent to Sony for repair if still under warranty.
The current version of the software, 6.61, was made available on January 15, 2015. It is a minor update released more than three years after the release of the previous version 6.60 in 2011.
The PlayStation Portable uses the XrossMediaBar (XMB) as its graphical user interface, which is also used in the PlayStation 3 (PS3) console, a variety of Sony BRAVIA HDTVs, Blu-ray disc players and many more Sony products. XMB displays icons horizontally across the screen that be seen as categories. Users can navigate through them using the left and right buttons of the D-pad, which move the icons forward or back across the screen, highlighting just one at a time, as opposed to using any kind of pointer to select an option. When one category is selected, there are usually more specific options then available to select that are spread vertically above and below the selected icon. Users may navigate among these options by using the up and down buttons of the D-pad.
The basic features offered by XMB implementations varies based on device and software version. On the PSP console, the XMB had top level icons for Photos, Music, Videos, Games, Networking (which allows the use of the web browser), Settings and Extras. Also, XMB offers a degree of multitasking. With the PSP, using the Home button while playing music would allow users to browse photos without stopping the music. While XMB proved to be a successful user interface for Sony products such as PSP and PS3, the next generation Sony video game consoles such as the PlayStation 4 and the PlayStation Vita no longer use this user interface.[3] For example, the XMB is replaced by the LiveArea interface on the PS Vita.
Web browser
Web browser on a PSP-1000
The PlayStation Portable comes with a web browser for browsing the Internet. The web browser is a version of the NetFront browser made by Access Co. Ltd. and was released for free with the 2.00 system software update.[4] The browser supports most common web technologies, such as HTTP cookies, forms, CSS, as well as basic JavaScript capabilities.[5]
The version 2.50 upgrade added Unicode (UTF-8)character encoding and Auto-Select as options in the browser's encoding menu, and also introduced the saving of input history for online forms.
Version 2.70 of the PSP's system software introduced basic Flash capabilities to the browser.[6] However, the player runs Flash version 6, five iterations behind the current desktop version 11,[7] making some websites difficult to view.[6]
There are three different rendering modes: "Normal", "Just-Fit", and "Smart-Fit". "Normal" will display the page with no changes, "Just-Fit" will attempt to shrink some elements to make the whole page fit on the screen and preserve layout and "Smart-Fit" will display content in the order it appears in the HTML, and with no size adjustments; instead it will drop an element down below the preceding element if it starts to go off the screen.
The browser also has limited tabbed browsing, with a maximum of three tabs. When a website tries to open a link in a new window, the browser opens it in a new tab.[8]
Parents can limit content by enabling Browser Start Up Control which blocks all access to the web browser and creating a 4-digit PIN under [Settings] in [Security]. Additionally, the browser can be configured to run under a proxy server and can be protected by the security PIN to enable the use of web filtering or monitoring software through a network. Recently, TrendMicro for PSP was added as a feature that can be enabled via a subscription to filter or monitor content on the PSP.
The PSP browser is slower compared to modern browsers and often runs out of memory due to limitations put in place by Sony. Alternatively, Homebrew has allowed a custom version of the browser to be released that utilizes all 32/64 MB of the PSP's RAM, which allows the browser to load pages faster and have more memory for larger pages.[9] Opera Mini can also be used on PSP through PSPKVM, a homebrew application which is a Sun Java Virtual Machine. It was claimed to provide much faster loading times than the default browser and provides better web page compatibility.[10]
Other features
Like many other video game consoles, the PlayStation Portable is capable of photo, audio, and video playback in a variety of formats. However, unlike Sony's home consoles such as the PlayStation 3 and the PlayStation 4, it is not possible to play Blu-ray or DVD movies on the PlayStation Portable directly since it lacks of a standard Blu-ray or DVD drive. While it does have a UMD drive and there exist UMD movies, the UMD format never saw implementation on any device other than the PlayStation Portable and as a result the market is very limited compared to those for other optical media formats. There have been no more movies released on UMD since 2011, and the final Harry Potter movie was one of the final releases on the format.[11]
The PlayStation Portable also supports a feature known as Remote Play, which allows the PSP to access many features of a PlayStation 3 console from a remote location using the PS3's WLAN capabilities, a home network, or the Internet.[12] However, unlike the later Remote Play feature between the PlayStation Vita and the PlayStation 4, the Remote Play capabilities between the PSP and the PS3 are much more limited. Although most of the PS3's capabilities related to its main user interface are accessible with Remote Play, playback of DVDs, Blu-ray Discs, PlayStation 2 games, most PlayStation 3 games, and copy-protected files stored on the PS3's hard drive are not supported.[13] Actual Remote Play between the PSP and the PS3 games are only supported by a "select" very few PS3 titles.
Furthermore, PSP-2000, PSP-3000 and PSP-N1000 can use the Skype VoIP service starting with system software version 3.90. The service allows Skype calls to be made over Wi-Fi and on the PSP Go over the Bluetooth Modem feature. It is not possible to use the VoIP service on the original PSP-1000 console due to hardware limitations. There also existed other services for the PSP such as the Room for PlayStation Portable, similar to the PlayStation 3's online community-based service known as PlayStation Home.
Custom firmware
Homebrew development was very popular during the time of the PlayStation Portable. Besides the official firmware (OFW) made by Sony, custom firmware (also written as Custom Firmware, or simply CFW) is also commonly seen in the PlayStation Portable handheld consoles. Custom Firmware allows the running of unsigned code such as homebrew applications and UMD backups, emulators for other consoles as well as PSone games when the disc images are converted into PSP format,[14] unlike official system software which usually only allow signed or retailed copies of software to run. Famous Custom Firmware include the M33 Custom Firmware by Dark_AleX as well as those made by others such as the Custom Firmware 5.50GEN series, Minimum Edition (ME/LME) CFW and the PRO CFW. Since from the early days hackers working on the PSP discovered exploits in system software 1.00 and 1.50 that allowed them to run unsigned code on the PSP, many PSP-1000 users had downgraded their consoles to these versions in order to install a Custom Firmware corresponding to a higher version of the system software. Later exploits were discovered in some more recent versions of the system software too allowing the installation of homebrew content. Sony had put significant effort into blocking Custom Firmware and other third party devices and content from their PSP consoles, but their effort was not quite successful for the PSP. In July 2007 Dark_AleX officially stopped his work on the PSP, citing perceived problems with Sony as one of the reasons for his departure,[15] but other Custom Firmware continue to be developed or updated. However, this would be very different for its successor, the PlayStation Vita. Unlike the PSP, there is currently no native CFW for the PS Vita. Besides the popular henakau exploit, which allowed users to run unsigned code, it wasn't technically a custom firmware. There only exists eCFW for the PS Vita, meaning Custom Firmware for PSP running in the PSP "emulator" of the PS Vita, but the features of eCFW are expected to be much more limited than a real CFW for the PS Vita, unless with the usage of Adrenaline, a homebrew upgrade to the existing "emulator" , which adds USB support, fixed PS1 emulation, blue colour filter and more.
History of updates
KEY
Settings changes
Media changes
Disc changes
Game changes
Network changes
System changes
Description
Changes primarily related to the PSP settings menu
Changes primarily related to Photo, Music and Video menus
Changes primarily related to UMD
Changes primarily related to PS1, minis, PC Engine and PSP games
Changes primarily related to the TV, Network and PSN menus
Provided only with the Japanese release of The Idolmaster
Rumored changes relating to The Idolmaster:
In-game PlayStation Store interface—it is said that The Idolmaster is the first title that has this interface.[40]
Support for PlayStation Home rewards added—rumor spread from the false report by some websites that prizes in PlayStation Home resulted from player in-game accomplishments from The Idolmaster.[41]
First "universal" firmware version for the original PSP-1000, PSP-2000 PSP Slim & Lite and PSP-3000 series
[PlayStation Network] has been added as a category on the XMB
[PlayStation Store] has been added under [PlayStation Network] menu
[Account Management] has been added under [PlayStation Network] menu
Sleep Timer Function for [Music]
[USB Auto-Connect] Feature added for PSP-1000 and PSP-2000 under [System Settings]
A new full-screen keyboard; press [Select] when the On-Screen Keyboard is displayed.
A new redesigned XMB Background [Original] added as an option under [Theme Settings]
A new video format is supported (MPEG-4 AVC (H.264) Video Main Profile (AVC CABAC) in 640 × 480 pixels)
[Title Display] feature added under [Video Settings]
Screen capture has been added as a feature within games and the internet browser (this is up to the game developer or the web site developer to support though).
PlayStation format software can now be output in full-screen size on a connected device, even if it doesn't have progressive input capability. Still PSP format software can only be output on devices that have progressive input capability.
6 days
Version 4
Version
Date Released
Description
Days until next version update
4.21
Pre-installed Only First found on December 5, 2008
Only available pre-installed on the initial release of the black Rachet & Clank Entertainment Pack PSP-3000 series in North America and possibly some later production units of the Silver Rachet & Clank and Gran Turismo bundles in North America and other colors and regions worldwide.
Functionality allowing for altered playing speeds under [Video].
Added Subtitle support for UMD Movies under [Video].
Network Changes
[Internet Search] has been added as a feature under [Network].
7 days
Version 3
Version
Date Released
Description
Days until next version update
3.96
UMD Only First found on June 3, 2008
Provided only with the North American version of Hot Shots Golf: Open Tee 2
System Changes
Support for PlayStation Network titles has been expanded.
15 days
3.95
April 8, 2008
System Changes
Support for PlayStation Network titles has been expanded.
Downloaded PlayStation game controls can now be further customized.
The method for turning the PS3 off using [Remote Play] has been altered.
63 days
3.93
March 18, 2008
Network Changes
The Internet Radio feature has been expanded.
Skype feature has been added under Network. (Japanese version only)
21 days
3.90
January 29, 2008
System Changes
Support for PlayStation Network titles has been expanded.
Network Changes
Support for the Go!Messenger service (under [Network]). (European version only)
Skype feature has been added under Network. (Excluding Japanese version)
49 days
3.80
December 17, 2007
System Changes
Added ability to play PlayStation games from disc or hard drive via Remote Play with the PlayStation 3 system
Media Changes
Added new music visualization effect
Video scene search
One-segment broadcasting recordings (Japanese version only)
Network Changes
Streaming internet radio player
RSS now supports OPML and pictures
PlayStation Spot now available at BB Mobile Point (Japanese version only)
41 days
3.73
November 29, 2007
Initial release for a revision of the Slim & Lite with TA-085 v2 motherboard.
Disc Changes
Improved system stability by fixing problems where the UMD drive would occasionally suspend and then fail to reload data.
18 days
3.72
October 30, 2007
System Changes
Support for PlayStation Network titles expanded.
Remote Start now available under Remote Play. Remote Start requires a PlayStation 3 system with system software version 2.00.
30 days
3.71
September 13, 2007
System Changes
Revisions to strengthen security have been added.
Support for PlayStation Network titles expanded.
A correction has been made to the settings for some regions (i.e., the PlayStation Spot icon was removed for regions other than Japan)
47 days
3.70
September 11, 2007
First "universal" firmware version for both the original PSP-1000 and PSP-2000 PSP Slim & Lite series
Settings Changes
Custom themes
Support has been added for assigning buttons in [Remote Play]
Media Changes
A scene search feature has been added under [Video]
Sequential playback is now supported under [Video]
Simultaneous playback of content under [Music] and [Photo] is now supported
Video bitrate limit raised to 2Mbit/s from 768kbit/s
Network Changes
PlayStation Spot icon added under [Network] for regions other than Japan
2 days
3.60
Pre-installed Only First found on September 10, 2007
No update to this firmware was ever made available. This firmware was only available pre-installed on the initial release of the PSP Slim & Lite with TA-085 motherboard.
Settings Changes
UMD cache support
USB Charge option
Additional color themes for XMB
Media Changes
TV output added
Support for the 1-Seg Tuner (Japanese version only)
1 day
3.52
July 24, 2007
System Changes
Support for PlayStation Network titles expanded.
49 days
3.51
June 29, 2007
System Changes
Illuminati exploit has been patched.
25 days
3.50
May 31, 2007
System Changes
Allows Remote Play to be used via an internet connection.
CPU speed limit removed, allowing CPU to run at 333 MHz rather than 266 MHz.[52]
Network Changes
"RSS Channel Guide" has been added as a feature under "RSS Channel".[53]
29 days
3.40
April 20, 2007
System Changes
Support for PlayStation Network titles expanded.[citation needed].
"Certificate Utility" option erased. (Can still be accessed by pressing triangle on the selected game)
Saved data from PlayStation format software can be used on both PSP and PS3 systems.[54]
41 days
3.30
March 28, 2007
System Changes
"Wireless Hotspot" added (6 months of free T-Mobile Hotspot wireless internet access was added for US users)[55]
Security added to detect TA-082 / TA-086 motherboards which have been downgraded to 1.50 and prevent upgrading to 3.30 or newer. Easily fixed by using IDstorage Key Cleaner.
Media Changes
Support for thumbnail images within RSS channel and in video folder.
MPEG-4/H.264 support for 720×480, 352×480, and 480×272 (native resolution).
23 days
3.11
February 8, 2007
System Changes
Reset option for PlayStation Network games.
Network Changes
"Portable TV" menu under [Network]. (Japanese version only)[56]
48 days
3.10
January 30, 2007
Settings Changes
Dynamic normalizer.
Conserve memory option.
System Changes
Secret patching of sceRegOpenRegistry and GTA exploits.
Network Changes
[PlayStationSpot] menu under [Network]. (Japanese version only)
9 days
3.03
December 20, 2006
System Changes
Support for PlayStation Network titles expanded.
Support for PSP-300 camera.
Media Changes
Support for taking photos and videos using the camera.
First attempt at patching the 2.00-2.50 GTA exploit. Security update was later found not to work correctly in every version through 3.03 (Grand Theft Auto exploit).
An overclock bug (or limit?) was introduced with this update preventing the CPU from going above 222mHz while WiFi is activated. This is a predictable and reproductive behavior where if the CPU is overclocked (such as 266-333) before activating wifi, the behavior is nullified until the next complete shutdown. This is still present in the latest firmware. This could have been an attempted limit by Sony to anticipate the lower voltage of the battery in the PSP-2000 to prevent drawing too much power at once.
107 days
2.50
October 13, 2005
Settings Changes
[Set via Internet] has been added to [Date and Time] in [Date & Time Settings].
[WPA-PSK (AES)] has been added as a security method under [Network Settings].
Media Changes
Copyright-protected video can now be played.
Network Changes
LocationFree Player added.
[Auto-Select] and [Unicode (UTF-8)] added to the browser.
Settings for [Text Size] and [Display Mode] and the input history of online forms accessed can now saved in the browser.
System Changes
Korean input mode has been added to the on-screen keyboard.
47 days
2.01
October 3, 2005
System Changes
Revisions to strengthen security have been added.
Security update to patch the original (first of 3) TIFF exploit.
10 days
2.00
September 1, 2005
Initial UK release (with included update disc)
Settings Changes
Korean has been added as a system language in [System Settings].
[Character Set] has been added in [System Settings].
[Theme Settings] has been added.
[Internet Browser Start Control] has been added as a security mode in [Security Settings].
WPA-PSK (TKIP) has been added as a security mode in [Network Settings].
Web address shortcut feature has been added as an input mode for the on-screen keyboard.
Media Changes
4:3 Screen Mode has been added (for video saved on Memory Stick Duo media).
Go To feature has been added (for UMDVIDEO and UMDMUSIC).
A-B Repeat feature has been added (for UMDVIDEO, UMDMUSIC and video saved on Memory Stick Duo media).
Audio options have been added (for video saved on Memory Stick Duo media).
MP4 (AVC) has been added as a playable file format (for video saved on Memory Stick Duo media).
The combination of SonicStage version 3.2 (or later) and PSP system software 2.00 (or later) has made it possible for music files in ATRAC3 plus format to be transferred to a Memory Stick PRO Duo
MP4 (the audio codec for MP4 format audio files is MPEG-4 AAC) and WAV (Linear PCM) have been added as playable file formats (for music saved on Memory Stick Duo media).
Wallpaper feature has been added.
Image transfer feature has been added.
TIFF, GIF, PNG and BMP have been added as viewable file formats.