IGN gamescom award show
While that 6.00 sounds like a major step up for the system (the last significant version update was v5.51 way back in June, a simple stability patch,) PSP owners racing to get the latest features installed onto their PSPs may be in for a bit of disappointment. 6.00 is sadly lacking in major features or upgrades (and at least one change seems to make the PSP a little worse somehow.) Of course, Sony Computer Entertainment has always asserted that its Update naming convention doesn't mean what people expect it to mean -- just because the number jumped from 5.0 to 6.0 doesn't mean that this should be considered a "major" system update, and bigger updates to the interface may be around the corner still. Even so, this latest update doesn't pack in the good times we were hoping for.
The following updates are made to the PlayStation Portable with PSP version 6.00:
- Games can now be grouped and displayed in folders based on their Expire Date under [Game].
- Under [Settings], [Network Update] has been changed to [System Update]. Under [System Update], you can now choose how to update the system software.
- The number of colors that can be selected under [Settings] > [Theme Settings] has been increased. (Supported only on PSP-2000 and above.)
- Revisions to strengthen security have been added. (Internet Browser)
An astute user at the blogsite QJ.net noticed that underneath the hood are actually a number of other changes not listed in the official PSP Update v6.00 feature list. Amongst these are little nips and tucks in the interface that probably nobody would notice, but there was the one change that stuck in our craw: the Folders function in Photo, Music and Video have been changed to show the preview icons smaller on the screen. And speaking of Folders, the new Games Folder feature is something of a dud. If you're anything like us at IGN and have dozens of downloaded games and demos on your PSP, you've probably been dying for Folder support to help you sort your games ... whoever at Sony that programmed this feature in v6.00 must have Megan Fox's toe-thumbs, because all it does is sort by Expiration Date (as stated by Sony, but still...) and when IGN went to use the feature on a PSP filled with games, zero of those games had an expiration date anyway.
Bummer and double-bummer. Bring on 6.10, we say, and make it count!
As always, you can download the latest PSP updates (once the newest version is available, as some regions might get new versions later than others) through your PSP's Network Update feature in settings, or on Sony's official site:
PSP Version Updates (US)
PSP Version Updates (EU)
PSP Version Updates (AU)
PSP Version Updates (JP)
