Are Sony's PlayStation 3 Updates Getting Old?

[dhilipkumar]

Are Sony's PlayStation 3 Updates Getting Old?

Are Sony's PS3 firmware updates morphing into glorified publicity stunts? It's a question worth asking. Since the PS3 arrived in November 2006, Sony's issued 34 updates to its glossy micro-tower – a remarkable number for a console* – each a grab bag of bug fixes and feature fills. Menus increasingly swell the XMB's verticals. System stability is indeterminately "improved" and Linux "hacks" are blocked. Formats arrive unceremoniously, sending users clambering over the river and through the woods in search of explanations for jargon like XviD, RTMP, BD-J, AVCHD, and Blu-ray BD-Live Profile 2.0.

Occasionally the updates are momentous, but most seem like tinkering. The PS3's December 2, 2008 v2.53 update added full-screen support for Adobe Flash. The November 5, 2008 v.2.52 update brought three trivial glitch fixes. The July 29, 2008 v2.42 update enigmatically "improve[d] the playback quality of some PlayStation 3 and PlayStation format software." The July 8, 2008 v2.41 update fixed "various...issues caused by update 2.40."

Don't get me wrong, I actually think it's admirable that Sony's willing to tidy up with some frequency. But shouldn't a company with Sony's resources and a predictable hardware development platform clear the windshield ahead of time?We used to have a rule that end-users were never beta testers (not involuntarily, anyway). Bug-crippled games were routinely savaged in critical circles, and rightly so.

Now? "Patches" are called "Firmware Updates" with intriguing (but occasionally annoying and rarely optional) features tagging along for the ride. And every time Sony releases a firmware update, we carry the water and cover the story.