Interview with SCE engineers reveal BD-Live, firmware plans

by Andrew Yoon { Apr 8th 2008 at 12:15PM }

People love firmware updates on the PS3. Why? They continue to add new functionality. While the most-requested feature, in-game XMB, still has not arrived, the latest update (2.20) included a number of new features, such as support for BD-Live, the latest Blu-ray disc profile. The interview notes that the PS3 is much more powerful than standalone Blu-ray players on the market, and that the "performance gap" won't get smaller any time soon. Because of this, Blu-ray discs can differentiate between players, and include "richer effects" on PS3 systems.

Future firmware updates will include 1080 deinterlacing and DTS-HD MA, much to the joy of serious home theater buffs. Expect updates to happen quarterly -- although the revised PS Store will break from that planned cycle.

While the most recent firmware is required to sign into the PSN and play the newest games, it seems as though firmware updates will be required for movie playback as well. In fact, the Resident Evil: Extinction BD includes an updater on the disc, for firmware 2.10. Expect this trend to continue into the future.

[Via NeoGAF, Translation by one/B3D]

Tags: bd-live, dts-hdma, firmware

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

GamerGuyX @ Apr 8th 2008 12:28PM

DTS-HD Master Audio decoding! Finally!? OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG

*dies*

deftechpioelite @ Apr 8th 2008 6:03PM

dts-hdma very nice wowee wow! cant wait for this shiznite

JJ @ Apr 8th 2008 12:46PM

DTS-HD: MA......when? I hope this is true.... don't tease us engadget...this is the last thing the PS3 needs to be a complete (excluding the lack of a true hdmi 1.3a that gives bitstreaming) Blu-ray player.

Tony @ Apr 8th 2008 1:20PM

DTS-HD MA!!! Yay!!! At last! Time to rewatch half of my BD collectio! (especially those 7.1 tracks like Pan's Labyrinth...oh damn!) I'm gonna go read this link and see if they actually said this...!

Tony @ Apr 8th 2008 1:21PM

Oh damn it's in Japanese...but I found this:

縣：はい。DLNAやハードディスク内のコンテンツには効きません。

－光ディスクプレーヤーとしての要求として、「1080iのコンテンツを1080pにする」とか、「DTS-HD Master Audioへの対応」などもあるのですが、この点についてはいかがですか?

crankbait @ Apr 8th 2008 3:19PM

Sony,

Please allow for upscaling of 720p content to 1080i. Many televisions including yours do not support 720p

Popfrogs @ Apr 8th 2008 4:55PM

It does this for all content minus games already. I guess you need to be more specific.

Overgauss @ Apr 8th 2008 4:00PM

Thanks for HD-MA though! When can we expect bitstreaming to allow our 7.1 receivers to do what we payed for them to do? Is a PS3 hardware revision really needed?

Overgauss @ Apr 8th 2008 4:00PM

Yeah that would be real fan service imo. Who needs cameo game characters.

More and more games seem to be trickling in with 1080i support though. It really should be across the board support however. You know like, automatically and out of the box. Heck out of the gate really.

Gunegune @ Apr 8th 2008 6:12PM

I was happy until I read updates will now happen quarterly. One of the things I liked most about Sony and the PS3 was the fact that they released updates when they were ready rather than waiting until a specified time period like Microsoft and the 360.

SRTLibbs @ Apr 8th 2008 9:16PM

Why does eveyone have a hard-on for Bit-Streaming? Do you not understand how audio decodes?

They way the PS3 decodes audio is that it takes the audio source (TrueHD, PCMx.1) and decode it internally and sends it through HDMI as uncompressed PCM.

Bitstreaming will take the source code and send it across the HDMI to the reciever...where the reciever will decode the audio and output it as, guess what.... PCM.

The only benefit to this RIGHT NOW is for the DTS:MA (if your reciever can decode it). With a PS3 firmware update in the future for the DTS:MA internal decoding, this will be a moot point.

If you did any kind of research you you find out that the whole Bitsreaming vs PCM is a totally redundant processes. THEY BOTH ACCOMPLISH THE SAME THING!

JJ @ Apr 8th 2008 10:12PM

well there's that and the PS3 just physically can not output bitstream due to its HDMI not being 1.3a. They need to make a new PS3 sku w/ that just so they can bitstream. Currently the PS3 can only internally decode and output the HD sound in PCM no matter what settings you put it on.

Until this news came up, I almost gave up and considered buying a standalone that can bitstream the data. Since, I have a receiver that can decode the HD audio codecs and all.

SRTLibbs @ Apr 8th 2008 10:21PM

I again ask my question, why is bitstream so important?

It all ends up the same in the end...the end result is the same. A PCM output.

Brad @ Apr 8th 2008 10:57PM

Not always. This depends on which component does the better job of decoding - the PS3 or the Receiver. Also, some receivers do not have the same bass management features for PCM input versus bitstream.

Also, DSD bitstream input to the receiver would be better than the current PCM conversion that the PS3 has to do when playing SACDs....

mattwillis4 @ Apr 9th 2008 12:19AM

...Or you could just get a receiver that already does it. My Denon 3808 FTW!!!!

Mythagoz @ Apr 9th 2008 3:39AM

Sure, new firmware adds new functionality but it also breaks stuff they worked perfectly fine beforehand.

Are these the faces of the three wise untouchable Sony monkeys that broke 750Gb and 1Tb SATA drive compatibility with the release of 2.20?

I say "untouchable" because Sony tech support in Australia act as though the developers are in a completely seperate company on a different planet.

I say "monkeys" because they together they say nothing about HDD compatiblity and thanks to Sony tech support they see and hear no third party drive problems :)

I know some of you are going to scream "unsupported", but seriously though, if the PS3 has another 8 years or so left in it, there are surely going to be 750Gb 2.5" drives within that time frame...

Imbro @ Apr 10th 2008 6:20AM

... and don't get me started on breaking breaking the beloved, although limited DLNA support. Well atleast every mp4 file I had are now unplayable over the network.

The ps3 on paper is for me almost perfect. I don't care much about gui redesigns, home at certainly not in-game xmb. What I want is the ps3 work as told in commercials. This means be a decent DLNA player, with full support of divx/xvid, full support for h264/mp4... etc.