PS3 Hacks - News, PS3 Hacks, Cracks, Mods.

Update: It’s out! And it works quite well. Stay tuned for a download if you’re not able to update via the PS3 Network Update function.

Well it’s not the rumoured [fake] 2.0 firmware; however, it does in fact support 1080p upscaling for DVDs, PSOne, and PS2 games — that’s right, firmware version 1.80! Read ‘em and weep…

In addition to 1080p HD upscaling, users will now have the ability to view images, listen to music, and play videos over a local network from any supported DLNA3 device — PC, laptop, etc…

Firmware 1.80 truly packs a punch with further enhancements made to its “Remote Play” functionality… PSP & PS3 owners can now access their slick console from anywhere in the world, providing you have a broadband connection and PSP firmware 3.50 (available at the end of May). *Sniff* Do I smell 3.50 OE?! ;)

Last, but not least… Well, sort of… 1.80 includes the ability to print photos directly from the PS3 to a selection of Epson printers, via the USB connection.

Heads up! It’s due out tomorrow.

Download: 1.80 FW Update

- source: ign

The “InFeCtuS” crew has successfully downgraded a PS3 running firmware 1.60 to 1.50. The tutorial available on their website details the procedure to read & write the internal NAND flash of the PS3.

To allow infectus to have the controll of the NAND FLASH, the PS3 must be turned on we need to wait the browser screen, after you can connect the USB cable of INFECTUS to PC.
Is very important that you don’t touch nothing in the browser when INFECTUS read and write the NANDs FLASHES… because is possible a corruption of data.
The wires must be connected shortly and not crossed from infectus to PS3.

Here’s a video proving their success:

Evidently it’s not for the faint of heart, and of course you know the risks involved with writing to flash memory. In any case, this is a phenomenal breakthrough for PS3 owners. Good work InFeCtuS!

Download:
InFeCtuS Flash/NAND Programmer
InFeCtuS USB Drivers

Read Tutorial

Thanks for the news tip, chelsea_fc.

A forum post at afterdawn.com has a detailed step by step tutorial on how to create a swap switch to boot ps2 backup games.

I wanted a fairly easy way to play my PS2 backups on my PS3. I have read that you can do it by taking apart your PS3 and cutting a hole in the top and yadayada. Leaving the top off of my PS3 to play PS2 backups didn’t sound attractive to me. So i searched around and found a forum for PS2 talking about a tray switch for the fat PS2’s back in the day.

This is similar to the PS3 Swap Magic Hack hack found in our own forums

2 quick notes.

#1 swap magic is not needed at all unless you need to convert pal video to ntsc
#2 works with any firmware so far (untested 1.54)

It seems a fellow by the name of “HackITandC” has discovered a simple swap method potentially allowing you to bypass the PS3 firmware check; therefore granting the ability to load/play games which require a later firmware version than what is actually installed on your beloved console. It’s a straight forward approach:

• Load up “Resistance: Fall of Man” (RFOM) and pause it during game play
• Eject the Blu-Ray disc and insert another game (wait 5 — 10 secs.)
• Select “Quit and Save” and the system should boot the newly inserted game, possibly avoiding the firmware update check

Many PS3 users have confirmed this to be working. I cannot personally confirm these allegations because I’m running the latest version. Let us know your experience(s) below.

Could this possibly lead to bigger and better things? Who knows…

Thanks FRAK.

- discussion thread -

Perhaps it’s purely speculation, but have a look at the supposed changes coming in the soon-to-be released PS3 firmware 2.0 update –

I’m mostly interested in this, “XMB™ (XrossMediaBar) is now accessible during gameplay.” Does this mean I can finally listen to my MP3s during game play?!

• Users
  • You can now password-protect user accounts.
• Settings
  • [Dynamic Normalizer] has been added as an option under [Sound Settings].
  • [Energy Saver] has been added as an option.
  • [Equalizer] has been added as a feature under [Music Settings].
  • [Full] has been added as an option for [DVD Wide Display] under [BD / DVD Settings].
  • [Photo Settings] has been added as an option.
  • [PS / PS2 Settings] has been added as an option.
  • [RSS Channel Settings] has been added as an option.
  • [Sample Rate] has been added to [Audio CD Import] under [Music Settings].
  • [Screen Saver] has been expanded under [Display Settings].
  • The method of selecting an output resolution has been changed in [Video Output Settings] under [Display Settings].
  • [Theme Settings] has been added as an option.
  • [Zero Unused Disk Space] has been added as an option under [System Settings] > [Format Utility].
• Photo
  • Additional slideshow effects have been added.
  • [Photo Effects] have been added as a feature.
  • Wallpaper feature has been added.
  • [Zoom] has been added as a feature.
• Music
  • Additional visualization effects have been added.
  • CD information can now be entered.
  • Three-speed fast forward and fast reverse has been added as a feature.
• Video
  • Files can now be played sequentially.
  • Three-speed fast forward and fast reverse has been added as a feature.
  • You can now select [Zoom] under [Screen Mode] when playing video files saved on the hard disk or storage media.*.
    *An appropriate USB adapter (not included) is required to use storage media with some models.
• Game
  • Support for PLAYSTATION®3 format software titles has been expanded.
  • XMB™ (XrossMediaBar) is now accessible during gameplay.
• Network
  • [RSS Channel] has been added as a feature.
• Friends
  • You can now have multiple chat sessions.
  • You can now select an image to use as your Avatar from [Photo].
• Other
  • Date and Time is now shown when the PS button is pressed.
  • File sorting has been changed.
  • [Help] has been added as a feature.
  • Playability status with the PS3™ system has changed for some PlayStation® and PlayStation®2 format titles.
    To check on the latest status, visit the search site for compatible titles.
  • [Secure Delete] has been added as an option.
  • Some PLAYSTATION®Network features have been revised.

Thanks for the tip mr. knockout!

- source: playstation.com boards

Someone in the universe is fortunate enough to have access to Sony’s “Home” Beta. Have a look at the recently submitted video to see what I’m talking about…

Does it not look awesome?! Evidently there isn’t many users on it, yet… Rest assure, once “Home” is well populated, it’s bound to kick some serious ass.

- source: gametrailers

Looks like we’ve got some changes on the playstation network coming our way soon. Perhaps this is preparation for @Home? We’ll have to wait and find out:

PLAYSTATION®Network upgrade: Tuesday 08 May

Over the next few weeks, some new and exciting changes will take place in the PLAYSTATION®Store. In preparation for this, both PLAYSTATION®Network and PLAYSTATION®Store need to be taken offline for a short while to allow us to carry out the upgrade and maintenance work.

This is scheduled to take place between 16:00 and 19:00 BST (17:00-20:00 CEST) on Tuesday 8th May 2007.

If you are already logged into an online game during this time, you will most likely find that you can continue playing as normal, but you will not be able to log in or start a new game until full service has been restored. You will also not be able to access the Store during this maintenance window.

We are hoping to complete this work in as short a time as possible and apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. But remember that these enhancements are paving the way for new and exciting content that we have planned for the Store!