If you still regularly use your PlayStation 3 (and why wouldn’t you, it’s an amazing machine) you may be somewhat surprised to hear that there is a firmware update out today.
It doesn’t add any new features, which is to be expected of a console about to celebrate its 18th birthday, but if you use your console as a Blu Ray player you’ll want to make sure to update as it contains keys for the Blu Ray software to ensure the latest releases play on the console.
Sony has been releasing annual updates for the Blu Ray player for a number of years now. Presumably when they stop the latest Blu Ray discs will no longer work in the console.
Obviously if you’re on custom firmware you probably shouldn’t update but the rest of us can go ahead and install the patch.
I don’t own a stand-alone Blu Ray player as I use my PS3 but do dedicated Blu Ray players need regular updates so new releases work? And if not does anyone know why the PS3 needs regular updates? Several Google searches failed to supply an answer.
Don’t forget to check your PS3 to see if it’s one of the SACD compatible ones! SACD is a niche audio format that came out before DVD and Blu-ray audio was a thing. SACDs were much higher quality than CDs and often came with 5.1 mixes, however thanks to Sony, it was impossible to rip an SACD because there were no SACD players that could interface with a PC. Until the PS3 that is. The PS3 at launch supported SACD playback, which enabled people to rip SACDs once they figured out how to jailbreak their ps3s.
Afaik PS3s with custom firmware are still the only way to rip SACDs.
That’s the first I’ve heard of SACD. Too bad it never caught on, sounds very cool.
Kinda like how there’s barely any 3D recordings of concerts. Seems like such an obvious match! And in the era of VR…
Look into DVD and Blu-ray audio! It’s basically the same thing; for an example, Peter Gabriel’s I/O has the option to get Dolby Atmos mixes on bluray and most of Steven Wilson’s music has 5.1 mixes in the form of DVDa or Blu-ray audio too.
The reason why SACD is kinda important is because there are a lot of SACD releases that haven’t been rereleased on DVDa/BDa
Good to know!
I used to install home theaters for a living. Yes, bluray players need to be updated to be able to play latest releases. It’s kind of like DRM, but instead of needing to be constantly connected, it just gives it the new code once and it’s good for a while. Unlike DRM, they can’t just pull your license. As long as you can access a current bluray player, you can keep watching the disc.
The license is managed in reverse. Instead of pulling your license, they issue new keys to simply leave behind the old compromised DVD player keys that pirates were using to rip content digitally (without using the analog hole).
Where did customers get the new codes, was it embedded in the disks themselves?
So can old blu ray players not connected to the internet not play new blu rays?
I don’t know if it’s still a thing, but back when I actually used physical home media every Bluray disc contained a software update file so if you put it in your player you could install the update to allow you to play it.
Yeah that is what I figured. Wonder why the ps3 couldn’t do that.
Edit: maybe is was to protect against potential attack vector for hackers/ pirates
None of mine do.
Part of the reason why I prefer the open waters nowadays
Some years ago I got a blu ray player from a thrift store, and it was pretty old. The Star Wars collectors set wouldn’t play on it for some DRM reason, and I had to use the DVDs in the set just to watch it.
