Newsbits 4/29: Sites, Loco Roco release date, FF7 wallpapers, Locura

April 28, 2006 on 1:01 pm | In Uncategorized | Comments Off

Official Japanese sites opened: Gitaroo Man Live (screenshots also here), Bomberman Portable, Valhalla Knights, Finder Love, and Jukugon. We finally have a solid release date for Loco Roco: July 13th. That's what the Japanese site says; no word on if the release date will be the same for other regions of the world. Sony revealed that as of the end of March, 50.1% of their stock is now held by people living in countries that are not Japan. The Sony Pictures page for Final Fantasy VII Advent Children has some nice PSP wallpapers available. There's also a PSP version of the page right here with a completely different set of wallpapers. A company called Villainous Mind has released the "Locura Personal Media Server. It seems to be an all-in-one solution for streaming music from your PC to your PSP (using the RSS feed feature of firmware 2.60 and above), including a web server, so it might be a nice place to start if you've been having trouble getting a more custom solution setup. It can also create a nice layout that allows you to download your videos as well. Could be nice software to keep an eye on.

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Newsbits 4/28: Internet radio with Flash, Killzone, surround sound, etc.

April 27, 2006 on 10:04 pm | In Uncategorized | Comments Off

Number of interesting items today... PSP GadgetZ had a link to this Japanese site, which is a website created to use Flash to deliver internet radio to Kyocera's WX310K. The site also apparently works using a firmware 2.70 PSP, though I haven't had an opportunity to try it myself. Either way, this is exactly the sort of thing that I'm looking forward to from the new Flash support: more capabilities. Many people seem to forget, but Flash can be for much more than just watching stupid cartoons that aren't even close to being funny. ITmedia reports that Machi: Intersection of Fate is the PSP's first game to use a surround-sound technology called "DiMAGIC Headphon," based on "DiMAGIC Virtualizer X." Virtualization technology was offered by the company for Machi, enabling gamers to enjoy virtual surround sound on their headphones without using any special hardware. Impress Watch has screenshots and information on Lumines 2 and Every Extend Extra. Buena Vista Games will be handling the release of these titles everywhere in the world besides Asia. IGN has some nice hands-on/preview/whatevers of Killzone: Liberation, Ace Combat X: Skies of Deception, and Hot PXL. Remember when I said "Interestingly enough, the release makes no mention of the camera and GPS libraries" in regards to firmware 2.70? Looks like Sony was trying to pull a fast one on me, as a poster over at ps2dev indicates that these libraries are in fact there, as Sony said they would be. Another noteworthy library is "usbmic.prx" -- of course we already know Talkman uses a USB microphone, but it's interesting that Sony would include a library for it in the actual PSP firmware. If I had to guess, I'd say they're planning on using the USB microphone for more than just Talkman.

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Newsbits 4/27: LocationFree on Mac, Oblivion, Lumines 2, etc

April 26, 2006 on 12:51 pm | In Uncategorized | Comments Off

According to this ITmedia article, Sony has licensed their LocationFree technology to a company called Kaga Electronics, who will be developing a Mac OS LocationFree client. This announcement comes shortly after Sony licensed LocationFree technology to ACCESS (who also makes the PSP's NetFront browser). Of course this doesn't affect the relationship the PSP shares with LocationFree, but just in case the lack of a Mac OS client was preventing you from getting a LocationFree, it seems you've got some thinking to do. Gamespot is carrying a story about a rumor that supposedly surfaced over at the Gaming-Age Forums. Apparently someone said Bethesda will be releasing Elder Scrolls: Oblivion for the PSP. Fanjita put together a nice little FAQ about firmware 2.70 and its homebrew capabilities (or more specifically, the lack thereof). Sony has also hinted at Lumines 2 being in development. Yay.

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2.7 Firmware Released for Japanese AND US PSPs!

April 25, 2006 on 3:00 am | In News | Comments Off

2.7 Firmware Released for Japanese AND US PSPs!

So the 2.7 System Software has also been released for US and Japanese PSPs. That a very pleasant surprise from Sony. We'll be bringing you downloadable flash games and other fun stuff with this new firmware release in the future.

Here are the links to upgrade your PSP. There currently isn't a hack for the 2.7 PSPs so you're going to have to sacrifice your homebrew if you upgrade (atleast for a little while).

QJ.NET US PSP Firmware Download
QJ.NET Japan PSP Firmware Download

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2.70 firmware update available via System Update for USA, GTA exploit doesn’t work

April 25, 2006 on 12:51 am | In Uncategorized | Comments Off

Kentron wrote in to tell me that firmware version 2.70 is now available for US PSPs via System Update. Can anyone else confirm or deny this? I'm waiting on the update to be posted on the website, since I don't have access to a wireless LAN right now. Japanese update page: http://www.jp.playstation.com/psp/update/ud_01.html USA update page: http://www.us.playstation.com/psp.aspx?id=SoftwareUpdate Also, as expected, the GTA exploit doesn't work. Update by Viralous24 - Both websites are now hosting the firmware update.

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Sony Announces 2.7 PSP System Software

April 24, 2006 on 6:30 pm | In News | Comments Off

Sony Announces 2.7 PSP System Software

Sony is about to release version 2.7 of the System Software for Japanese PSPs. The highlight in this update will include Flash (Version 6) support in the web browser , AAC audio playback and the ability to save RSS Audio to your memory stick. These were all features that were recently announced at a Sony meeting so it's not a complete surprise.

Here's the complete feature list.

* [Internet Browser] now supports Macromedia Flash contents playback.
You need to enable the Flash contents playback in the [System Settings].
The version of the flash player is Macromedia Flash Player 6 (a part of the functions is not supported).
The settings of the [Internet Browser] is added into [Settings] -> [Connection Settings]
The audio contents from channels in the [RSS Channel] section now can be saved into your memory stick.
* [Auto] option added to [Rate Change] in [Location Free Player].
More about the Location Free base station can be found here

Music
Added file extension to playable AAC format.

Settings
* Added [Enable Flash Player] in [System Settings].
To change this option, you need to connect to the internet.
"Simplified Chinese" and "Traditional Chinese" added to [System Settings] -> [System Language].
Added [RSS Channel Settings].
Added [UMD Video L & R Button] into [Video Settings].

Others
Fixed some issues when using a memory stick with more than 2GB free space.
*This problem has not happened among the memory sticks sold in Japan until April 24.

Explicit Warning for NON Japanese PSP Owners.

"CAUTION: This update is only for customers who obtained PSP® (PlayStation®Portable) for Japan (PSP-1000 series). Upon completion of preparing, we will announce update information for the other countries/areas customers via SCE Group Web Site or other channels . For these customers who obtained PSP® in the other countries/areas, please DO NOT update PSP® through this web site. There are no guarantee of proper operation of the other PSP®."

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