PS3 firmware update 3.60 adds cloud-saving, idle controller shutdown timer

By Adam Rosenberg March 10, 2011

sony-playstation-network-cloud — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Sony has released a new firmware update for its PlayStation 3 gaming console, version 3.60. It’s so shiny and new that the tech company’s system updates webpage hasn’t even been updated with a link and release notes at the time of this writing. You can download it directly to your console though (confirmed), and it brings a couple of new features to the party.

The big one, as Sony announced yesterday on PlayStation Blog, is the addition of a remote save feature for PlayStation Plus subscribers. Basically, you get 150MB of storage space on Sony servers which allows for a maximum of 1,000 save files to be stored. This is cloud computing in action, people. Publishers reportedly have the option of opting specific games out of remote save support, those with “copy prohibited” save files.

The new feature is yet another example of Sony pushing to make a PlayStation Plus subscription more attractive to consumers. Unlike Microsoft’s Xbox Live, online play is freely available for PlayStation 3 users. What would be a key reason to subscribe is already available to one and all, so Sony has had to come up with a different flavor of premium features, including free PlayStation Network content, exclusive early demo and beta testing access, and now, remote saves. None of which are essential the way online play is for certain gamers, though the added security offered by the new feature could convert a few naysayers.

Also new with v3.60 is a feature which allows you to set how long an activated PS3 controller will sit idle before it shuts off due to inactivity. Which pretty much speaks for itself.

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Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…

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