Skip to main content

Want to test the latest PlayStation 4 software update? Go sign up right now

PlayStation 4 Pro review
Julian Chokkattu/Digital Trends
The PlayStation 4’s next major software update, 4.5, will soon be available to the general public, but if you want to try out its new bells and whistles in advance, Sony is giving you the opportunity to sign up for a beta test.

By signing up on the PlayStation website, you’ll be entered for a chance to receive a voucher code giving you access to the “beta trial” for System Software 4.5. Your PSN account must use a valid email address for you to be eligible for beta access, and signing up will not automatically guarantee that you’ll be selected.

PlayStation 4’s last major update, 4.00, released last September, introduced a number of new features to improve and streamline the user experience. From the “quick menu,” users are able to choose music to perfectly suit the game they’re playing, and a folder system allows users to sort their favorite games for easier access. The update also added PlayStation 4 Pro enhancements and HDR support, as well as the ability to do a complete system transfer between consoles.

The beta test for 4.00 began nearly a month before the update rolled out to the rest of PS4 users, and signups for the test began nearly a month before that. As it stands, we expect to see 4.5 release sometime in March — just as the spring wave of major titles hits, including Mass Effect: Andromeda, Ghost Recon: Wildlands, and Nier: Automata.

Given the trouble users have experience trying to get HDR to work with their PlayStation 4 consoles thus far — particularly when paired with Vizio televisions — we wouldn’t be surprised if the next system update introduces a simpler setup method.

What features are you hoping to see included in the latest PlayStation 4 system software update? Let us know in the comments!

Editors' Recommendations

Gabe Gurwin
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Gabe Gurwin has been playing games since 1997, beginning with the N64 and the Super Nintendo. He began his journalism career…
Dreams live support is ending — and that’s a big misstep for PlayStation
Art fights a giant bird in Dreams.

Sony could’ve had its own popular proprietary game engine and metaverse. Instead, it just let it slip through its fingers.

Media Molecule is ending live support for Dreams, its highly ambitious game-creating and playing tool for PS4, on September 1. Its servers are staying online for now -- and it has a few more content updates in the pipeline before then -- but after August, there will be no new tools, ports, or events for Dreams. That means it’s not coming to PS5, PlayStation VR2, and, most critically, PC.

Read more
PlayStation Plus just set a new first-party precedent with Horizon Forbidden West
Horizon: Forbidden West

Sony revealed the games coming to PlayStation Plus Premium and PlayStation Plus Extra this month on February 21, and it's the best month that the service has had since it launched in the summer of 2022. Not only are some great PS1 classics like The Legend of Dragoon and Wild Arms 2 coming to the service, but Horizon Forbbiden West is getting added as well.
Horizon Forbidden West coming to the service one year after launch is a big deal because Sony has been resistant to putting recent first-party PS5 games on its subscription service. While it's still not adding first-party titles on day one like Xbox Game Pass does, this is possibly our first indication of how Sony will handle adding its own games to the subscription. It's not the only PS4 and PS5 title coming to the service this month either, as the following strong lineup of games was also confirmed to be coming on February 21.

The Quarry (PS4, PS5)
Resident Evil VII Biohazard (PS4)
Outriders (PS4, PS5)
Scarlet Nexus (PS4, PS5)
Borderlands 3 (PS4, PS5) 
Tekken 7 (PS4, PS5)
Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown (PS4)
Earth Defense Force 5 (PS4)
Oninaki (PS4)
Lost Sphear (PS4)
I Am Setsuna (PS4) 
The Forgotten City (PS4, PS5) 
Destroy All Humans! (PS4)

Read more
You can win cash with PlayStation’s new tournament feature. Here’s how to sign up
Two characters brawl in Guilty Gear Strive.

Sony has officially launched PlayStation Tournaments on the PS5 today. The company announced the launch of the new esports feature in a blog post published this morning following three months of beta testing.

Compete in PlayStation Tournaments for PS5

Read more