MANILA, Philippines – On Saturday, February 4 (February 3, US time) Sony announced its upcoming 4.50 software update for the PS4 and PS4 Pro, which introduces a number of new features to the consoles.
Perhaps the two most striking additions that will come with PS4 software update 4.50 are external hard disk drive (HDD) support, as well as PS4 Pro 'Boost Mode."
In the announcement post for the update, which is currently being beta tested, Sony is giving players the option of storing content on an external HDD. To do this, users simply need to plug in a USB 3.0 HDD into the PS4, and that will automatically add space on the console.
The new feature will be compatible with HDDs up to 8TB in size. While saved games are still stored locally onto the PS4's hard drive, you will now be able to download, install, and manage saved content through new menus available with the update.
Speaking with Polygon, Sony confirmed the PS4 Pro Boost Mode that was popping up for PS4 Pro owners who were testing the firmware update.
"Boost Mode lets PS4 Pro run at a higher GPU and CPU clock speed for smoother gameplay on some PS4 games that were released before the launch of PS4 Pro (and has not been updated to support PS4 Pro)," Sony explained.
The company also said that games with variable frame rates may also get a higher frame rate, and load times may also be shortened due to the update.
The 4.50 software update will also bring the ability to set screenshots as background images for the Home Screen, updates to the Quick Menu (accessed after a long press of the PS button on the controller), simplified notifications for easier reading, and the ability to post on PlayStation Network activity feeds.
PS4 users who are fond of PlayStation VR (PSVR), meanwhile, will be able to view 3D Blu-rays from within PSVR.
The launch times for the software update have not yet been announced, but if you're beta testing the update, do let us know how you're finding it. – Rappler.com