I don’t have much to say about this one really, since functionally, the added Playstation Store access on the PSP is pretty much identical to the PS3 one. It looks mostly the same as the image on the right too, except for the large Hot Shots Golf image which, in real life, is actually a new releases list, in text.

Still, there is something to be said about not having to use my PC to get content on my PSP anymore. It was just so much of a hassle to browse the PC Playstation Store, look for something interesting, ask to download it, attach the PSP to the PC, download, install, etc. This was especially true in the case of game trailers and videos. I mean, if I’m on my PC, why don’t I just watch the video on my PC from some place like Gametrailers.com, which is streaming video and a lot faster.

With Playstation Store on PSP, I can see that there is going to be a huge boom in content downloaded just because it’s infinitely more convenient. The store interface is easy and fast to use, downloading is direct, what more could one ask for?

Well, one thing. Unfortunately, it seems that for some reason or another, the Video portion of the store, containing all the movies and TV shows for rental and purchase, is simply not available on the Playstation Store on PSP. I imagine it has something to do with licensing issues related to the movie companies, so it should be added some time in the future when that’s all worked out. Sadly, this means that people who just own PSP’s can’t get movies right now at all, due to the maintenance also being done on the PC version of the store, which is scheduled to reopen later this month.

Despite these issues, I’m loving it and have downloaded more stuff onto my PSP in the last day than I’ve done in the lifetime of the handheld. Anyone else tried this thing out?

I had just finished watching a Dragonball Z movie, which must have been made in the `80′s, last night when I received word that firmware 2.50 was available for my PS3. Rejoice! It’s not quite as major an improvement over 2.40, but there are some neat things to be enjoyed.

The first thing I tried was the Flash Player 9 support that has been added to the [Internet Browser]. This was huge for me because I’ve long wanted to be able to watch Gametrailers.com content on my TV, but up until now, only Youtube level Flash media has been supported. For the most part, I was satisfied with the level of performance. The videos on Gametrailers at least play now, but there doesn’t seem to be enough memory (or something else) available to the browser to allow for smooth playback of the videos in HD. Standard definition stuff runs smoothly though, so watching the videos on the Playstation Blog, provided by Viddler.com, works just fine.

Connecting your PS3 to the internet is probably the easiest and most effective way to get more out of your PS3, for gamers and non-gamers alike. This is because Sony has consistently been releasing firmware updates to the hardware. Like getting the newest version of Windows or OS X for your computer, these updates add new features and functionality to the PS3, but unlike Windows Vista or Leopard (or whatever the newest OS X is), these updates are free.

If you have not updated your system firmware since you bought your PS3, you are missing features and improvements that have been made to the system, depending on how long ago you made your purchase. For people just using the system for Blu-ray movies, in March 2008, the PS3 gained Blu-ray Disc Profile 2.0 support, which is used by many of the newest Blu-ray releases today, such as Men in Black and Iron Man. Near the end of 2007, the PS3 gained the ablilty to playback the popular DivX and WMV video formats, and just last night, firmware version 2.50 added Flash Player 9 support to the PS3′s web browser, enabling it to run even more video sites beyond just Youtube. Notice that none of the features I have mentioned so far even have anything to do with games, so you can see how getting the latest firmware benefits the non-gamer as well. Click on to learn more!