This Article isnt written by yahoo....its PC world.  stop whining that yahoo hates sony. 

Are Sony's PS3 firmware updates morphing into glorified publicity stunts? It's a question worth asking. Since the PS3 arrived in November 2006, Sony's issued 34 updates to its glossy micro-tower – a remarkable number for a console* – each a grab bag of bug fixes and feature fills. Menus increasingly swell the XMB's verticals. System stability is indeterminately "improved" and Linux "hacks" are blocked. Formats arrive unceremoniously, sending users clambering over the river and through the woods in search of explanations for jargon like XviD, RTMP, BD-J, AVCHD, and Blu-ray BD-Live Profile 2.0.

Occasionally the updates are momentous, but most seem like tinkering. The PS3's December 2, 2008 v2.53 update added full-screen support for Adobe Flash. The November 5, 2008 v.2.52 update brought three trivial glitch fixes. The July 29, 2008 v2.42 update enigmatically "improve[d] the playback quality of some PlayStation 3 and PlayStation format software." The July 8, 2008 v2.41 update fixed "various…issues caused by update 2.40."

Don't get me wrong, I actually think it's admirable that Sony's willing to tidy up with some frequency. But shouldn't a company with Sony's resources and a predictable hardware development platform clear the windshield ahead of time?

We used to have a rule that end-users were never beta testers (not involuntarily, anyway). Bug-crippled games were routinely savaged in critical circles, and rightly so.

Now? "Patches" are called "Firmware Updates" with intriguing (but occasionally annoying and rarely optional) features tagging along for the ride.

And every time Sony releases a firmware update, we carry the water and cover the story.

Like the 2.60 update, out shortly, with the following change log:

- Fixed error which caused saved games for some titles to become inaccessible if the user's PlayStation Network ID or password was changed.

- Users are now able to view and download free content from the PlayStation Store without the need to create or sign-in to a PlayStation Network account.

- Media changes

- New Photo Gallery application (requires additional 100MB download).

- Video playback of files encoded with version 3.11 of the DivX codec.

Here's Sony's Eric Lempel previewing the update per the http://blog.us.playstation.com/2009/01/20/upcoming-ps3-firmware-v260-update/">PlayStation blog.

The Photo Gallery applet sounds fun if you want to lavishly tease family members with slideshows of the vacation you took and they didn't. At one point in the video, though, Lempel says "There are plenty of ways to do this using the power of the PS3." He's referring to the photo gallery's manipulation tools. But the power of the PS3? Who knew it took a Cell Microprocessor to trick out some JPGs and TIFFs? (I'm totally nitpicking, but implying "power" has any bearing here is like eulogizing a jackhammer standing in for a ball-peen hammer.)

The "guests can view the PSN store (but still need an account to buy something)" feature on the other hand seems superfluous. Is anyone with a PS3 and network access not creating a PSN account?

All I know about DivX 3.11 is that it's a codec that'll let you view a particular sort of ripped video file. If you want more info, http://mediacoder.sourceforge.net/wiki/index.php/DivX">try here.

And fingers crossed that Sony starts wrapping these point releases into broader updates and unleashing them less frequently.

* Compare with the Xbox 360's 14 updates since November 2005, or the Wii's 15 since November 2006.

http://tech.yahoo.com/news/pcworld/20090121/tc_pcworld/aresonysplaystation3updatesgettingold

What MrBubbles Thinks:

No.  i dont think they are.  they have really done a lot since it launched.

the 2.60 update was kinda useless. i was hoping for them to make the xmb faster. well, maybe in the next update.

If they want to see useless updates..... I am not going to finish that sentence cause I would be flamed.

I think Sony is doing a phenomenal job with firmware.

 they are doing a great job with firmware updates. trophy support, divx, flash player. i just wish they will make the xmb faster in the next update.

god you are making it sound like its painfully slow >_o

It was a Fine firmware update, not bad or great just good.
The new photo interactive gallery it very well done and polished nicely, cant wait to see what the do for music, video, game & PSN Parts of XMB Next.

i hoped they would fix some BC issues, but my Metal gear solid 3 still has framerate issues.

they may be useless to us, but they may be useful to the ps3 itself. who knows what else is contained in those updates? those updates could be the reason why the ps3 hasn't been fully hacked yet. constantly updating the ps3 could be making it very difficult for hackers to hack the ps3.

It's not so much that the updates are useless, but that they promote them so much so frequently. You only ever hear from Microsoft or Nintendo when they release something major, like a twice-yearly dashboard update or a new channel.

 yes it is, especially when you want to look at someones profile- and dont deny thats not "painfully slow".