PSP clockspeed upped to 333MHz after 3.50 firmware update

Sony has admitted that it sneakily upgraded the PSP's clockspeed to 333MHz (from 266MHz) in the version 3.50 firmware update that was released last month. This admission is confusing for a couple of reasons: for starters, Sony originally underclocked the PSP in order to increase the stated battery life of the console. Does that mean they'll be forced to decrease the stated battery life, so as to avoid false advertisement? It's also rather odd that developers are only now being granted access to the extra MHz oomph, prompting mutterings of a new PSP model which -- as one Joystiq commentator points out -- could take as long to appear as games that take full advantage of the 333MHz clockspeed. Or, maybe this upgrade simply enabled the PSP to cope with all that "remote play" malarkey that 3.50 enabled. That would be the logical assumption.

[Via Joystiq]

[MINIratman @ Jun 23rd 2007 2:23PM]

Im quite sure it was on 222Mhz before, not 266, but i might be wrong...

[Jake @ Jun 23rd 2007 3:41PM]

You're correct. It was locked at 222. The only game that's been allowed to go up to 266 Mhz to this point is Ratchet and Clank.

[oGMo @ Jun 23rd 2007 2:27PM]

Or maybe they're releasing PS1 games that require more CPU, or maybe they're going to release a new higher-capacity battery, or maybe they've decided that since you can swap batteries and not have to leave it in a charger, games eating a little more juice aren't going to make that big a difference. Maybe some of the summer game lineup requires more CPU. Maybe they just did it because they felt like it.

Not everything is a conspiracy.

[hemmy @ Jun 23rd 2007 2:44PM]

It was never "underclocked". Yes, it was originally 222mhz, one particular firmware update allowed an increase to 266, and now, finally 333. This was always part of a long list of planned upgrades, and the CPU was always intended to be variably clocked (you can do 10mhz if you feel like it, a tic tac toe game wouldn't need more than that, for example).

[James @ Jun 23rd 2007 10:08PM]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Underclocking

"Underclocking is the practice of modifying a microprocessor's speed settings to run at a lower clock speed than the manufacturer's specification."

Sony modified the speed of a processor rated to run at 333 MHz to conserve the battery, ergo they underclocked it. QED.

The fact of the matter is that the market droids didn't want the PSP to have a remarkably shorter battery life than the DS when it first came out, which would have been true if the AAA games used the CPU at full speed. Simple as that.

[hemmy @ Jun 24th 2007 1:03AM]

Sony didn't "modify the speed of the processor."

It has nothing to do with the firmware update 3.50 either. The Sony-supplied kernel *libraries* given to developers merely didn't let you select a speed higher than 222mhz when you wanted to change the processor speed. The latest game libraries do. On any firware that you can run unsigned code, you can effectively set the processor speed up to 333mhz, going back to firmware 1.0.

[idk @ Jun 23rd 2007 2:59PM]

If you read what Ready At Dawn said (the makers of God of war PSP). They kept asking sony to let them use the full 333 MHz for thier new game so that they could push even more graphics into it than what was shown. They most likely got through to sony that they needed the extra power, and sony unlocked it for em. Now I'm looking forward to GOW Chains of olympus even more!

(the article where they said this was an interview with RAD at IGN.com)

[Jon Graft @ Jun 23rd 2007 4:37PM]

Good point. And yeah, it was 222mhz at first. I never heard of it being clocked up to 266 or anything about Ratchet and Clank, so I don't know if that is true or not.

I think I remember someone who hacked their PSP overclocking it around 350+mhz.

[arthur dent @ Jun 23rd 2007 4:52PM]

any of you homebrewers know whats the cost of running the psp at 333 mhz on battery consumption?

[Aaron @ Jun 23rd 2007 9:30PM]

It's varies, but it does get pretty harsh at times. At worst you'll get around 3 hours, and that's not even at the maximum screen brightness. Not a problem if you're near civilization (and thus a power outlet), but if you're used to the acceptable battery life of UMD games, the blinking low battery light can sneak up on ya when you don't expect it.

[nebulus @ Jun 23rd 2007 4:59PM]

oohhhhh crap

I just about got WipEout pure licked, now a clock upgrade, I'm totally screwed!

[wslcrew @ Jun 23rd 2007 6:10PM]

Actually, I was gonna sell my PSP today after two years of frustration.... I think I'll give it another go now.

[domochan @ Jun 23rd 2007 7:38PM]

this update is like 8 months late, I've had the ability to run at that speed since custom firmware arrived.

[Pedro @ Jun 23rd 2007 7:50PM]

Wake me up when it reaches 666MHz.

[Pc_Madness @ Jun 23rd 2007 8:48PM]

I really can't understand Sony's handling of the PSP. Don't release it if its not finished.

[investor27 @ Jun 23rd 2007 9:24PM]

What's the limit that the custom firmware can activate?

[Taylor @ Jun 23rd 2007 9:52PM]

333MHz. So max clock speed (as opposed to 'overclocking')

[Chekote @ Jun 24th 2007 1:40PM]

Homebrew firmwares have been raising the clock to 333Mhz since the beginning. The interesting thing is that Sony said doing so would damage your PSP. Everyone knew that was a lie, but now Sony just proves it.

[hemmy @ Jun 24th 2007 3:25PM]

This is a new one on me. I'd love to see a link to an official quote or press statement saying that it would damage your PSP.

[hemmy @ Jun 26th 2007 10:41AM]

You said "Sony just ****proves**** it" and yet you can't qualify it with any official comments, just hogwash hearsay. It was on the intarweb so it must be true!!!

Christ, some people...

[Chekote @ Jun 26th 2007 12:30PM]

I said sony *proves* that clocking your PSP to 333Mhz will not damage your PSP. Which since the update is an official one, is obviously an official statement.

I don't give a damn where I read it. Sony's stance on homebrew makes it extremely likely that they would make a claim like that, so I had no reason to doubt it. I really don't have time to go research and validate every news post I read on a website. That's why I use the damn websites and don't dig up the news personally!

This is why I never bother posting on these damn sites. Just make a passing comment and someone jumps on you like it's some human rights crisis or something.

[kowalski @ Jun 23rd 2007 10:46PM]

i traded both my psps for a 1991 subaru legacy wagon
i got more mhz bitch

[Mr. Vage @ Jun 23rd 2007 10:56PM]

This even shorter battery life seems even more of a reason to pirate games. Running games off a memory stick uses much less power then spinning up the drive to read UMDs.

Personally, I'll stick with my DS. I bought my PSP 3 years ago and have 2 games for it. I bought my DS 1 year ago and I have 8 games for it. Neither system is absolutely perfect, but the DS is MUCH closer to it.

[idk @ Jun 24th 2007 12:54AM]

Same with me. I bought a DS a year ago and I sold it after just a month of having it and 3 games.

I still have my psp and use it almost every day, and I own about 30 psp games, and all of them rock!

[LiQuiD_FuSioN @ Jun 23rd 2007 11:59PM]

The real question is - will this effect any of the older PSP games?
Faster load times, perhaps? Faster game play?

[hemmy @ Jun 24th 2007 1:06AM]

No, it won't help older games. The older games are using libraries which dictate the maximum cpu speed allowable.

[angelsvairwaves1 @ Jun 24th 2007 1:48AM]

you should be able to choose the cpu speed as an option in the settings menu.

If its plugged in and charging, high speed cpu.

Using its battery, your choice.

[tobin92 @ Jun 25th 2007 12:27AM]

I personally believe it is for game, I think God of War and the new Syphoin Filter will need the power.

[Chekote @ Jun 26th 2007 8:17AM]

I don't have a link unfortunately. I have never read it officially from Sony. Only 3rd hand from homebrew news posts.