2.40 bricking caused by 'system administrative data' on hard disk
In an official statement issued to ThreeSpeech, SCEE explains the problem with firmware 2.40. It seems that there was a problem which "prevented a limited number of PS3s from activating properly after updating to version 2.40, when certain system administrative data were contained on the HDD." This has now been fixed with 2.41, though those who suffer from the problem (which prevents the PS3 from loading up the XMB) will not be able to access the new firmware update.
Instead, those who had problems with 2.40 will need to contact Customer Services and will receive a replacement PS3. 2.41 will prevent this problem happening to anyone else. The statement also reiterates that those who installed 2.40 successfully will not suffer from any issues. Good news all round, really. We're happy those people who were too slow to grab 2.40 will now be able to start earning trophies and enjoying in-game XMB with the rest of us.
