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PS4 2.0: MP3s, themes and better dashboard organization

We're creeping up to the PlayStation 4's one year anniversary and the system is finally getting its 2.0 firmware update. Even better, there are a bunch of surprises; let's dive in. First up we have the expected: SharePlay which lets you virtually pass the controller for help, YouTube exports and themes. A post PlayStation Blog notes that in addition to those, a USB music player, the ability to change colors of the PS4 dashboard (if custom themes aren't your thing), as well as improvements to streaming are en route. There's content organization, voice commands and, last but not least, a new backup feature that lets you archive all your settings, media and data to a USB device coming too. Like the Xbox One patch that hit this week, this adds a whole slew of features that ideally would have been available when the system launched last year. Join us after the jump for a breakdown, yeah?


Sony came under some fire from fans when it was announced that the only way to listen to music on the PS4 was with a Music Unlimited subscription. That changes with this patch, though, and soon you'll be able to plug in a USB device full of MP3, MP4, MP4A and 3GP files and listen to your heart's content. The PS Blog says that music can't be copied to the system's hard drive, nor can it be used in conjunction with Music Unlimited. When we'll see CD support is anyone's guess, however.

We're betting that custom playlists won't be available in-game either. Not happy with the theme pictured below? Well, you can opt for a handful of solid colors for the system UI like those at the bottom of this post.

The patch also addresses a major gripe many have had with the system since launch: decluttering the system dashboard. Now the dashboard will only show the 15 most-used games and apps, with the rest going into the Library, which also is getting some new sorting options. What's more, lets say you've been stocking up on the pretty great, free releases each month that are a part of your PS Plus subscription but you're running out of storage on your console. Well, from the PlayStation Store you'll be able to add them to your Library without downloading -- perfect for grabbing stuff before it's no longer free and saving for later, or once you install a bigger hard drive.

Speaking of which, the 2.0 patch also adds the ability to back your system data, media and settings to a USB device. This should make transferring all the stuff you've accumulated over the past year to a roomier HDD a while lot faster and much more convenient if you're living under a data cap. There's a ton more than that, though! For the rest of the patch notes be sure to hit the PS Blog -- sadly, however, it's missing a release date.

Update: Sony has updated the PS Blog post saying that the data back-up feature is not a part of this patch.