Sony has rolled out a new firmware update for the PS5 in beta that invited users in select countries can now test out, and it adds a number of new features to the console’s user experience. Chief among them, perhaps is support for larger-capacity M.2 SSDs, going up to as high as 8 TB (up from the previous limit of 4 TB). Of course, any external M.2 SSDs being used will need to meet Sony’s previously prescribed requirements.
The new beta update also adds support for Dolby Atmos at long last, which means your PS5’s 3D audio will now be compatible Dolby Atmos-enabled HDMI devices such as soundbars, TVs, or home theater systems.
A number of new accessibility features have also been added. You can, for instance, now assign a second controller to an account as an assist controller, allowing two people to use two controllers at the same time as if they were a single controller. In addition, you can now also turn on haptic feedback effects when navigating the console’s system UI.
Several new social features are also part of the package in the new beta update, including an updated party UI, which lets you invite a player into a closed party without automatically adding the player into the group or creating a new group; the ability to see a preview of someone’s screen sharing; being able to directly join a friend’s game as long as it’s joinable; a tournaments tile in the Game Hub for a game; and being able to react to messages with emojis.
Users can now also search for specific games in their libraries, which has been a heavily-requested feature for a while now, while Game Help cards have also seen various improvements, including being able to see available, previously available, upcoming, and completed activities. Oh, and you can now also adjust the volume of the beep sound your console makes when being turned on or off, or even turn it down entirely.
Beta access to the update is available to select invited users in the US, UK, Canada, Germany, France, and Japan. Sony hasn’t said how long it will be before the new update rolls out to all users worldwide, though the turnaround between beta release and full launch has been pretty quick for past updates, so it hopefully won’t be too long this time either.