Sony has announced that firmware 1.80 launches tomorrow, bringing with it two key features: video upscaling and enhanced PSP remote play. And I thought the rumoured firmware 2.0 was exciting enough. The new video upscaling mode means that any DVD, as well as any PSOne or PS2 game (!), you pop into the console will be automatically resized to fit the pixel count of high resolution screens (up to full 1080p) and should yield much better looking DVD playback on high definition plasma and LCD screens.

My only concern would be the how high the quality of the processing is, given that there is presumably only a limited amount of hard disc space Sony can dedicate to it. This system is necessary to upgrade the image effectively, so it would be interesting to get a side by side comparison with an ordinary DVD upscaler.

Of course, none of this is any use if you don’t have an HDTV. But instead of rushing to splash out on a pricey flat screen telly, you could just have a look at getting a PSP, which is getting its own added functionality. The Remote Play feature is being enhanced so that it works across the internet meaning that you will potentially be able to stream your music and videos from anywhere where there’s a wireless internet connection. Sweeeet.

I suppose the one caveat is how you actually set your PS3 to enable Remote Play while you’re, like, out of the house on someone’s Wi-Fi network. I have my fingers crossed that there might be a remote on function included, but it doesn’t seem that likely. Looks like you could be calling someone in the house to getthem to turn the console on for you…

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