Today, Sony has released an update for the PlayStation, adding, among other things, support for external storage of PS5 games. But like reported of The Verge, Sony has quietly slipped in a number of bonus features in the update, including the ability to automatically turn off HDR, plus a new feature suite called “HDMI Link”.
In the most basic sense, HDMI Link associates the power status of the PS5 with the power status of the TV. Start one, the other starts – approx. HDMI Link is split between two different functions: Power Off Link (if you turn off the TV, your PS5 will enter sleep mode) and One-Touch Play (if you turn on the PS5, your TV will turn on and off automatically for PS5).
You’ll find both by accessing your settings, opening the System menu, and navigating to the HDMI submenu.
In particular, the latter option, One-Touch Play, is a godsend. Think about it: you play video games. You probably have several cars connected to the TV. Consider all the time you spent scrolling through the various entries, looking for the console you want (in this case, your PS5). With One-Touch Play, you don’t have to remember which input is enabled on your console, and you’ll enjoy some power-saving benefits to get you started.
Too bad it doesn’t always seem to work.
When I tested the HDMI Link function on my TV this morning, I found that none of the functions worked. (I keep my PS5 connected to a Sharp Roku TV from 2019 in the first place). When I turned off my TV, my PS5 stayed completely on, not in sleep mode and certainly not turned off. In a second test, when I turned on my PS5, my TV did not turn on and certainly did not switch to the correct input.
G / O Media may receive a commission
Huh.
I tried it again on a second screen (a Toshiba Amazon Fire TV was taken last year) and I had identical results. So I did what every flummoxed writer should do and bothered my colleagues until they tested it for me.
KotakuLisa Marie Segarra initially tried these features on a PC monitor. One-Touch Play worked very well, but Power Off Link didn’t work. Even after disconnecting the monitor, the PS5 remained on. However, on a Sony Bravia TV for a few years, both functions worked. In the meantime, for KotakuAsh Parrish – whose PS5 is connected to TCL TV – didn’t even work.
So, clearly, HDMI Link works in some cases, but it is not clear what premises, if any, are needed on HDMI displays for these two new functions to work. (Kotaku contacted Sony for clarification, but did not hear back in time for publication.)
Today’s update gives PS5 owners the non-existent ability to store PS5 games on an external USB device. After the update, under the “Games and applications” submenu, you should now see a separate column called “Move PS5 games.” Transferring those games to an external device works exactly how it works with PS4 games: just check the ones you want to move and click the “move” button.
The downside is that you can’t play those games while they are stored externally. PS5 games require the system’s built-in SSD to run. If you want to play a PS5 game on a PS5, you will need to move it back to the console’s internal memory. (As the system will tell you in a pop-up notification, moving games from external to internal storage is generally faster than downloading them fresh.) For those with fast internet or stable wired connections, it is possible that this feature should not sound too much but it is a real advantage for those with dubious connections or data limit.
Yes, and despite the size of today’s update, you still can’t hold down the PS button on DualSense to turn off the console. Maybe next time.