Today, Sony has released an update for the PlayStationExternal storage of PS5 games is also supported. But reported by The edgeSony has quietly integrated a handful of bonus functions in the update, including the ability to automatically deactivate HDR, as well as a new function suite called “HDMI Link”.
In the simplest sense, HDMI Link couples the power status of your PS5 with the power status of your TV. Turn one on, turn on the other – somehow. HDMI Link is divided into two distinct functions: Power Off Link (when you turn your TV off, your PS5 goes to sleep) and One-Touch-Play (when you turn on your PS5, your TV turns on and the input turns on automatically into your PS5).
You can find both by going to your settings, opening the system menu and navigating to the HDMI submenu.
The latter option in particular, one-touch play, is a godsend. Think about it: you play video games. You likely have multiple computers connected to your TV. Take into account the time you spent scrolling through the various inputs and looking for the console you wanted (in this case, your PS5). With One-Touch Play, you don’t have to remember which entrance your console is at, and you get some power-saving benefits when you boot up.
It’s a shame it doesn’t always work.
When I tested the HDMI Link feature on my TV this morning, I found that neither feature worked. (I mostly keep my PS5 plugged into a 2019 Sharp Roku TV.) When I turned off my TV, my PS5 stayed fully on, not in sleep mode and certainly not off. In a second test, when I turned on my PS5, my TV didn’t turn on and certainly didn’t switch to the correct input.
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Huh.
I tried again on a second screen (a Toshiba Amazon Fire TV was shot last year) and got identical results. So I did what any perplexed writer should do and harassed my colleagues until they tried it for me.
KotakuLisa Marie Segarra first tried out these functions on a PC monitor. One touch play worked fine, but Power Off Link did not. Even after unplugging the monitor, the PS5 stayed on. However, both functions worked on a Sony Bravia TV several years old. Meanwhile for KotakuAsh Parrish, whose PS5 is plugged into TCL TV, didn’t work either.
Of course, HDMI Link will work in some cases, but it’s unclear what prerequisites, if any, are required in HDMI displays for these two new features to work. ((Kotaku reached out to Sony for clarification but did not get a response in time for release.)
Today’s update also gives PS5 owners the previously unavailable option of saving PS5 games to an external USB device. After the update, you should see a separate column labeled “Move PS5 Games” in your Games and Apps submenu. Transferring these games to an external device works exactly how to do with PS4 games: Just tick the ones you want to move and hit the “Move” button.
The catch is you won’t be able to play these games while they’re externally stored. PS5 gaming requires the system’s built-in solid state drive to be running. If you want to play a PS5 game on a PS5, you still need to move it back to your console’s internal storage. (As the system informs in a pop-up notification, moving games from external to internal storage is generally faster than downloading games.) For users with lightning fast internet or stable cable connections, this feature might not sound like much. But it’s a real boon for those with dubious connections or data limitations.
Oh yeah, and despite the size of today’s update, you still can’t hold down the PS button on your DualSense to turn off your console. Maybe next time.
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