Among several different features, such as play time management tools, custom wallpapers and other enhancements that are going to be coming with an upcoming Playstation 4 update, we’re also going to see a new supersampling mode for the PS4 Pro in particular, which will allow players using the console with 1080p TVs to “enjoy an enhanced visual experience when playing some PS4 games”. In other words, a simulation of the details found in upscaled 4K gaming graphics will be available to these games for HDTVs.
The update, prosaically known as PlayStation system software 5.50 beta, will be rolling out for users of PS4 who signed up and were selected for the program according to Sony.
Going into more details about the new supersampling mode, Sony is claiming that it will let some games render at higher resolutions that then downscale to the native resolution of a 1080p TV. (and stay at their enhanced resolution if played on a native 4K 2160p TV). This upscaling followed by downscaling doesn’t come close to creating a true 4K graphics experience like that which you’d see on say the Xbox One X with select games and a 4K TV, and it doesn’t even deliver the sort of upscaled 4K UHD graphics that the PS4 Pro is capable of when used with native 4K televisions, but it should slightly, noticeably enhance visuals in the games it works for on a 1080p TV. This is something that more economical gamers could appreciate with these PS4 Pro titles. Microsoft also offers the same feature for its Xbox One X 4K HDR game console and their own list of select games.
As for the other features coming with this new software update. The Play Time Management component lets parents set time controls for how long their children can play on their PlayStation console on a daily basis. Users who want to activate this can do so in the Settings section of PS controls and select Family Management. With the feature activated, PS4 consoles will automatically log out of gaming at predetermined times. There will even be a little notification tab that appears on the screen while a child is in the middle of their game to let them know just how much time they have left before the fun ends.
Moving on to the new wallpaper component of the update, it lets users import images from their USB sticks for custom wallpaper creation. Other things that can also be customized with these images include the Tournaments team page.
Finally, new a new “This PS4” tab will go up to let users see a list of all the apps on their PS4 console while a new “PS Plus” tab will show all games that a player owns. There will also be a “Purchased” tab for hiding all sorts of apps that clutter your interface and an option for deleting old notifications is being introduced. All of these tabs above can be found in the Library section in PS4 consoles.
The upcoming software update also includes a number of other minor changes to the PS4 experience but what we don’t know quite yet is when Sony plans on releasing it to the general public. As we mentioned above, for now it’s limited to a select group of enrolled PS4 owners.