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New PlayStation Portal remote player system software update releases tomorrow

Draugoth

Gold Member
5efe4730bcbf98492ae62cb653a19e366657f45f.jpeg

When we developed the PlayStation Portal remote player, our goal was to bring high-quality console gaming experiences to the palm of your hands, even when you aren’t in front of the TV. We continue to evolve the experience on PS Portal, and we are happy to announce that the latest system software update for our first dedicated remote play device will start rolling out tomorrow – adding a few new user enhancements.


Sign-in screen support for select public Wi-Fi networks​


While we recommend PS Portal to be used in your home as you have control over the quality of the Wi-Fi, it can also be used outside of the home in places where a fast and stable Wi-Fi connection is available – and we’ve seen many players take advantage of this.

With this new update, PS Portal will also connect to a range of public Wi-Fi networks* that may require additional validation steps beyond entering the network password. This includes Wi-Fi networks with sign-in screens that can often be found in hotels, cafes, and airports.

To connect to these public Wi-Fi networks, PS Portal will display a QR code for you to scan with your smartphone or tablet. Once scanned, you’ll be able to use your mobile device’s web browser to complete the additional validation steps on behalf of your PS Portal. As a reminder, PS Portal requires a Wi-Fi connection with at least 5Mbps, and for a better play experience a high-speed connection of at least 15Mbps is recommended.

PS Portal UI screenshot showing a QR code for network authentication

New visual feedback for touchpad areas​


The emulated touch pad on PS Portal’s vibrant 8-inch screen is getting an update. We’ve added new visual feedback to the touch pad areas. The new effects will be displayed when using the touch pad areas during remote play.





Remaining Time -0:06

Display battery level in percentage​


You now have the option to display the remaining battery level percentage on the status bar at the top right corner of your screen. To use this feature, open the quick menu, go to [Settings] > [System] > [Battery], and then turn on [Show Battery Percentage].

PS Portal UI screenshot showing remaining battery level in percentage
Since the initial launch of PS Portal last November, we’ve been overwhelmed with the enthusiastic reactions and the variety of ways our community has been enjoying gaming on PS Portal. While Remote Play for PlayStation has been available since the PlayStation 3 generation, we’ve built upon this technology with PS Portal to elevate the Remote Play experience to another level by integrating key features of the DualSense wireless controller with a vibrant 8-inch LCD screen.

We’re excited to see that PS Portal has introduced many more gamers to the Remote Play feature on PS5, with over 60 percent of PS Portal owners using the feature for the first time**. What’s more, PS Portal is making it easier for many players to access their games, with the average PS Portal owner’s engagement on PS5 going up within the first 8 weeks of using their PS Portal.

We’ve also seen a wide range of games proven to be popular on PS Portal, from single player adventures including God of War Ragnarök, Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 and Astro’s Playroom to multiplayer titles including Fortnite, Rocket League and EA Sports FC 24 – all being some of the most played games on PS Portal within the first 3 months of its launch***.

We’re always grateful to the PlayStation community for embracing our journey as we continue to explore different ways to bring new player experience. Check out the official website to learn more about PS Portal and let us know what you think in the comments!
 
I actually enjoyed my PS Portal, but I barely ever used it.

I ended up trading it to my friend for a Series X with 2 controllers (which was a steal because I bought the portal off a friend for basically $150) so I could play through the Gears Trilogy again (which is now collecting dust as well).
 
Use mine all the time. Granted I want a device with a local option, even if that means a heftier price tag (anywhere in the $200-$300 range is A-ok).
 
Nice!!! Capture portals and battery percentage addressed!!! Definitely my main gripes.
Now if they'd just get the media apps and cloud game streaming to also stream to Portal instead of telling you it can't be displayed.
 
Use mine all the time. Granted I want a device with a local option, even if that means a heftier price tag (anywhere in the $200-$300 range is A-ok).
If you have family/friends with large Steam libraries, look into a Steam Deck + steam family sharing via the beta upgrade path.
It's ridiculously awesome. Now I have a Steam Deck with over 700 games in the library, and a Portal for my PS5. I switch between the two.
 
I would but trophies have broken and enslaved me 😭
I mainly only care about first party game trophies. I have someone on my steam family that buys a game or two every week it seems like, including almost every big AAA multiplat. So now I wait a day or two to see if it ends up in my steam library for "free"
 
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Those ARE some pretty good QOL updates but, the portal's biggest issue is the G'damned 59.94Hz stutter no matter the network conditions which basically feels like ALL games are hovering/jumping between 60 to 30fps and back to 60 again every 10 seconds.Its like there's CONSTANT framedrops to put it in layman's terms.
It has basically rendered the portal unusable for me and it's been gathering dust inside a drawer.

How the FUCK did tone-deaf Sony not notice this I'll never understand - it's even worse if they knew it but still decided to launch the product anyway (I'd actually bet on this).
This is the XH900 fiasco all over again...

Meanwhile, Remote play is flawless on my PC, tablet AND phone.
Chiaki and PsPlay both have a framepacing option in the settings to combat this exact problem and yet, a multi-billion company company can't ?
In the end, it could be hardware related/limited issue (60Hz screen/59.94Hz output from the PS5) which in this case, we're all fucked.

PS: The reddit Portal sub has got to be some of the worst, if not the worst gaming related subs , absolutely zero discussion to be had, the only thing that's good for is posting amazing topics like "got my dadstation !" coupled with a pic of a retail box, or "I'm finally part of the gang", every critical discussion gets downvoted to death, never in my life have I seen such tech-illiterate people, fucking fanboys man...
 
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playXray

Member
All I want is for my PS Portal not to disconnect every 10 minutes. Damned thing is amazing but apparently I have to put up with this because I don't have a wired network connection (even though Remote Play works absolutely flawlessly on my iPhone via the same PS5).
 
Those ARE some pretty good QOL updates but, the portal's biggest issue is the G'damned 59.94Hz stutter no matter the network conditions which basically feels like ALL games are hovering/jumping between 60 to 30fps and back to 60 again every 10 seconds.Its like there's CONSTANT framedrops to put it in layman's terms.
It has basically rendered the portal unusable for me and it's been gathering dust inside a drawer.

How the FUCK did tone-deaf Sony not notice this I'll never understand - it's even worse if they knew it but still decided to launch the product anyway (I'd actually bet on this).
This is the XH900 fiasco all over again...

Meanwhile, Remote play is flawless on my PC, tablet AND phone.
Chiaki and PsPlay both have a framepacing option in the settings to combat this exact problem and yet, a multi-billion company company can't ?
In the end, it could be hardware related/limited issue (60Hz screen/59.94Hz output from the PS5) which in this case, we're all fucked.

PS: The reddit Portal sub has got to be some of the worst, if not the worst gaming related subs , absolutely zero discussion to be had, the only thing that's good for is posting amazing topics like "got my dadstation !" coupled with a pic of a retail box, or "I'm finally part of the gang", every critical discussion gets downvoted to death, never in my life have I seen such tech-illiterate people, fucking fanboys man...
You can’t expect much from a product Sony don’t really care about, considering how poorly it’s currently selling, expect Sony drop all support in a years time.
 
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Zathalus

Member
No notes on the framepacing issues? Hopefully it’s a stealth fix then. It’s funny you get a better experience by using the backbone one and your phone. Or a Steamdeck.
 
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Still no HDR prompt fix? Everytime I boot up the portable, if my TV is off I gotta reconfigure HDR settings.

It's just stupid.

Nanka, I don't understand this, whenever I use my portal every game reverts automatically to non-HDR modes.
Basically :
- when I play on my TV : HDR
- when I play on my portal : non-HDR mode

I still don't know how some people are having the problem your describing while others don't.

Now, this might help :
Turn off HDMI-CEC to OFF both on your TV and PS5 , reason I'm saying this is because when you have it turned on and initiate remote play, the PS5 wakes up which in turn also wakes up the TV, meaning, since the TV is turned on, the PS5 recognizes that HDR is enabled, hence the washed out look on the portal.

Source : me
A couple of times when I turned on my PS5 first and THEN initiated remote play, I could actually access the HDR menus in games , when the console was in sleep mode and THEN I initiated RP, HDR in-game menus were greyed out, that's why I say that there's some HDMI-CEC fuckery going on.
 
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I actually enjoyed my PS Portal, but I barely ever used it.

This was my issue with just handhelds in general. What I realized is I just don't have time. I don't travel for work and anytime I leave my house it's cause I'm going out to do things that require my full attention. I used to play during my lunch time but then I found a way to start lifting during lunch and now that time is gone as well.

It's very rare that I go out to do something that I can just pull out a handheld and start playing games.
 
No notes on the framepacing issues? Hopefully it’s a stealth fix then. It’s funny you get a better experience by using the backbone one and your phone. Or a Steamdeck.

Zatha, there's 2 things going on :
- The device's screen
- Framepacing option

Regarding the the screen's refresh rate on the selected device for RP :
My Laptop has a 165Hz screen, my tablet a 120Hz one and my phone a 90Hz one - NONE of my devices display the stutter, it's only on the portal which has a fixed 60Hz screen.
Now, get this, as soon as i drop the refresh rate on my Phone or Tablet to 60Hz...stutter is there.

Framepacing option : Chiaki and PSPlay have one and it's included for this exact reason - devices with lower refresh rates (60Hz).
Option turned on = no stutter
Option turned off = stutter

It's basically a Hz mismatch between the PS5's output (59.94Hz) and the RP device's screen refresh rate, which, again, if it's above 60Hz there's no problem/stutter.
For those devices that have a lower Hz refresh rate, the framepacing option helps and this is why i'm flabbergasted on why Sony didn't implement this.

Let's hope that it's indeed fixable via FW update 'cause otherwise, fuck 'em
 

Zathalus

Member
So the update came out and zero stutter fixes and no increase in bitrate either. I decided to install Chiaki4Deck again and it’s remarkable how much better the streaming is. HDR, no frame pacing issues, higher bitrate, and what feels like lower latency as well.

I do hope Sony thinks about releasing a better version of the Portal one day. Maybe a Pro version to go with the Pro console.
 
So the update came out and zero stutter fixes and no increase in bitrate either. I decided to install Chiaki4Deck again and it’s remarkable how much better the streaming is. HDR, no frame pacing issues, higher bitrate, and what feels like lower latency as well.

I do hope Sony thinks about releasing a better version of the Portal one day. Maybe a Pro version to go with the Pro console.

This has been one of my most regretted purchases of the past few years due to the stuttering alone.

I think it's safe to say that after 7 months from release, they won't fix it, either because it's hardware related (SOC+ screen) or software related but not giving a fook about fixing it since the "normies" don't see it/don't care about it.

Fuck Sony, never gonna bother with their peripherals again, they've all been subpar so far.
 

Udde

Member
On my setup the portal is working great. I was a remote/cloud play hater because of input lag and video compression problems, but with this little device now I’m a believer. Playing New Star GP, Horizon Chase 2, etc. has been great.

Anyway, IMO Sony should:

Option a) leave this device “open” to community developers, since it is not running “ps portal games”, there is no direct need to protect “a format” from piracy. Do not patch exploits found. It’s the perfect chance for Sony to experiment with this approach. There are A LOT of users that would see this as a more user friendly Sony.

Option b) add the ability to play natively ps plus premium psone and psp games, so you can play without using mobile data.

Option c) none of the above (yeah, 99% chance :O)
 
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Loomy

Thinks Microaggressions are Real
I actually enjoyed my PS Portal, but I barely ever used it.

I ended up trading it to my friend for a Series X with 2 controllers (which was a steal because I bought the portal off a friend for basically $150) so I could play through the Gears Trilogy again (which is now collecting dust as well).
What a weird thing to call someone you absolutely robbed lmao
 

Loomy

Thinks Microaggressions are Real
Option a) leave this device “open” to community developers, since it is not running “ps portal games”, there is no direct need to protect “a format” from piracy. Do not patch exploits found. It’s the perfect chance for Sony to experiment with this approach. There are A LOT of users that would see this as a more user friendly Sony.
Yeah this is never happening lol
 
What a weird thing to call someone you absolutely robbed lmao
Hahaha. Funny thing is it's actually my Xbox lol. He wanted to play old Bethesda games and is a PlayStation only guy so I sold it to him at like $350.

I had asked him if he would ever sell the Xbox as I knew he never used it and I wanted to play through the Gears games but didn't want to pay a lot for a console I don't really care about much. He mentioned to me that he was having a hard time finding a Portal recently, and I said well I'm thinking about selling mine on eBay and he asked how much and said well what if I just trade you the Xbox for the Portal and while I offered to give him some money as well because I originally was going to buy the Xbox for $250 he said he didn't really care since it was just collecting dust.

Funny thing is now that I've finished Gears 1-3 and half of Judgement (I never played it back in the day and didn't enjoy it this time so I just quit) I don't even have it hooked up anymore so I might just sell it.
 
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mckmas8808

Mckmaster uses MasterCard to buy Slave drives
You can’t expect much from a product Sony don’t really care about, considering how poorly it’s currently selling, expect Sony drop all support in a years time.

Lies! The PS Portal is the highest-generating gaming accessory in America this year. And I'm 100% stoked that they've updated the Portal so that we can connect to public Wifi with a login. BOUT TIME! Love my Portal.
 

Loomy

Thinks Microaggressions are Real
Hahaha. Funny thing is it's actually my Xbox lol. He wanted to play old Bethesda games and is a PlayStation only guy so I sold it to him at like $350.

I had asked him if he would ever sell the Xbox as I knew he never used it and I wanted to play through the Gears games but didn't want to pay a lot for a console I don't really care about much. He mentioned to me that he was having a hard time finding a Portal recently, and I said well I'm thinking about selling mine on eBay and he asked how much and said well what if I just trade you the Xbox for the Portal and while I offered to give him some money as well because I originally was going to buy the Xbox for $250 he said he didn't really care since it was just collecting dust.

Funny thing is now that I've finished Gears 1-3 and half of Judgement (I never played it back in the day and didn't enjoy it this time so I just quit) I don't even have it hooked up anymore so I might just sell it.
I have a similar story. Back in the day before Gears 3 came out, I wanted to replay Gears 1 and play Gears 2 for the first time before 3, so I bought a 360. While waiting I played through Conviction and though "Let's see what this Mass Effect is about". I had no idea what I was about to experience.
 

TransTrender

Gold Member
This seems like a rather anemic update.
I like my Portal, but I know it needs to be better.
Does it still not have local bluetooth?
 

Sushi_Combo

Member
It was only at playstation direct when it first came out. Keep tryin though. Denial ain't just a river.
Not sure about PD but it was released at retailers outside of the U.S at launch. I think it took at least 3 months for things to finally get restocked for a few days.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
I really wanted to see a bitrate option to see if the bluring/smearing is the bitrate or the lcd panel itself. Chaiki on the oled steam deck is much smoother, but I feel like the gap shouldn't be as large as it is.
 
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onQ123

Member
I actually enjoyed my PS Portal, but I barely ever used it.

I ended up trading it to my friend for a Series X with 2 controllers (which was a steal because I bought the portal off a friend for basically $150) so I could play through the Gears Trilogy again (which is now collecting dust as well).
You're clearly a drug dealer & your friends are addicts
 

N30RYU

Member
Is anyone having problems since the last update?

My conection stream just freezes every now and then without any low signal warning and I have to disconect and connect, takes 10 seconds so the connection doesn't look to have any issue
 

The Shepard

Member
Is anyone having problems since the last update?

My conection stream just freezes every now and then without any low signal warning and I have to disconect and connect, takes 10 seconds so the connection doesn't look to have any issue

Yes I had that to, never before update, just once so far. Played about 4 hours. I thought my console crashed.
 
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N30RYU

Member
Yes I had that to, never before update, just once so far. Played about 4 hours. I thought my console crashed.
Same at first i thought either the portal or the PS5 crashed....

It has happened to me at least 7 or 8 times so far playing the Elden Ring DLC... only one of them my character survived...
 
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