Some Major Changes Are On The Way For The PlayStation 4

The PlayStation 4's 4.0 update features a bevy of new goodies for owners of Sony's fourth generation home console. The update will be rolling out soon and is codenamed "Shingen", featuring lots of end-user compatibility improvements and much-needed dashboard upgrades.

The details on the PS4's 4.0 update were listed over on the PlayStation Blog, where VP of brand marketing at Sony Computer Entertainment of America, John Koller, explained that those of you participating in the beta program for the PS4's firmware updates should be receiving e-mails to access the beta soon. Everyone else will have to wait for the public roll out of 4.0, which will include some nifty new options for users to mess around with both in-game and out of the game.

There's the all new user interface refresh, which includes new system backgrounds, all new system icons and notifications, along with a revised "What's new" tab.

They also made some changes to the Quick Menu that pops up when you press the PlayStation button on the DualShock 4. The menu now has some new features that allow you to quickly perform certain functions, such as close out a game or access your friends menu. They also made the Quick Menu similar to the Xbox One's Snap Menu, which only takes up a small quarter of the screen instead of taking over the entire game window.

This links into the new Share Menu overhaul, which lets you share video clips or screenshots quickly without interrupting the gameplay. That should be very useful for players who score a big win or cool move in an online game like Overwatch or Call of Duty where pausing isn't an option but you still want to share that moment with friends. The more compact and visually compressed Quick Menu and Share Menu should make it easier to capture and share moments with very little interruption to your play session.

On the utility front, they also made some changes to the user profile menu, allowing you to compare your PS4 profile to other users. They even made it where you can view your trophy achievements offline. So while you check out your profile and see if others are as good as you, you can then brush up on what trophies you managed to acquire, even if you aren't online.

And last but not least is the new folder organization function for your ever-growing library of software. Much like the Xbox One, Sony has now made it where you can better organize the games you have installed on your PS4. Instead of it showing every game you own, whether it's installed or not, the new library organization now only shows the games that are currently installed on your system. This was a highly requested feature from PS4 owners who complained that the current setup "cluttered" up their library and made it difficult to find and play the games and apps within their stash.

They don't give an exact date on when update 4.0 goes live for the general public at large, but the beta preview program is underway, so it won't be long before Sony pushes the latest PS4 update out to the public.