“Bricked” PS3 firmware fix incoming

Sony has announced that a firmware fix to remedy “bricked” PlayStation 3’s will be released on 27 June 2013.

The release will be to fix a problem caused by firmware update 4.45, whereby certain unlucky players who installed the new update found that their consoles were left hovering in the limbo of the welcome screens. Players have also said that they are unable to shut down the console, leaving them to remove the power cord in order to turn their PS3 off.

“We have identified the issue related to the PlayStation 3 software update (version 4.45) that impacted a small number of PS3 systems earlier this week,” Sony said in a statement. “A new PS3 system software update is planned to be released on June 27 that resolves the issue.”

“Thank you for your patience and understanding and we apologize for the inconvenience.”

Some users suggest reverting back to 4.41 using a USB installer and booting up the PS3 in safe mode – just don’t blame us if you follow some dodgy instructions and do further harm.

Update 4.45 was to include such features as turning off trophy notifications and improving general performance of the console and interface.