Sony Issues Q&A On Firmware 4.45 Bricking Problems

Whilst the PlayStation Network has been up and down over the last hour or so, earlier today (or, rather, in the middle of last night) Sony pushed out firmware 4.45 for the PS3. All was well – hey, it lets you remove Trophy notifications – until consoles starting getting bricked, with TheSixthAxis members among those affected.

Sony pulled the firmware update, but it was too late for some.

If you’ve been affected by the problems and your PS3 isn’t functioning after the update, Sony have some news for you. It’s not conclusive at all yet, but they are aware of the problem and they are working on getting things sorted. Will you get your PlayStation 3 back? We’ll have to wait and see.

Here’s the Q&A:

Q1. I updated my PS3 to version 4.45, and now the XMB is not being displayed and I cannot play anything on my system. Why?

We are currently conducting investigations to determine the cause of this problem. We will announce further information, including additional updates, when ready.

Q2. Version 4.45 has been taken off line, but if users have already updated to the new version and they are experiencing problems, what can they do?

We kindly ask PS3 users to wait for further details. We will announce when ready.

Q3. Were you not able to predict that such an issue may occur? Do you perform appropriate verification tests before releasing updates?

SCE constantly performs appropriate verifications tests for system software updates, and strives to improve and offer quality service.

We are currently conducting investigations to determine the cause of this problem. We will announce further information, including additional updates, when ready.

Q4. I read in the web that the PS3 system with 500GB HDD were affected. Is this true?

We are currently conducting investigations to determine the cause of this problem.

Q5. Have you already found a solution to this problem?

We kindly ask PS3 users to wait for further details. We will announce when ready.

Q6. How are the customer service teams responding to consumer inquiries right now?

We kindly ask PS3 users to wait for further details. We will announce when ready.

It does sound like Sony were caught unaware on this one, which is slightly troubling. Hopefully they can now find a workaround for those affected by the bug, which has rendered consoles completely useless. It’s – ironically – worse for those with PlayStation Plus, as Plus would have already downloaded the update.

The PSN appears to be back up and running now, in related news.