A day before the PAL release, the new 1.6 firmware will be available to download with a lot of huge improvements. The PAL consoles will be shipped without the new firmware so they will have to be updated.

The first new feature is background downloading from the Playstation Store allowing users to do whatever they like on their PS3 instead of watching a progress bar.

The PS3 and PSP connectivity has also been dramatical improved by switching from the standard PS3 wireless connection that has a radius of a few meters around the console to actually connecting to the PS3 through a wireless router in your home allowing the consoles to be connected within the range of the home wireless signal. This means the 20GB version with no wireless connectivity can now be plugged into a router and use Remote Play with the PSP.

A full on-screen keyboard will now be available for people who don’t like the mobile phone style one provided.

In the internet browser it will be possible to zoom into a portion of the screen making certain sites easier to read.

Lastly, the Folding @Home protein folding experiment being performed by Stanford University is being made available in this update from the XMB, so all of those who want to aid in genetic research, get involved.