Ok, so here it is. 3.51 M33 Custom Firmware.

Following in Dark_Alex’s footsteps come a hacking team from Russia called the M33 Team who have developed a 3.51 custom firmware.

Features >

* All functions of v3.51 firmware retained - PS1 support, high video
resolution, MP3 visualizer, internet navigation, PS3 connection etc
* Launch official UMDS which require v3.51 firmware
* Direct launching of ISOs/CSOs
* Direct launching of homebrews and demonstrations
* Direct launching of PS1 images
* Ability to alter the CPU speed of the PSP
* Recovery mode
* Multi-region
* Bugfixes
* Customize all your icons etc

This works will all models of PSP including TA-082 motherboards

Your PSP must be running either 1.5 firmware or any 3.XX OE or 2.71 SE custom firmware.

Download > 3.51 M33 CUSTOM FIRMWARE

Installation Instuctions >

1. If your PSP is firmware 1.50, copy the folders kxploitpatcher and kxploitpatcher% which are in the “1.50only” folder to ms0:/PSP/GAME/ and run the patcher first.

if you are already running custom firmware you don’t need to do this so skip to step 2

2. if you already have firmware SE/OE, copy the folder M33CREATOR to ms0:/PSP/GAME150.

If you have 1.50 copy to ms0:/PSP/GAME

3. Download Sony official 3.51 firmware update from here >3.51 UPDATE
extract with winrar and rename EBOOT.PBP to 351.PBP and copy into the ms0:/PSP/GAME150/M33CREATOR/ or for 1.50 users to ms0:/PSP/GAME/M33CREATOR/

4. Download sony official 1.50 firware update from here >1.5 UPDATE
extract with winrar and rename EBOOT.PBP to 150.PBP and copy into the ms0:/PSP/GAME150/M33CREATOR/ or for 1.50 users to ms0:/PSP/GAME/M33CREATOR/

5. on your PSP, run the “3.51 M33 CREATOR”. Once finished, press X, the PSP will return to the XMB, and a new program, the “3.51 M33UPDATE” appears!

6. now run “3.51 M33UPDATE”.

7. Once it finishes, press X to shut off the psp. Restart manually.

8. Down a shot of Vodka and celebrate.

please note, if you are under 18 (21 in some places) please skip step 8.

pics courtesy of wertypsp2

FAQs >

Q. My battery is under 75% can i still flash the firmware >
A. Yes, just hold triangle and L trigger whilst the flasher is loading (do this at your own risk)

Q. Do homebrew and isos still work in the normal way?
A. Yes, homebrew, iso/cso etc load just like OE firmware, iso/cso go in the ISO folder and homebrew goes in GAME150

Q. Will my 3.40 OE customisations work (icons/fonts etc)?
A. Yes, except for certain files which you must not flash >
* system_plugin_fg.rco (psp will freeze going into usb mode)
* pspbtcnf.txt
* vsh.prx not installable
* paf.prx not installable (semi-brick)
* common_gui.prx noncompatible (semi-brick)
* the topmenu_plugin.rco of the topics which contain a vsh.prx are
non compatible

Q. is NO-UMD 100% compatible with all games?
A. No it isn’t. Games that needed a UMD on OE firmware also need a UMD with M33 firmware.

Q. I have 3.XX OE on my psp and it is customised. Do I have to remove the customisations or go back to 1.5 before installing?
A . No this will install fine over the top.

Q. Does cwcheat work?
A. i’ve heard reports of games not loading when the cwcheat.prx is on. cwcheatpops.prx works

Q. I can’t enter USB mode.
A. go into recovery mode and toggle flash1. delete config.se. If you have customised your psp after installing make sure you have not flashed system_plugin_fg.rco to your flash0

Q. Can I use the EBOOT the installer creates on another psp to install custom firmware instead of creating one again?
A. it seems the EBOOT is generic, so yes.

Q. Does the brightness fix work?
A. Yes it does.

Q. Are there any other known issues?
A. quite a few at the moment including wifi enabled homebrew like pimpstreamer. i’ll try to keep this FAQ updated as best I can.

It has been announced that Sony Corp. will launch a slimmer model of its PlayStation Portable handheld game player in September, in its latest attempt to ignite demand for its game hardware and compete better with Nintendo Co. Ltd.

Both Sony and Nintendo released their handheld gear, the PSP and DS, respectively, late in 2004, but sales of the PSP, which can play movies, music and games, have recently been outshined by the DS.

“From a distance, this PSP might not look very different from the current model … but when you have it in your hand, the difference becomes quite clear,” Sony Computer Entertainment Chief Executive Kazuo Hirai said. “It’s actually 33 percent lighter than the current PSP. It’s also 19 percent slimmer.”

Hirai, who replaced Ken Kutaragi, known as the “Father of PlayStation,” as head of Sony’s game division earlier this year, made the PSP announcement during a presentation at the E3 video game exposition, the industry’s biggest event.

Nintendo sold 23.6 million DS units in the year ended March 2007, outpacing PSP shipments of 8.4 million.

Underlining its lead both in the console and handheld markets, Nintendo last month zipped past Sony in market value and bumped the Tokyo-based electronics conglomerate off the list of Japan’s 10 most valuable companies.

A Sony spokeswoman said the slimmer PSP would retail for about $170, the same as the current PSP. Nintendo’s newest DS model, the DS Lite, sells for $130.

Like Sony, Nintendo last year launched the lighter version of the DS, accelerating already white-hot demand for the handset. The DS Lite has two screens, opens like a book and allows gamers to control play with a stylus, instead of manipulating a keypad.

Nintendo executives said on Wednesday that portable sales made up 50 percent of its hardware sales in 2006, compared with just 30 percent in 2002.

PRICE CUT

On the console side of its game business, Sony this week cut the U.S. price of its PlayStation 3 by $100 after seeing the PS3 far outsold by Nintendo’s Wii.

“This new price went into effect on Monday. Since then sales of 60-gigabyte PS3 have doubled at top five retailers,” Jack Tretton, chief executive of Sony Computer Entertainment America, said during the E3 presentation.

Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 and the Wii have outsold the PS3 by several times in the crucial U.S. market, leaving Sony, which has dominated the game industry over the past decade, in the unfamiliar position of playing catch up.

Its high price and scarcity of attractive titles have been cited as main reasons for the PS3′ slow start.

Even after the price cut, the PS3 costs $20 more than the most expensive version of the Xbox 360, and twice that of the Wii, whose $250 price and motion-sensing controller have made it a best-seller despite its lack of life-like graphics.

In a bid to send a message that strong PS3 titles are in the pipeline, Sony showcased some 50 upcoming games at the presentation, including the latest installments of blockbuster fighting game “Metal Gear Solid” from Konami Corp.  and popular in-house racing title “Gran Turismo.”

During the presentation, it was indicated that “Metal Gear Solid 4: Guns of the Patriots” will not be available until early 2008, giving hard-core gamers one fewer reasons to rush to store shelves.

Following the announcement, shares in Sony were up 0.3 percent at 6,350 yen by midday on Thursday, roughly in line with the benchmark Nikkei average.

How to Downgrade any PSP to 1.5
- The Noobz 3.5 Downgrader
- Sony 3.5 update
- Sony 1.5 Update

An official ISO loader has been found in the latest Sony PSP firmware updates (both 3.50 and 3.51). The file, np9660.prx, has been presumed to run downloaded PSP games (the encrypted ISO image) off of a memory stick.

The presence of the ISO loader may not be significant on its own, but the speculation is that it may be the first steps for a games-on-demand service where full PSP titles (not just PlayStation One emulations) will be made available for download and play, sans UMD. It’s an interesting possibility but at this point just rumors and speculation.

You’ve got to pat Sony on the back for giving it the good, old college try. After the Lumines hack debacle, Sony is trying to fight back with a 3.51 update that has been added today over at their Japanese site which would close up holes in the PSP’s security . Other than just the security fix, there isn’t much else you would need the update for. There is no added functionality included in the update and none of the currently released games will require it. But if you just love updates, and hate hacks, you’re more than welcome to go pick it up.

The Noobz team (www.noobz.eu), building on the previous Illuminati exploit, have released a new PSP firmware downgrader, which can safely downgrade any known PSP.

This is an amazing breakthrough, and gives the freedom to all PSP users to use legitimate homebrew software.

read more | digg story

From the PSP homebrew gods, Noobz team has finally created an exploit to bypass any PSP Firmware, with the help of a Lumines UMD! Now you can run homebrew games, applications, and emulators no matter what system firmware you’re on!

read more | digg story

PSPe 0.7 (The 1st PSP Emulator for PC)

1st PSP Emulator for the PC. Performance of the emulator is a little bit sluggish considering its on very early stage of development. Only homebrew apps runs. Not commercial roms/isoz. INSTRUCTION : Store all your PSP homebrew apps like this: C:\PSP\ms0\PSP\GAME\[appfolder] Then run the emulator .exe. If you have no apps the \GAME\ folder emulator would just hang on startup. They keys for the emulator are : 1. The arrow keys for up down left right 2. W A S D = ∆   o x Games we tested : 1. Hello World 2. Tetris JP 3. PSP Calc

[ Download Tools ]

The PSP puzzle game Lumines released last June jumped 5900% in sales on Amazon.com after gamers learned they could utilize it to hack their PSP. After following directions posted on noobz.com, players can download and play homebrew games on their Playstation Portable, for all firmware versions from 1.0 to 3.5.

However, the only homebrew currentlyavailable is the boringly titled “Hello World,” which is really just the equivalent of the crackers saying, “We did it!” There are plans to release a Homebrew Enabler and a downgrader. The out-of-print video game is currently outselling everything in Amazon’s Video Games category except Mario Party 8 and the Nintendo Wii. It looks like gamers are excited about the opportunity to play what they want with whatever they want. Maybe the video game industry will someday take heed.

One of the great things about the PSP is the awesome ability to use a web browser at any wifi spot you encounter. Well sometimes I want to see Youtube content to a freind but the PSP has a VERY old version of flash and because of this Youtube does not work under normal circumstances.

Now there is a way to view all you favorite Youtube videos on the go. A new site that has launched, and is still in beta actually, is set to make thing alot easier for the PSP user.

The only drawback is that you still need a PC to do this, yeah I know it sucks, but it is a step in the right direction.

Here is how to watch all you favorite YouTube vids on the go.

1. Find a video you want to watch, in this case I will point to a video I made of me playing Outrun 2006 on a dual monitor setup direct feed http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTkazvfVtLk (yes I know I suck LOL)
2. Go to http://vixy.net/ and copy and paste the URL (web address) into the provided space
3. Select the mp4 format (iPod/PSP)
4. Hit the convert button and wait for the conversion to take place
5. when it is done you will be taken to a download page, but the PSP can not download these videos with the URLs this site spits out, so we use a trick go to http://lix.in/ and copy and paste the download link into the space provided, you can’t miss it… no I mean it, and hit “Protect Link”
6. you now have a short PSP freindly url you can use on the PSP web browser to download the newly converted video
7. click all links needed to get back to the download page and hit save on the PSP and then make sure you save to the /VIDEO folder of your PSP
8. after a bit of a download your video is now on you PSP memory stick ready to watch anywhere you take you psp to

Enjoy your new ability to take Youtube with you on your PSP