New PlayStation 5 beta adds Discord voice chat, VRR support
Limited release from today.
A new system software beta has launched for the PlayStation 5 that adds Discord voice chat, VRR support for 1440p, and more.
The beta is available now, with invites sent out via email to participants in the US, Canada, Japan, UK, Germany, and France.
Integrated Discord voice chat is one of the biggest additions, allowing players to connect with friends and chat across multiple platforms via the PS5.
Players will need to connect their console to the Discord mobile app - once done, a new option will appear on the app to transfer a voice chat to the console.
While available to beta users now, this addition is set to roll out for all users soon. More details can be found on this Discord blog.
Another major addition is Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) support for 1440p, when using a compatible display. This allows for a smoother experience.
The beta brings a number of other additional features.
Social features include starting or requesting a share screen directly from the profile of a friend; a new "Join Game" icon in party chats; a new "Friends Who Play" tile in game hubs to see which friends have a particular game; and the ability to manually upload game captures to the PlayStation app (in addition to the existing auto-upload functionality).
Accessibility features include improvements to the screen reader, and a preview of voice commands in the U.S. and U.K. to save video clips of gameplay.
Elsewhere, controllers can now be updated wirelessly, saved data from PS4 to PS5 is easier to migrate (as is PS5 to PS5 data transfer), and games can be sorted and filtered within the game library.
More details of the beta can be found on the PlayStation Blog.