TiVo has started the official roll-out of software revision 9.3 for the Series2 - Series3 & TiVo HD units still have to wait a bit. If you want it first, then get over to the TiVo Software Priority Request page and sign up. Any units with TSNs starting with 110, 130, 140, 230, 240, 264, 275, 540, 542, 565, 590, 595, or 649 are eligible.

And why would you want this release? Well, TiVo emailed me a few benchmarks comparing 9.3 to the existing 9.1 release.
Live TV to TiVo Central - 1 second faster
Now Playing Scrolling - 1 second faster
Channel Change Up - 1 second faster
Confirm recording -> Confirm - 3-5 seconds faster
Create Season Pass - 5-10 seconds faster
Season Pass Manager Priority change - 30 seconds faster

Performance improvements are a big part of 9.3, as well as some new features such as Progressive Downloads, as previously reported.

The Mac Observer reports that Roxio has released updates for both Toast 8 Titanium and Toast 9 Titanium, the new versions being 8.0.4 and 9.0.2, respectively. The updates include fixes for several TiVo audio and video sync issues. 9.0.2 also includes updates for improved Blu-ray support, and high-definition DVD support for PS3 playback. 8.0.4 includes a fix for EyeTV recordings not being visible in the Media Browser.

The update comes less than two weeks since Roxio first released Toast 9 Titanium, and just over a week since they asked for TiVo users to assist in debugging the issues.

In addition to the 9.3 software that has begun to appear on standalone TiVos it looks like the Comcast TiVo OCAP software is also getting an update, according to this post in AVS Forum:

Hello everyone - I want to let you know that the next software release for the Comcast DVR with TiVo Service is now targeted to begin rolling out next week, beginning with the towns surrounding our Derry NH cable system, and will be rolling out to the other systems where Comcast DVR with TiVo service is available over the following few weeks. This is a bit later than the originally-planned March rollout to align with other Comcast programs.

To recap, this software release will include a firmware fix for the reboot loop bug on DCH boxes (aka the “8888″ display bug), enable Dolby Digital output for DCH boxes, correct the Guide HD filter behavior, and include other bug fixes.

Good to see the the cable units continuing to receive updates.

Picked up from Zatz Not Funny.

Reports are surfacing on TiVoCommunity.com of a new 9.3 software revision which is starting to quietly appear on units in the field. And reader ‘mrmac14′ reported in a community comment that his Series2DT is now running 9.3.X.9-01-2-649. Early reports indicate the 9.3 updates brings progressive downloads to the S2 platform (the S3/HD got that in 9.2) as well as performance improvements with MRV transfers as well as with menu speed.

For those who are new to the process, when they’re getting close to a new release TiVo will first trickle it out to a handful of randomly selected boxes. Kind of putting a toe in the water to make sure everything is OK and no show stoppers were missed during beta testing. The next step is usually an early release, where they start a slow roll-out and put up a priority page for people who want it faster. And then, finally, the last step is full generally release where all the boxes are updated. So, barring TiVo finding an issue, it looks like 9.3 will be officially appearing on a TiVo near you soon.

Thanks to reader MickeS for calling my attention to this in a comment.

Well, that was fast. Less than a week ago Sony announced that the PlayStation3’s 2.20 firmware would include BD-Live support, amongst other things, and it is now available. So gentlemen, and ladies, start your upgrades!

Via EngadgetHD.

Sony has announced that the next firmware update for the PlayStation3, 2.20, will include BD-Live support, aka Blu-ray Profile 2.0, and it will street in ‘late March’. Since there are only 11 days left in the month, that means we’ll see it very soon. In one fell swoop this will make the vast majority of Blu-ray players in the world BD-Live capable, which should encourage more studios to make use of the technology. And it should help put pressure on the standalone player vendors to step up and release BD-Live enabled decks.

Unfortunately, this firmware update does not include the hoped for addition of DTS-HD Master Audio support. DTS-MA is the one major audio codec the PS3 lacks. It will internally decode Dolby TrueHD and output it as uncompress PCM, but there is no support for DTS-MA at this time. The PS3 will not bitstream TrueHD, and this is believed to be a limitation of the HDMI chipset used. So it is unlikely that the current PS3 HW could ever bitstream TrueHD or DTS-MA, but it could internally decode DTS-MA and output the uncompressed PCM, as it does with TrueHD, for the same end result. Perhaps Sony will update the HDMI chipset in future PS revisions to allow bitstreaming.

BD-Live isn’t the only addition in 2.20. PSP owners will be able to copy their photo and music playlists from the PS3 to the handheld. And there are other new additions:

• “Resume play” will enable PS3 system to start playing a Blu-ray disc and DVD at the point it was stopped, even if the disc had been removed.(*1)
• “Audio Output Device” will be a new Remote Play setting, enabling PSP to serve as a remote control for music played through PS3.
• PS3 system’s Internet browser will be enhanced: Video files directly linked from a Web page will be able to be streamed, and the browser’s view speed will be improved.
• DivX and WMV format videos that are larger than 2GB will be playable.
• “Mosquito Noise Reduction” will be added as an AV setting in the control panel of the DVD/BD player for improved movie playback.(*2)

*1 BD-J format disc is not supported.
*2 BD discs recorded with BDMV format are not supported.

Here’s the full press release:
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