PS3 has hidden self cleaning option


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As we all know, electronics are like dust super magnets. Your house could be completely sterile and your favorite console will still somehow manage to accumulate copious amounts of dust over a short period of time. Thankfully, half of that dust can easily be wiped off with routine cleaning rituals. The other half on the other hand is more troublesome both in effect and treatment. This is of course the dust that enters through the ventilation and proceeds to lie dormant inside the console until it builds up to a level which either overwhelms the circuitry or leaves your home in ashes.

Sony have seemingly thought of an answer to this with a unique feature on the PlayStation 3 which effectively allows it to clean itself. Owners of a 40Gb PlayStation 3 feel free to try this at home. By turning the console completely off from the switch at the back of the console and turning it back on while holding the eject, the PlayStation 3 console will enter a self maintenance mode. All of the fans instantly go for maximum revs and in the process makes and noise that we all thought the PS3 incapable of. Ten seconds later and the sudden burst of air from the fans has cleared the internals of all dust.

As it stands, this is functionality unique to the 40 gigabyte SKU and as such will not be relevant to owners of the 60Gb console. Now that the cat is out of the bag on the hidden functionality, fans across various message boards are calling for the inclusion of this feature in future firmware updates so that all users can benefit. While they're at it, Sony should code up a firmware which makes the PlayStation 3 impervious to fingerprints and teach the designers of all electronic companies that Piano Black is the worst idea ever.

Saw this in a forum post...can anyone confirm?

YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTHw497f2Gg

EDIT: Source:

http://mygen.com.au/article.php?page_id=12...id=29&rss=1

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Just did it on my 40GB. It is loud like a vacuum when it tests the fans. When i restarted it afterwards I couldn't even hear my ps3, I think it really does expel a lot of crap.

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I doubt this would help PS3s in homes where people smoke. I can't stand working on smokers PCs as they stink and the dust melds with the cigarette smoke making the dust sticky. Nearly impossible to clean that crap off PC innards.

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Works for me. Don't really see how it can clean out the internals though. A lot of dust is pretty hard to shift.

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Just tried it, and it sure makes so much noise that I thought I had fired up my Xbox360 :p But indeed, it sure makes a storm with the fans on full rev! Good idea to run this self-cleaning program once in a while :)

Thanks for the tip!

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Just tried it, and it sure makes so much noise that I thought I had fired up my Xbox360 :p But indeed, it sure makes a storm with the fans on full rev! Good idea to run this self-cleaning program once in a while :)

Thanks for the tip!

:laugh: Haha, it reminded me of my 360 too. Yeah, great nice little thought out utility. Works great.

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The fan-test in the video sounds like my 60GB after 3 minutes of playing when it gets above ANYTHING but room temperature.

Guess that's my hidden cleaning option, just using it.

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The fan-test in the video sounds like my 60GB after 3 minutes of playing when it gets above ANYTHING but room temperature.

Guess that's my hidden cleaning option, just using it.

Sounds like your PS3 is faulty then :p

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Wouldn't be surprised.

Perhaps you sat on your X360 controller which turned the X360 on and you mistakenly took the X360 sound for the PS3 one? :o

You never know - strange things happen..

But seriously, return it before its too late..

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I have a 60gb :( in a year I've never really cleaned it up.. I havent noticed it accumulating dust at all. I have it in the "open", in a big table just next to the tv. Not inside the spaces that you usually use to put your DVD player or anything. TO sum up, not a in a "dust-accumulating" area. I do clean the "regular" dust off but I've never taken special care with it.

Meh my post doesnt make any sense anyway xD

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As cool as this is, it does worry me that if this is so helpful, why didn't Sony just tell us this?

Though I'm sure it wouldn't be built in if it was harmful.

And it seems that you can do it on the 60GB too, but it requires a little more effort.

Placing it vertically normally.

Turning it off.

Then holding it upside down vertically.

Wait 15-20 seconds.

And it does the whole fan noise thing.

You can see a video for 60GB here.

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How do people find these things lol, I want to go try it, but I'm too lazy lol.

[Edit] Tried it, that is loud! lol.

Edited by Dc'1
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Now you guys know how some LOUD PS3 owners feel about sound, my old 60gb used to sound as loud as this after less than 5 minutes of playing ANY game... this is really cool I love it on my 40gb :D

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