Kotaku

Japan's PS3 Update Brings USB E-Money Reader

There's a new firmware update planned for the US and Japan on January 24th and a very exciting one at that! Besides making it possible for users to imput Korean via keyboard, the version 1.5 update also beefs up BC. But, that's not the exciting part! For the Japanese update, it's possible to use Edy with the PLAYSTATION 3. Edy is electronic money based on FeliCa technology Sony developed. (It's actually very interesting technology, and Wired Mag put me on TV to talk about it a few years back.) Edy can be stored on many Japanese cell phones, and credit cards are Edy-enabled as well. Many Japanese stores have Edy readers at counter for customers to pay using e-money. Not only stores, but karaoke booths and movie theaters, too. For the PS3, Sony's also rolling out an Edy-ready USB IC reader/writer called "PaSoLi." So yup, that means credit card phobic Japanese folks can buy PLAYSTATION Network games with their e-money on their cell phones. Now that is living, folks.

New Update Coming [PlayStation Japan]

3:22 AM on Tue Jan 23 2007
By Brian Ashcraft
1,689 views