Here are 20 PS4 tips and tricks to help you get the most out of your PlayStation 4 system, and make you an instant PS4 expert. 😀
Let’s explore your new PlayStation 4 console, there might be some PS4 secrets you didn’t know about…
Watch “20 Things You Need To Know About PlayStation 4”:
Here’s the list of 20 PS4 tips and tricks covered on video:
1. You can login using your face, if you have a PlayStation Camera. Go to the Face Recognition Management menu and start up Add Face Data.
2. You can control the PS4 menus using just your voice, if you have a PlayStation Camera or the pack-in mono headset plugged in. Just say “PlayStation” and a list of voice commands will appear on-screen…
3. …Or to directly control the PS4 menus with your controller, simply press the L2 button for the list of menu commands to appear on-screen.
4. The PS4 console can charge your PS4 controller while the machine itself is in standby mode (it doesn’t need to be fully turned on). Go to the Power Saving Settings menu to turn on Set Functions Available in Standby Mode, as there you can turn on to supply power from the PS4’s USB ports.
5. Let the PS4 download updates while you sleep and download any PlayStation Store purchases you make while out of the house. To enable this, go to the Power Saving Settings menu to turn on Set Functions Available in Standby Mode, as there you can turn on Connect to the Internet.
6. Turn on the PS4 using your PS Vita and play PS4 games on your PS Vita handheld. To enable this, go to the Power Saving Settings menu to turn on Set Functions Available in Standby Mode, as there you can go to Connect to the Internet and its sub-menu Enable Turning On of PS4 from Network.
7. You can see when your PS4 controller is almost fully charged. As you have your PS4 controller charging using the PS4’s USB port, you can tell when it’s almost charged from the speed at which the colorful light on the back of the controller pulses; if your battery gets near to being full the pulses will slow down.
8. Controller light colors indicate different users. Each player’s controller back-light will get a different color (blue, red, green or pink)!
9. Extend each controller’s playtime. To enable this, go to the Power Saving Settings menu to Turn Off DualShock 4 automatically (after 10 Minutes of no use).
10. Change the background soundtrack to your songs. Using the Music Unlimited app you can listen to your music in the background, no matter what else you’re doing on your PS4, like when you’re playing games. — While using Music Unlimited, at any time you can press the controller’s PS power/logo button at the center of your controller to access song controls anytime.
11. Faster text entering. Press R3 (press down on the right analog stick) while entering text to use the controller’s gyro functions to quickly slide over to the letters/numbers you want to enter.
12. Alternate keyboard using a second screen experience. Download the PlayStation App on your Apple iOS or Android mobile touch device to use that as a keyboard instead.
13. Menu shortcut #1. Pressing once on the PS4 controller’s PS power/logo button serves as a shortcut to the front of the dynamic menu.
14. Menu shortcut #2. Pressing twice in a row on the PS4 controller’s PS power/logo button serves as a shortcut to the previous app or game you were using before. Keep pressing the PS power button twice in a row to keep switching between the two apps/games.
15. Connect any headset directly to your PS4. You can connect any 3.5mm jack plug headset to the front of your PS4 controller.
16. The PS4 controller has a built-in speaker! It might have given you a scare the first time you played an audio log in Killzone: Shadow Fall. Luckily you can manage the audio volume in the PS4 system menu, at the Adjust Devices menu, and then going to Volume Control (Speaker for DualShock 4) to turn it down. Same steps for the Headphones volume output.
17. There’s a Share button at the top of the PS4 controller that lets you immediately take images of whatever you’re doing in-game. By default, a short press on the Share button will display the menu, and a long press / holding the Share button will take a screenshot. — What the Share button does can be changed in the Share Settings menu, by going to the Share Button Control Type settings.
18. The same Share button at the top of the PS4 controller lets you immediately record videos of whatever you’re doing in-game. By default a double-press on the Share button will set a start point for your video clip recording. — The PlayStation 4 can record up to 15 minutes of gameplay at a time, and actually always records the last 15 minutes of your gameplay in the background (in case you forgot to double-press the Share button to start recording). Handy!
19. Play online using your real name. Want to get rid of your PSN ID when gaming online on PS4? Go to the Privacy Settings menu, then select Name and Profile Picture to confirm if you want to play with friends online with your real first- and last name. It’ll make it easier to see who in your friends list you actually know.
20. Play online using your real photo. Want to get rid of your PSN ID’s default avatar on PS4? Go to the Profile menu and select Profile Picture to change your picture to a real photo, namely the picture from your Facebook profile. This allows you to use any photo you’d like.
I hope these PS4 tips will be useful to you.