You should really google this problem. I'm not the only one. I've already read up on it all. It's a lot of people. I'm calling them right now. Hope you feel like a big man, it's easy to talk down when you're not the one having the issue.
I happen to be someone who's owned 6 (count em 6) different PS3s and the previous 5 have all had different faults. That means unfortunately I happen to know more then I'd like to when it comes to broken PS3s.
People assume if they have a PS3 which breaks after an update that the update has caused the problem, but why would your PS3 break due to the latest update and mine not? More accurately why would your PS3 break and another person with the exact same model not have the exact same issue running on the exact same firmware? PS3s break all the time, so people assume the only thing that's changed is the update and that's whats caused it and they see other people who've thought exactly the same so they post as well about how the update broke their PS3 and it snowballs. Reality is, alot of people have had their PS3 break generally.
I'm not saying the update did not break your PS3 but you shouldn't assume it did. Sony will likely tell you to restore the OS (don't remember the exact name for it on the PS3, might be restore database make sure you double check before doing it but it shouldn't delete saves) if they do believe there's an issue with your software. Failing that you back up your saves and do a full format of the system and go back to square one and re-update again. Note however that if your PS3 does load fine before re-updating that it doesn't mean your problem is solved, so don't jump to conclusions.
In general, don't jump to any sort of conclusion with any issue you get. Google is a great resource for finding out about a problem, but look for information that's in popular forums and contains long and lengthy information about errors, symptoms and courses of action (there's usually ones floating around official PS forums about most common errors people experience). Better yet find out what Sony can do for you straight away as you can always say you'll think about it if they attempt to charge, I'm in a position where I usually get free swaps out of warranty as I've had so many issues caused by straight hardware failures in many varieties.
In short:
Back up your data.
Contact Sony to give them the symptoms you've experienced and ask them to lead you through restoring the operating system and reformat if they don't immediately point you to hardware failure. SCEE has great customer service overall, I only had an issue getting a disc back but got there in the end, not sure how SCEA will be but stay calm in general and you'll get to the bottom line faster.
If they try to charge you, either pay up or consider a risky but cheaper third party repair. Don't shout at Tech support if you feel you shouldn't be charged (warranty), they aren't in a position to do anything about it, ask them to consult or put you through to someone higher up to make your case.