Half of PlayStation 5 users bypass rest mode, opting for a complete system shutdown instead. This surprising statistic, revealed by Sony Interactive Entertainment's Cory Gasaway, prompted the development of the PS5's Welcome Hub. The Hub aims to create a unified user experience despite varying player preferences.
Gasaway, in an interview with Stephen Totilo, highlighted that 50% of US PS5 users see the PS5 Explore page upon startup, while users outside the US see their most recently played game. This even split in rest mode usage influenced the design of the Welcome Hub, a customizable interface intended to provide a consistent starting point for all players.
The reasons behind this significant portion of users avoiding rest mode remain varied and anecdotal. While rest mode is designed to conserve energy and facilitate downloads, some users report internet connectivity issues when the feature is enabled, leading them to keep their consoles fully powered on for downloads. Others appear to experience no such problems.
This data, as noted by IGN and reported by Totilo in an article about the Welcome Hub's creation (a project born from a PlayStation hackathon), offers valuable insight into the user experience design considerations behind the PS5's interface. The Welcome Hub, therefore, serves as a response to diverse user behaviors and preferences, specifically addressing the significant number of users foregoing the rest mode functionality. The lack of a single, definitive reason for this behavior underscores the complexity of user habits and the challenges in designing a universally appealing user interface.
8.5/10 Rate NowYour comment has not been saved
