Sony Unveils Surprising PS5 Power Usage Comparison

Half of PlayStation 5 owners skip rest mode, opting for a complete system shutdown instead. This surprising statistic, revealed by Sony's Cory Gasaway, prompted the development of the PS5's Welcome Hub. The Hub aims to provide a unified user experience despite this diverse range of preferences.

Gasaway, Sony Interactive Entertainment's VP of game, product, and player experiences, shared with Stephen Totilo that a 50/50 split exists among PS5 users regarding rest mode usage. This finding, highlighted by IGN and Game File, was part of a larger discussion on the design of the 2024-introduced Welcome Hub. The rest mode feature, previously touted by Jim Ryan for its energy-saving benefits, is clearly not universally adopted.

The Welcome Hub itself, born from a PlayStation hackathon, directly addresses this 50% rest mode avoidance. Gasaway explained that US users primarily see the PS5 Explore page upon startup, while international users see their most recently played game. The Hub's goal is to create a more consistent and customizable initial experience for all PS5 users.

Why the split? There's no single answer. While rest mode conserves energy and facilitates background downloads, some players report internet connectivity issues when using it, preferring to keep the console fully powered on for downloads. Others experience no such problems. Gasaway's insights shed light on the considerations behind the PS5's user interface design. The significant number of users avoiding rest mode underscores the importance of catering to diverse user habits in console development.

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