No, you’re not the only one that switches from your PS5 to PS Portal when your mum and dad come into the living room in the evening and say they want to watch something on the telly

The PS Portal is obviously meant to be a supplementary device, and some new data shows off some interesting play habits.

When the PS Portal was announced, I immediately knew it wasn’t for me. I really would rather have a PS Vita 2 – which Sony might actually be working on (kind of) – and even with that recent update that lets you play games on the Portal without a PS5, it just isn’t for me. I like dedicated handhelds! Do you know who it is for though? People that share a TV with other family members and get booted off every night so that the matriarch/ patriarch can watch the latest episode of Eastenders or whatever. The convenient thing about the Portal is that it’s not horrendously expensive, so it makes sense as a supplementary device for this sort of thing, and as it turns out, that’s pretty much exactly how people use it.

Speaking to Game File, Hiromi Wakai, vice president of product management at Sony Interactive Entertainment, shared the different peak usage times of the PS5 and PS Portal. For the PS5, the peak time it’s played is generally around 8pm, which makes sense given most people will have finished work at 5pm, will have travelled home, eaten dinner, and taken care of other chores, or in the case of kids and teens, come back from school and done homework etc. Interestingly, though, the peak time for the PS Portal is 9pm, an hour later.

“This could suggest scenarios like users playing on the console first, then later switching to PS Portal to play in another room – courtesy of PS Portal’s characteristics like the ability to play in another room – while their family is using the TV,” Wakai explained. With handhelds becoming more and more prevalent in the games industry, it’s interesting to say how that corresponds with particular playing habits.

Wakai went on to explain that the PS Portal was a “new type of product for us, so we wanted to be extra careful to ensure our users get the best possible user experience,” specifically in reference to the ongoing PS5 game-streaming beta. “We want to continue that approach with PS Portal, and make incremental steps based on community reception on the beta.”

And if you were wondering if those that own a PS Portal are more likely to play games than those that don’t, there’s a clear cut answer: “Players who own a PS Portal tend to spend more time playing games than those who don’t. Of course, it’s likely that users who purchase PS Portal were naturally more engaged in the first place, however, our data shows that PS Portal owners tend to spend more time playing games compared to non-owners.”

Now all we need is that dedicated handle and we’re golden!