The DPI and polling rate of any mouse are important considerations that you should look over when you are buying your gaming mouse. If you don’t know what these two are or what their importance is for your gaming performance, then this article might just help you out with that!
If you are a PC gamer on a Windows device, then you will know exactly how important your mouse’s DPI and polling rate is for your gameplay! The performance and efficiency of your mouse will be the difference between great gaming sessions or an average one since it is how you execute commands.You can easily fix after following our guide if your san andreas mouse not working.
Today’s article will be all about how to change the mouse polling rate of your gaming mice or otherwise. We will first start with a look into what this and DPI mean and then, we will also figure out exactly how to change this!.
First, let’s figure out what a polling rate for your mouse means:
What is a mouse polling rate?
For those unaware, the mouse polling rate is a quantification of the frequency of the mouse alerting the computer as to what its position is. This change in polling rate is measured using Hertz. So, ultimately, the mouse will report its position to your device more times per second if it has a higher polling rate.
This means that if your mouse has a polling rate of 125 Hz, then it will be communicating its movement to your Windows device 125 times each second. Subsequently, this also means that that mice that have a mouse polling rate of 1000 Hz will be reporting it 1000 times per second.
As we have mentioned before, both the polling rate of a mouse and a DPI are important considerations. This means that they are two different things so let’s clear out what the mouse’s DPI is. DPI is also known as Dots per Inch.
You can easily distinguish the DPI from the polling rate when you realize that it is a measure of how sensitive your mouse can be. This means that your mouse and its cursor onscreen will move much faster if the DPI is higher. Similarly, unlike the DPI, the polling rate will let us know how fast this cursor is moving.
Now that we know what exactly constitutes a mouse polling rate and DPI, we are going to move onto how to change this!
Now, Let’s Figure Out How to Change Mouse Polling Rate!
It is quite easy to change the polling rate of your mouse all by yourself without the need for professional help! Here’s what you need to do in different scenarios and for different polling rates:
- The first step will be to disconnect and remove your mouse from the device.
- First, if you want to change the mouse pilling rate to 125 Hz, you will press numeric keys 4 and 5 Then you will reattach the mouse to your device’s USB port. To ensure that the polling rate of the mouse has been changed, you will see the wheels light up.
- If you wish to change the polling rate further up to 500 Hz, press down the numeric key 5and then connect the Mouse to the device. When the wheels have lit up, the mouse will now be at a polling rate of 500 Hz
- Finally, if you wish to change the mouse polling rate up to 1000Hz, then you can press down the numeric key 4 and connect your mouse to the USB port. Again, once the wheels are lit up, the change has been made.
One thing to remember is that you need to check your mouse’s specifications first and make sure that it can support the polling rate you are trying to apply. This will not work if it isn’t compatible with the settings. For example, if you have the highest polling rate on your mouse at 125 Hz, then it wouldn’t get to 500 Hz.
To add some more insight on polling rates, let’s figure out which one works best!
Should you opt for a higher mouse polling rate?
Generally, when we look at which polling rate is better for your mouse, the idea is that a higher one should be the one you get! You can also change from a lower polling rate to a higher one if you like as we have shown you earlier. However, it is not that simple as you need to consider a few things.
The two highest ranges in mouse polling are 500 Hz and 1000 Hz respectively. To figure out which one you should opt for you will have to find out first whether your gaming monitor and mouse even can support a higher rate or not. You also need to make sure you have the right kind of gaming experience necessary for this change.
Another aspect that we think is important is the response time of your monitor itself. For all average gaming monitors that don’t have any advanced or higher specs, even if you do change your mouse polling rate to a higher one, the difference might be barely noticeable.Learn why is my mouse moving on its own.
So, even if you changed the polling rate of your mice from 500 Hz and a 1000 Hz rate, a normal monitor might not be able to pick up such a meager 1ms difference. Also, if you want to know if this change to a higher rate means 1000 Hz is better than 500 Hz, then that wouldn’t be quite accurate.Fix chromebook keyboard not working error quickly after following our guide.
In our experience, a 500 Hz range is generally smoother in comparison while a 1000 Hz polling rate will be quicker. Now to the downsides; when you change your mouse polling rate from a lower rate to a higher one, it will mean your CPU is being used more.
This not only means that a higher polling rate would be ineffective, but could also damage your device. So, it might be smarter to shift to a lower polling rate that will be equally effective if just slightly slower.
Instead, we recommend that you first figure out your needs, then make sure your mouse can provide them, and along with polling rate, also factor in the DPI as well.
Finally, a little more additional information for Windows users:
Is there a difference between a Normal Mouse and a Gaming Mouse?
Now that you know how to change the polling rate of your mouse, we think the next bit of information might also be quite beneficial for you! If you are just starting with gaming and are looking to buy a mouse, you might be wondering which kind you should get?
Are there any differences between the two and does that mean gaming mice are better? Well, when you look at their specific functions, a gaming mouse will indeed provide users with enhanced DPI, more sensitivity, and a better polling rate. You also get to work with more buttons as compared to a normal one!
This ensures you can opt for customization options onscreen and during your gameplay that a regular mouse simply cannot deliver. It is restricted in the number of commands and functions you can execute. Simply put, a gaming mouse has been designed for very different and specific actions. It has also been created to be ergonomically designed since gamers usually play for hours on end.
Conclusion
While it is true that you can also have both types of mice, the gaming kind will last you longer and offers better features such as a better DPI and enhanced sensitivity.
That’s it for the topic of how to change mouse polling rates on Windows devices. We hope that this has been an informative discussion for our readers. Now you have the techniques and information to change and adjust the polling rates as per your desire!
