The DPI can be adjusted in the software that comes with your mouse. You know one of them will be the same for a particular OS and you can concentrate on the DPI number for different games and situations. This way, you don’t have to think about adjusting two variables. I would recommend keeping the sensitivity in your OS constant, preferably exactly in the middle, and then altering the DPI. Since the sensitivity and DPI are two features that are doing the same thing basically, you have to keep one of those two constant to figure out what works for you. As a player, you have to experiment to find your own perfect DPI setting. So you see, it really varies based on what kind of game you are enjoying.
For playing a Tycoon or sim game I would prefer a lower DPI which means I can leisurely hit the buttons on the screen. I can live with that if it means I don’t have to move my mouse as much on the table. However, that way, I have to be pixel accurate with my aiming or else, even the smallest movements will cause me to overshoot the target by a big margin. I could tell you there is a magic number for the correct DPI everyone should use but it comes down to the games you play and your own gaming style.įor playing something like a twitch FPS, I would prefer a higher DPI which means I can move the mouse a little and cover a wider distance on the screen. So the best DPI count depends on the situation and your personal preference. Basically, DPIs are not the end-all and be-all of measuring a mouse’s worth. To tell the whole story of how sensitive or responsive a mouse rate you have to also look at things like the polling rate, precision, and accuracy. This can lead to inaccurate readings while playing the game. This seems to leads to a smoother experience but leads to noise. To achieve high CPI numbers, manufacturers, split the counts further virtually. There is a theoretical limit to the actual number of CPI that can be measured by a mouse that depends on the wavelength of the mouse’s laser. It is a great feature to have but it doesn’t actually compensate for the hardware DPI of the mouse. The software does its best to predict the desired position of the mouse pointer on the screen. In some cases, this can lead to a laggy and jagged performance with noticeable slowdowns or spikes in speed. The software does some math (interpolation) to translate the hardware movement to the required software movement. This adjusted value can be greater or lower than the actual current DPI setting of the mouse. The software receives the hardware sensitivity of the mouse-in this case, DPI-and gives you an adjusted value. See, the software sensitivity setting is another layer of control for the user. You’re right but that is different from what the hardware offers. This may or may not be what you need though.īut, isn’t there a sensitivity setting in my OS, you may ask. A mouse with a high DPI setting will react to even the tiniest physical movements. So you need to physically move the mouse less at a higher DPI setting.
The higher the DPI, the farther the motion of the mouse pointer on the screen when you move it. Turns out as more people are familiar with the term DPI, hardware companies prefer to use that term in the product’s marketing to get the point across. DPI is a similar term from the world of digital printing. It is what is used by the mouse manufacturers themselves to measure sensitivity. CPI is the actual number of steps the mouse will measure when it moves one inch. The real measure for the sensitivity of a mouse is the CPI (Counts per Inch). It is the measure of the sensitivity of a mouse. What is DPI?ĭPI stands for dots per inch. You may have heard of it before-but what is it and how much do you need? Let’s answer those questions now. Well, that’s a misnomer but more on that later. The technical aspect though could be summarized with only one word-DPI. The aesthetics of the mouse decide how comfortable it is to hold and use through long gaming sessions. It becomes even more important if you are a player competing at an esports competition or even if you are playing ranked matches online.Ī mouse can be judged on many aesthetic and technical factors. A good mouse is essential for a fun experience. It is after all how the player controls the characters and other interactions on screen. One of the most important pieces of equipment in your gaming experience is the mouse.