Buying a gaming mouse, what to look out for?

Are you a fanatical gamer? Then you can’t do without a good gaming mouse. Do you know what to look out for when buying a good gaming mouse? In this article you will read everything you need to know about gaming mice and you will discover that you should select a gaming mouse on more points than the dpi.

Gaming mice come in all shapes and sizes. It is therefore no problem to buy a cool gaming mouse that meets all your wishes, as long as you know what to look for. If you want to buy a good gaming mouse, you should put the grey mice aside immediately. They certainly won’t fit your needs. By the way, for the sake of completeness, it is good to mention that it is also wise to choose an accurate (gaming) mouse if you regularly work with Photoshop, Première, InDesign or other graphics programs. This will certainly benefit your accuracy and productivity!

What is dpi in a mouse?

Many manufacturers see a high dpi as a distinctive value when purchasing a gaming mouse. The letters DPI stand for “Dots per inch”, and is a term that indicates the hardware sensitivity of your mouse. The higher this number, the better the mouse responds to the smallest hand movements you make. In practice, it means that at a low dpi of, say, 400 to 800, you have to make a considerable movement to control a game. With a low dpi you are better able to make small corrections. A high dpi (between 1500 and 3000) has a higher sensitivity. You have the idea that your mouse flies over the screen. A higher dpi is more pleasant if you use a screen with a high resolution. You prevent the so-called pixel skipping.

As you can see from the above, the height of the dpi is a personal choice. In a good gaming mouse this is partly adjustable, both with the corresponding software and with the buttons on the mouse. You can set your settings as default in order to get the optimal feeling about your mouse when gaming.

What do you look for when buying gaming mice?

The dpi is not the only factor to consider when buying gaming mice. The first consideration you need to make is whether you want an optical or a laser mouse. An optical mouse uses a sensor on the bottom. You can best see this as a camera that takes pictures at a high speed. An internal processor scans the patterns of the pictures and translates this into movements. A laser mouse works according to the same principle, but with the help of an infrared light. All better gaming mice use an optical sensor, so that choice will be made quickly. For the sake of completeness it is worth mentioning that Pixart is practically the only manufacturer which makes sensors for gaming mice, so the choice is easy.

The switches in most gaming mice also come from one manufacturer (Omron). This switch provides a clear click and good (read: smooth) feedback. However, there is a difference in quality within these switches. It is clearly noticeable that a better quality switch lasts much longer. When making this choice, it is good to know that a defective switch is the cause of the mouse being considered dead.

Which gaming mouse is right for you?

Besides these technical differences, a mouse that you use for games must fit you. Think for example about the size of the mouse and the way you can operate it. We distinguish between a mouse which you can grip with your whole hand, the palm grip, and a smaller mouse which you can hold between your fingers and operate. The latter mice have the significant name of “fingertip grip”.

Finally, there are a number of small factors that can determine which gaming mouse suits you best. Think of the choice between a gaming mouse with wire and a wireless gaming mouse, a gaming mouse with lighting, gaming mice with multiple setting functions, modular sides, removable switches and even the more advanced mice that have an oled display.