The Equation Isn't Mathematical
Yet there is a balance that needs to be found. When the mouse is faster, you spend less time positioning it. At the same time the slightest movement, however small, will cause the cursor to move, thus altering accuracy. This means that a way must be found of moving the mouse as fast as possible while giving it the most accurate aim. The higher the screen resolution, the more important it is for the CPI to increase at the same speed. This setting, after all, also depends on your personal taste and the type of situation. For example, FPS games (such as Unreal) require speed, but others (such as FarCry) need accuracy. Another factor is that the quality of the mouse also determines how far you can go. A light mouse (with less inertia) with a good sensor remains accurate for longer, by increasing the CPI. As you can see, it's a knotty problem.
If you want to work out for yourself how far resolution affects the mouse, I invite you to download this little game - quite an amusing one as you will see. FeedingFrenzy, marketed by Yahoo Games, is also a game of skill.
It's all about feeding your fish to make it grow bigger as quickly as possible. The resolution is fixed, whichever type of screen you have. The first thing to do is to go into the properties of your mouse and change the speed of the cursor to the minimum. Play the game, then exit it. Then select the highest speed and go back to the game. You will soon get the hang of it. Generally speaking, Feeding Frenzy is an excellent test for the responsiveness and speed of a mouse.
Download Feeding Frenzy
Good Measure
With a good mouse and a strong player, the average needed will be 400 CPI at 1,024, 600 at 1,280 and 800 at 1,600. But these are just guidelines. In any case, the Windows driver or the game enables you to set the resolution yourself. By default, mice of more than 400 CPI are never automatically set at the maximum. It's also a good idea to consider adjusting the resolution because lots of people don't realize that this is an option that can very much affect enjoyment of the game. As long as you don't exceed the physical capacity of the mouse, you'll be fine, but if you speed up a mouse from 400 to 800, you will lose accuracy. The MX510 will go up to 800 CPI. There are hardly any practical uses for exploiting a speed of 1,600 x 1,200 and you would need considerable dexterity. The Razer Viper goes right up to 1,000 CPI, which frankly won't be used by many people. The main thing is that both mice allow you to move sufficiently fast, even for people playing at 1,600 x 1,200 and they are both super-accurate. The advantage of the Razer lies mainly in the driver that lets you change the CPI during a game and depending on the situation. If you are acting as a sniper in FarCry, for instance, it's good idea to reduce the speed so as to achieve greater accuracy.
End of the parenthesis. If you have any questions about the USB connection and what effect it has, refer to our previous article .
