Wired or Wireless mouse for gaming?

I recently got a new ASUS G-60 laptop and I would like to know if anyone recommends a wireless or a wired mouse for gaming. The mouse that I am still using is a targus wireless mouse and it has worked pretty good so far, although recently it has started to become unresponsive when I play on my laptop. I was going to get a new wireless mouse for gaming, but I was recommend by someone to get a wired mouse instead because of better response when playing games. The problem I have with wired mice is the cord attached to my laptop which may get in the way during gaming. Can anyone tell me if I should get either a wired or wireless mouse? Also are there any brands anyone recommends to get?

 

In 99% of cases, wired mice do have significantly better response times than wireless ones, which can be a pretty big deal in fast paced games, if you play FPS games a lot. The one exception to this is the Razer Mamba, which has the same 1,000Hz polling and 1ms response time as their wired mice, despite being wireless (although it has an optional cable as well).

If you have $130 to spare, the Mamba is an excellent mouse to check out, with a 5,600 DPI laser sensor, wired and wireless modes, and 7 buttons. Short of that, I really have to recommend a wired mouse for gaming. The new Razer DeathAdder is excellent at $60, and its cable is wrapped in braided fibers, so it doesn't get caught or tangled nearly as easily as traditional rubber-insulated cables.

 

Wired Mice not only don't use batteries, but they are cheaper. That means more money for pizza deliveries.

 

Get a wired mouse. Nothing sucks worse than finding yourself in the middle of an intense fragfest and your wireless mouse runs out of battery. Also, I have found that wired rodents have better response times than wireless mice. As far as choosing a new mouse, I can't say enough about Logitech's G9. This is the quintessential gaming mouse for true gaming enthusiasts.

28 grams of optional weight, three different kinds of hand grips for that perfect ergonomic mouse fit, macros, on the fly sensitivity, mouse profiles, terrific DPI, and all around performance makes it hard to beat. It's also very affordable, unlike certain other gaming mice which are laden with fancy, ridiculous lighting effects but offer nothing of substance.

 

Unfortunately, my favorite keyboard is only available wireless. HP Elite. And it cuts out intermediately when the batteries get to 25%. SO lame.

So yeah, wired > wireless.

 

daddyboom, here's some links for you.

If you must have wireless, check out:

• Razer Mamba, $130: http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-mice/razer-mamba/ - The best of most worlds. Great ergonomic right-hand shape, good button placement, dual wired/wireless functionality, and 5,600 DPI laser sensor. Best used with the palm grip, but claw-gripping is fine too.
• Razer Orochi (Bluetooth), $80: http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-mice/razer-orochi/ - A mobile-oriented gaming mouse, the first of its kind. Like the Mamba, it's got wired and wireless modes, but instead of a USB dongle, the Orochi's wireless connectivity is via Bluetooth. It has a 4,000 DPI laser sensor (limited to 2,000 in Bluetooth mode). Being so small, it's ideal for the claw grip.
• Logitech G7, $80: http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/gaming/mice_keyboard_combos/devices/163&cl=us,en - Logitech's wireless gaming mouse. Very similar in shape to the G5, G500 and MX518. Has a 2,000 DPI laser. More of a palm grip shape, but clawing works too.
• Microsoft Sidewinder X8, $100: http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/gaming/productdetails.aspx?pid=103 - 4,000 DPI laser, I've never owned one but I've demoed one at a store, it felt nice, and I've always like Microsoft mice.

If wired is okay, here's some of my top picks:

• Razer Mamba, again (it has a detachable USB cable as well as wireless)
• Razer DeathAdder, $60: http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-mice/razer-deathadder/razer-deathadder/ - The mouse I own and use. At 3,500 DPI, it currently has the highest-precision optical (non-laser) sensor anywhere. 5 buttons, and the same shape as the Mamba, extremely comfortable. Ideal for palm-style grip.
• Razer Lachesis, $80: http://www.razerzone.com/gaming-mice/razer-lachesis/ - The Lachesis uses a 4,000 DPI laser sensor and has an ambidextrous form factor, so it's popular among lefties, but lots of righties use it too. It has 9 buttons, and is excellent for those who use the claw-style grip.
• Logitech MX518, $50: http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/gaming/mice_keyboard_combos/devices/4259&cl=us,en - One of the most popular optical gaming mice ever made, featuring 1,800 DPI, and 5 buttons. It's Logitech's most equivalent mouse to Razer's DeathAdder, and is best used with the palm grip.
• Logitech G9x, $100: http://www.logitech.com/index.cfm/gaming/mice_keyboard_combos/devices/5092&cl=us,en - With a total of three interchangeable grips, it's good for both palm and claw-grippers. At 5,000 DPI, it is the replacement for the original G9, which is identical except for having a 3,200 DPI laser.
• Microsoft Sidewinder, $80: http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/gaming/ProductDetails.aspx?pid=100 - My runner-up choice when I bought my original G9. Good for either palm or claw-style grips.
• Microsoft Habu, $70: http://www.microsoft.com/hardware/gaming/productdetails.aspx?pid=092 - A collaboration between Microsoft and Razer, this mouse is shaped like the lovechild of a DeathAdder and Microsoft IntelliMouse Explorer 3.0. It's got 7 buttons and a 2,000 DPI laser sensor, and the flashy lights that garetjax loves to hate.

I hope you find this helpful.

 

I just like wired ones. No any response or battery problems.

 

Thanks for the responses guys, I just have 2 questions:
Do the the wires for the wired mice get in the way at all during play?
Also what exactly is DPI and what does it mean for a mouse?

 

I don't think the cord gets in the way. On my laptop, I just route it around the back of the laptop, and on my desktop, I just let it hang over the back edge of the desk.

DPI stands for Dots Per Inch, a measure of how precise a mouse is. The unit DPI in particular measures how many "dots" of data a mouse reads for every inch of physical movement on a mouse pad or surface. Higher DPI yields a more sensitive and precise mouse sensor. Your average office mouse is 800 DPI, meaning that for every inch that you move the mouse, the mouse sends 800 points of movement data to your computer, which gets processed into cursor movement, or aiming in a game. The Razer Mamba, on the other hand, sends 5,600 points of movement data in the same motion (one inch), which yields greater precision, especially at higher display resolutions.

 

with the exception of the mamba

batteries have NEVER died out on me once, when the mouse is not in use, it is put back on the cradle, where it should be ALL the time (when not in use),so it charges during that time. i dont game for longer than 1.5days lol so it isnt a problem...

in OP's case, get the deathaadder 3500DPI refresh, same awesome design as the original/mamba, and overall one of the best mouse you can get for your money (second only to the european-exclusive roccat kone which i would GLADLY switch out my *copperhead* for, not my mamba tho )

if wireless is what you want, and mamba is too expensive, then go with the sidewinder X8, ive herad its really nice, even tho it has a slower polling rate, you cant tell the difference. and its like 70bucks vs 120bucks for mamba.

 

Have you read my post and the linked thread? For mice, DPI is a measure of distance, not precision. http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5526607&postcount=19

 

I've heard good things about the Sidewinder X8. I gotta give it a try myself.

 

That's partly true if you don't adjust mouse speed settings, but it really is a measure of precision as well.

This is a completely hypothetical scenario, mind you, but I'm using this to demonstrate what DPI can mean for mouse precision.

Say you have a mouse rated for 1 DPI (unrealistic, I know), and that your mouse settings in Windows are set to be 1:1 with the motion of your mouse (i.e. one inch of mouse movement yields one inch of cursor movement on your display). What you would see is a cursor that jumps around an inch at a time, and would certainly be difficult to aim with in a game, for instance.

Now, let's say you have a mouse rated for 2,000 DPI, set the same way in Windows, i.e. one inch of mouse motion moves the cursor one inch. It will be much more precise because the mouse sends much more data for every unit of motion.

Obviously, in the real world the differences aren't so black and white; your average office mouse is 800 DPI, not 1.

 

lol @ harris in SS sig. i have a mamba and 5600dpi doesnt feel any more precise than say 2000dpi, for me its just more an indicator of sensitivity. i set mine @ 3200dpi, which is good while playing games and browsing on a 1080p screen. btw, i also set it @ 2ms response rate (500hz), a kind tip from SS. 1ms vs 2ms is no difference at all in my eyes, i see it as the same, yet with 1mhz polling, it raises my CPU usage while on desktop if you rapidly move your mouse around. 500Hz polling on usb = less data (frequency i mean since its e-1 units) sent from the southbridge USB i/o ports to cpu for processing = less cpu usage = win?

 

An inch of movement by the mouse does not mean an inch of movement on the screen. DPI is the number of pixels traveled per inch by the mouse. The OS settings of course factor in scaling and acceleration, but for simplicity lets leave that out for now as it is not relevant in this case. If a mouse is set for 1000dpi, then one inch traveled by the mouse will move the cursor 1000 dots or pixels on the screen. The same goes with 800dpi; move one inch and the cursor will move 800 pixels. Even with 1dpi: one inch traveled by the mouse means one pixel on the screen. The concept is that simple. The amount of data that is sent to the OS is not DPI, rather it is polling rate. If I set my G9x for 500dpi and 1000dpi, 500dpi will be no more or no less precise than 1000dpi. 500dpi just means that the cursor would move half the distance for the same traveled distance made by the mouse. The precision of the mouse itself is based on tracking quality of the engine. DPI controls how far the cursor will go per inch and has absolutely nothing to do with precision, just distance. Precision is dependent solely on the actual tracking quality of the sensor. What you have stated regarding "one inch of mouse movement yields one inch of cursor movement" is false.

 

I have recently updated my G9x DPI settings. I have gotten quite a feel for 4000dpi now. http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=5531128&postcount=32

I set it for 4000dpi because I don't have to move as far in Windows or general apps anymore. In games, I am still tweaking the ingame sensitivity to compensate for the 25% increase in DPI and normalize my movements to allow a half circle turn with only a nudge of the mouse. I got rid of my previous lower DPI levels as I never used them. 1000dpi is perhaps the lowest I can go before productivity starts to feel sluggish with very little gain in manual accuracy.

You can leave your mouse set for 1kHz polling all day long. It's really not going to have an impact on your CPU despite what the task manager is telling you. My Pentium M can chew on my G9x's 1kHz polling without a hiccup and I think your Q9000, or any current generation CPU, should have absolutely no problem handling it as well. Yes, we cannot tell the difference between 1kHz and 500Hz, but we just set it to 1kHz because we can.

 

The amount of cursor movement per amount of mouse movement is completely user-controllable; that's what "mouse sensitivity" or "cursor speed" is. If you had a 1 DPI mouse, you would be able to adjust your Windows or in-game settings to whatever you like. At the same sensitivity settings, higher DPI mice are more precise than lower DPI mice.

 

Right. If I had a 1dpi mouse, I would be able to juke up the software side sensitivity to match say 1000dpi at default sensitivity. But it does not mean that a higher DPI mouse will be more precise. Sensitivity and DPI are identical and the same.

This thread is only nine pages. It shouldn't take too long to read through. Ignore some of the flamers in the thread, haha. http://www.overclock.net/computer-peripherals/137100-dpi-sensitivity-im-so-confused.html

 

For a gaming mouse, probably not the best choice. For a casual mouse, I'm sure it would be fine though.

 

Probably 800.

 

Any mouse can be used with both a desktop and laptop, the only real issue is portability. I'm pretty sure it's 800 DPI, and in any case it isn't really a gaming mouse. I bought one for my mother for Christmas last year, and it's pretty comfortable, but the thumb button was really awkwardly far forward.

If you're looking for a mouse to game with, I'd avoid the Arc.

 

I've had good luck with my HP Gaming mouse

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/s...ect=1&jumpid=re_r602_ec_artgen_body_psg_aug09

and it is reasonably priced, I was able to pick mine up for around $25

 

Not a bad price. But at that range, you should of just gotten the venerable Logitech MX518.

 

my wireless mouse always runs out of battery right in the middle of a raid:/

...
don't skimp on an ebay "special"!!!

 

Yeah, that's why the Sidewinder looks like a good option, since it has the option to go wired if you run low on juice.

 

A solid choice is the Logitech G500 which is based off the G5, it's wired but it works well and sells for around $50. Very reliable, accurate and smooth mouse if it's anything like the G5 it replaced which seems to be the case considering they look very similar.