Knowledge Base & Reference

Mouse & Hardware Terminology Glossary

Clear, engineering-grade definitions of essential gaming peripheral specifications, optical sensor dynamics, switch mechanical chatter, and sensitivity mathematics.

Sensor & Transmission

Polling Rate (Hz)

The frequency (in Hertz/seconds) at which a USB gaming mouse reports its cursor position and button input states to the computer operating system. Standard mice report at 125Hz (8ms latency), gaming mice at 1000Hz (1ms latency), and ultra-high polling mice at 2000Hz–8000Hz (0.5ms–0.125ms latency).

Why it matters: Higher polling rates reduce input delay and micro-stuttering, but require fast CPU single-thread performance to prevent frame drops in CPU-bound games.
Test in Polling Rate Tester
Sensor & Optics

CPI & DPI

CPI (Counts Per Inch) and DPI (Dots Per Inch) measure optical mouse sensor hardware sensitivity — specifically how many counts or steps the sensor registers per physical inch of movement across the mousepad surface.

Why it matters: Higher DPI values decrease physical hand movement needed to rotate or move across the screen. CPI calibration testing checks whether a sensor has physical CPI deviation from specs.
Test in DPI Analyzer
Aim & Sensitivity

eDPI (Effective DPI)

Effective Dots Per Inch (eDPI) is calculated by multiplying physical Mouse DPI by In-Game Sensitivity setting (eDPI = Mouse DPI × In-Game Sens). It provides a standardized metric for comparing mouse sensitivity across players using different DPI hardware presets.

Why it matters: eDPI enables instant sensitivity comparison between players regardless of their underlying 400, 800, or 1600 DPI hardware presets.
Test in Sensitivity Converter
Microswitches

Switch Debounce Delay

Debounce delay is a firmware timer or algorithm designed to ignore secondary mechanical electrical chatter (bounce) created when physical metal contacts snap together inside a mechanical switch.

Why it matters: Setting debounce delay too low (<2ms) on aging mechanical switches causes accidental double-clicking. Setting it too high adds artificial click latency.
Test in Double-Click Test
Microswitches

Optical vs Mechanical Switch

Mechanical switches rely on physical metallic leaf contacts, making them vulnerable to oxidation and bounce over time. Optical switches use an infrared light beam interrupted by a plastic stem, offering zero debounce delay and immunity to double-click wear.

Why it matters: Optical switches eliminate mechanical chatter double-click failures and offer faster reset actuation response.
Test in Double-Click Test
Click Speed

CPS (Clicks Per Second)

Clicks Per Second (CPS) measures how many times a user can actuate the primary mouse button in a 1-second window. Testing techniques include Regular Single Clicking, Jitter Clicking, Butterfly Clicking, and Drag Clicking.

Why it matters: Crucial metric for high-APM competitive gaming (Minecraft PVP, RTS games, and MOBAs).
Test in CPS Tester
Keyboards

NKRO & Key Rollover

N-Key Rollover (NKRO) indicates that a mechanical keyboard hardware controller can register every key pressed simultaneously without key ghosting or missed inputs.

Why it matters: Essential for rhythm games, complex macros, and fast multi-key inputs.
Test in Keyboard Tester
Keyboards & Sensors

Rapid Trigger (Hall Effect)

Rapid Trigger dynamically resets key actuation the exact millisecond a key switch moves upward, without needing to pass a static fixed reset point.

Why it matters: Enables faster counter-strafing and instant directional changes in tactical shooters like CS2 and Valorant.
Test in Keyboard Tester
Aim & Sensitivity

Yaw Angle

Yaw is the game engine multiplier angle constant used to convert mouse count inputs into 360-degree horizontal camera rotation angles in 3D FPS game engines.

Why it matters: Different game engines (Source, Unreal Engine, id Tech) use different yaw values, requiring math conversion to maintain exact 360° physical distance across games.
Test in Sensitivity Converter