While mouse acceleration might not be the most revolutionary concept in modern computing, still it is an important feature that everyone should be aware of. On the contrary, only a handful of users care about the same. Especially, PC gamers who are aware of the mishappenings mouse acceleration can cause during their session.
So, in this article, we are going to discuss everything there is to know about mouse acceleration in Windows 11. How it works, the instances where it can be helpful, as well as when it should be the right time to turn off the feature. So, what are you waiting for? Let’s get right into it.
Also Read: How to Flush ARP Cache in Windows 10 and 11
What is Mouse Acceleration in Windows 11?
Along with Windows 11, mouse acceleration is available in all the recent versions of Windows. Mouse acceleration is a quite intuitive feature that solely depends upon two factors:
- How fast you are moving the mouse,
- and the actual distance traveled by it.
In Layman Terms, the distance traveled by the mouse pointer, id directly proportional to how fast you move the mouse. The faster you move the mouse, the on-screen mouse accelerates. But disabling mouse acceleration means the speed doesn’t play a role anymore. The on-screen pointer travels the same distance. It only covers the area, how far you are actually moving the mouse. This, in turn, can jeopardize your productivity, especially while you are multitasking.
As of now, mouse acceleration is present in both Windows 10 and 11. But there is an option through which you can actually disable mouse acceleration. The feature is also available in the latest versions of macOS as well. But, that would be an article for another day. Based on your requirement, you can turn on and off mouse acceleration on your Windows PC.
Benefits of Mouse Acceleration
Let’s start with the most obvious aspect, gamers with the first-person shooter literally despise mouse acceleration. But, there are several instances where mouse acceleration can be beneficial. For starters, with mouse accelerations, one can easily control ultra-high-resolution displays that require more areas to cover.
You don’t have to worry about moving your mouse back and forth all the time, to cover up the entire screen. In fact, you can travel from one edge to another almost instantaneously. Simply move your mouse faster for a small duration and you are good to go. The same is applicable while you are working with various applications at the same time. It can boost your productivity for all the matter.
Are There Any Drawbacks to Mouse Acceleration?
Certainly mouse acceleration comes with its own perks, but at the same time, it has its drawbacks as well. While it allows you to move more efficiently throughout the screen, you might end up overshooting your enemy. For casual gaming, it might not pose such a huge threat, but with competitive FPS games, even a split second matters.
Turning on mouse acceleration jeopardizes the high degree of precision and accuracy that a gamer needs. Down below is our curated guide on how to turn off mouse acceleration on your Windows machine.
How to Disable Mouse Acceleration?
Method 1: Use Windows Settings to Turn off Mouse Acceleration
This is by far one of the easiest ways in which you can turn off mouse acceleration within Windows 11. Simply head over to the Settings app and follow the steps down below:
Step 1: Once you open the Settings app, head over to ‘Bluetooth and devices.’ You can find these settings in the left sidebar.
Step 2: Now scroll downwards till you find the ‘Mouse’ settings.
Step 3: In Windows 11, the mouse settings come with additional features. So, click on ‘Additional mouse settings.’
Step 4: Now a pop-up window will show up. Head over to the ‘Pointer Options’ and untick the box ‘Enhance pointer precision.’ This would disable mouse acceleration in Windows 11.
Method 2: Use Control Panel to Turn Off Mouse Acceleration for Specific Mouse
Step 1: At first, you need to open Control Panel in Windows 11. Head over to the Windows search bar and type in ‘Control.’ Choose Control Panel from the search results.
Step 2: Set the views to ‘Small icons’ and select ‘Devices and Printers.’
Step 3: Now right-click on your mouse and choose ‘Mouse Settings’
Step 4: Similar to Method 1, Head over to the ‘Pointer Options’ tab and untick the box ‘Enhance pointer precision.’
Bear in mind, this setting is exclusive to the mouse you have hooked up to your computer.
Also Read: 6 Ways to Turn Off Your Windows 11 PC
Frequently Asked Questions
How to Know If Mouse Acceleration is Turned Off?
The idea behind mouse acceleration is pretty simple. Based on the speed at which you are moving the mouse, your pointer moves accordingly. But the feature comes at a cost. In fact, it can significantly jeopardize your accuracy, in shooting games. For anyone using a gaming house with a higher DPI, you can actually feel the difference while turning on and off mouse acceleration. Make your choice accordingly.
Is it Ok to Turn Off Mouse Acceleration?
Now, if mouse acceleration is enabled on your PC, and yet you are unable to figure it out, there is nothing to worry about the same. The only time when you need to turn off mouse acceleration is high-level competitive gaming. For the most part, fast-paced games, like FPS in particular can be affected with mouse acceleration with lesser accuracy. So, our recommendation would be to turn it off for the time being.
The Bottom Line
As stated throughout the article, it is completely easy to turn off mouse acceleration. In fact, you can use the same steps to disable the feature on your PC running Windows 10 as well. Just bear in mind, while mouse acceleration can do a tremendous job for productivity, it can be an absolute bummer for competitive gaming.
So, make your choice wisely and let us know in the comment section below, what is your takeaway on mouse acceleration? Do you prefer using it, or turned it off altogether?
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