Mouse with red light and no red light underneath it.

[TurboGlitch]

What's the difference b/w a mouse with red light and no red light underneath it. My old basic mouse had it, and it worked on the bed no matter what, but my new gaming mouse with a PixArt optical sensor, doesnt have that, and doesnt work on my bed when the bedsheet is loose. I know its because of different sensors but whats the difference b/w them?

 

[Onasi]

Because newer sensors use infrared light. It’s still there just like the older mice, our eyes just can’t see it. As for the difference in tracking - might be LOD or just the fact that, as a tradeoff for being more precise, newer sensors are more temperamental about having a reasonably even mousing surface to run on.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Depends on the mouse. Some are optical and some are laser. We cannot see laser beams. Some makers include a colored lens just for aesthetics. It may be red, or even blue or green. The latest LED sensors on newer mice are MUCH MORE powerful and sensitive than those from a few years ago and therefore do not require a very bright light to track precisely. So many use a very faint light.

If you see a red light, that most likely is an "optical" mouse. If you see another color, or no light at all, that probably is a "laser" or IR optical mouse.

Which is better? Depends.

Optical vs Laser Mouse | Features, Comparison and Differences - ElectronicsHub

 

[TurboGlitch]

Oh makes sense. My mouse's software has a thing called "Sensor Calibration which I think is the LOD setting and yes I think the mouse just requires a fairly even surface.

Thank you.

 

[Jops]

Older sensors used red LEDs to light the surface underneath the sensor, and newer ones use IR LEDs for the same purpose.

 

[TurboGlitch]

I'll just have to use my mouse on a mousepad or a book when on bed.

 

[Shrek]

I have some laser mice (infra-red) but am not convinced laser is better.

 

[Bill_Bright]

I have some laser mice (infra-red) but am not convinced laser is better.

It would be an invalid statement either way - unless speaking specifically for yourself alone.

There are advantages and disadvantages to each type. And whether or not that works for or against the user depends on how the user uses the device. This mouse might be better for gaming, that one for photo editing and that other one for engineering design (CAD/CAE) work. This type might work best on smooth, shiny surfaces, that type might work best on textured, non-reflective. This one might require a mousepad, that one might not.

No one type is best at everything.

Then of course, not all [fill-in-the-blank] type mice are created equal. There are cheap (as in lousy quality), poorly designed, poorly made mice that use the cheapest parts. And there are quality mice using the best designs and highest quality precision parts, manufactured and assembled using the most precise techniques too. Then there's response/latency issues, button bounce, glide smoothness and more.

So, like many products, you would have to select specific model numbers to compare. But even then, it would still boil down to how the user/reviewer uses the mouse, the programs he/she uses it with, and even to how it "feels" in his or her own hand.

For example, I do not like the "feel" of contoured mice in my hand.