There’s nothing more aggravating than a stuttering high DPI mouse, especially when you’re in the middle of an intense match where precise movements and fast response times are everything. Fortunately, Microsoft’s July 2023 update to Windows 11 aims to fix this problem. (This update also includes changes to the Window 11 clock, which can now display seconds.)
Apparently, the stuttering problem originates from the demands of high DPI mice on the Windows input stack. If you’re a gamer, you’re probably working with some powerful hardware. But if you’re plugging in a bunch of devices at once (as gamers are apt to do), you’re going to have a lot of background processes running. Your system basically spends a big chunk of time processing input, which negatively impacts gameplay, causing your high DPI mouse to stutter. Your PC is too busy keeping tabs on other inputs such as controllers, voice chat, and so on. That’s why Windows has a difficult time keeping up with it all.
Microsoft intends to remedy this issue by optimizing the processing time for input requests. According to the Windows Latest blog, the company has “improved the performance by throttling and coalescing background raw mouse listeners and capping their message rate.” The idea is to offer gamers fluid gameplay even with many background processes happening at once. If you’re dealing with in-game stuttering, a Windows update might be the quick fix you’ve been looking for. The update (aka Windows 11 KB5028185) should be available on the Windows Update screen now.
