Mouse Tester

Click each button inside the pad. Left, right, middle, back and forward. The matching pad lights while the button is down. Right-click is captured, so no menu will pop up while you are inside the pad.

Single-click a few dozen times. At your normal pace. The double-click detector measures the gap between each press and the one before it on the same button. A gap under 80 milliseconds is far quicker than a person can click, so it is counted as a suspect switch bounce.

Scroll slowly, then quickly. The counters show every step up and down. The tester flags a scroll skip when the direction flips back within 150 milliseconds, which is what a worn wheel encoder does.

Run the CPS test and move in circles. The CPS test counts clicks over five seconds. Moving the mouse in circles inside the pad estimates its polling rate from the position updates the browser receives.

Suspect double-clicks. One or two across hundreds of clicks can be noise. A steady stream means the micro-switch is bouncing, and you will see files opening when you meant to select them. On many mice the switch can be replaced.

Scroll skips. A wheel that jumps back a line when you scroll down has a tired encoder. Cleaning sometimes helps for a while. Replacing the encoder or the mouse is the lasting fix.

A button that never lights. Is a dead switch, a broken cable or a dropped wireless link. Try another port or a fresh battery before blaming the switch.

Polling rate. The tester counts position updates a second while you move the mouse. Wired gaming mice usually report a higher rate than office or Bluetooth mice. Browsers merge some events, so the estimate can read lower than the figure on the box.

Cursor readout. Shows the position the browser sees. It is handy for spotting a mouse that jitters when it should be still, which points to a dirty sensor or a poor surface.