SteelSeries

SteelSeries Xai Laser FAQ:

Q: I know that SteelSeries FreeMove was available in the Ikari Laser mouse but I still don't seem to fully understand how this feature works?

A: Most common mice feature some degree of path correction, to make it easier for the user to draw straight lines, do generic office tasks and similar work. That is great if you are doing office tasks, it's not so great for gamers who demand extreme precision and consistent accuracy. SteelSeries FreeMove allows you to determine how much the mouse should "help" with movements, and ultimately allows you to perform movements without any angle snapping and path correction. You can adjust how much control should be left up to the mouse and how much control should be left up to you - in other words: How precise the mouse should be in reproducing your movement.

Q: How do I, as a gamer, benefit from the SteelSeries ExactSens?

A: Generally speaking this setting controls how fast your cursor moves in relation to how much you move your mouse (Counts Per Inch or CPI). With SteelSeries ExactSens you can rely on true hardware based sensitivity settings, freeing yourself from any and all software interpolation, which will dramatically increase your precision. We highly recommend setting Windows Pointer Speed to the 6th notch (which is the default value in Windows) and setting your in-game sensitivity to 1 (1 equals no adjustment of your movements by the game). You can set two different values for your sensitivity and switch between them on-the-fly via the CPI toggle button on the top of the mouse.

Bear in mind that you can adjust your sensitivity from 100 to 5,001 CPI, so it may take a while to find the CPI settings that are “just right" for you but we highly recommend this investment of time; it will make you more precise. Remember that this setting is quickly accessed via the LCD menu system on the mouse as you experiment.

Q: Counts Per Inch? CPI? I haven't come across these expressions before, except for DPI (Dots Per Inch)?

A: DPI is an expression from the printing world and has nothing to do with mouse movement. DPI is meant to describe that for one inch of distance you move your mouse on any surface, the equivalent number of counts are sent to the PC - resulting in movement on your screen. CPI is the correct term for this as it actually is consistent with what you seek to describe with the abbreviation.

Q: Please clarify why the setting of my Windows Pointer Speed is so important?

A: Leaving the Windows Pointer Speed at the default 6th notch (middle setting) is highly recommended, since setting it to anything else will add a fixed amount of acceleration to your pointer movements, which will reduce your precision and accuracy with any input device - including SteelSeries Xai. We introduced SteelSeries ExactSens to free people from this and all other software interpolation, enabling you to operate with true hardware based sensitivity settings for maximum precision and accuracy. We repeat, we highly recommend you leave this setting at the default 6th notch.

Q: Another new term I see is SteelSeries ExactRate - what does it do?

A: Report rate (also known as polling rate) determines the number of reports sent every second by your mouse to your computer. Traditional mice utilize a set number of reports between the mouse and the computer, locked to set figures like 125, 500 or 1000Hz. SteelSeries ExactRate allows you to define a limit to this data and you can allow it to correspond to your in-game frame rate and monitor refresh rate for a homogenous, synchronous and consistently smooth mousing experience. Set this value to correspond to the lowest value in either your in-game frame rate or monitor refresh rate.

Example: If you utilize a screen with 60Hz, you should try setting this at 960Hz (or something else that is dividable by 60). With this setting your report rate will be synchronized to the refresh rate of your screen, improving consistency and smoothness of your movements.

Q: What is SteelSeries ExactAim? The expression sounds a bit sinister to me?

A: No need to worry. SteelSeries ExactAim offers you total control over the amount of jitter correction and prediction calculations that are applied to the raw movement data the sensor reads from the surface. This is especially desirable when the mouse is used on a surface/mouse pad that hasn't been optimized for high precision gaming. The settings range from “pure" sensor data, that will not be corrected and no further calculations will be applied, up to high amounts of prediction calculations which can be useful if the surface the mouse is used on is not gaming grade or if the mouse movements feel too “jittery". Having SteelSeries ExactAim enabled is definitely not “bad" per se, but some pixel-precision is lost when this setting is turned up too high. As with many other settings, it is up you to find what suits your personal preferences the most.

Q: What makes the LCD display on the SteelSeries Xai useful to me?

A: All settings specific to SteelSeries Xai, including the above mentioned, are quickly accessed via the LCD menu system on the mouse as you experiment - this might speed up the process of finding the perfect setup for your individual way of gaming. Also, the LCD display on SteelSeries Xai can be adjusted to your personal reading preferences, including adjustable options such as brightness and contrast. The two values can be adjusted from high to low. You can also check Display Profile Name to have the name of your stored profile displayed on the LCD display.

Q: I tend to switch between which hand I control my mouse with. Is there any way to easily change left/right hand settings on the mouse?

A: Sure. The SteelSeries Xai is ambidextrous and the "left/right mouse swap" setting in the software allows you to quickly switch between left and right handed setups with a single button click.

Q: I really want the perfect mouse pad to go with the SteelSeries Xai. Which one would you recommend?

A: Specifically for SteelSeries Xai we recommend the SteelSeries 9HD or SteelSeries 4HD, seeing as these gaming surfaces were researched and developed in parallel with the SteelSeries Xai and thereby designed to fully support the enhanced tracking capabilities of next-generation High Definition gaming mice. However, have in mind that all our surfaces offer something unique. The glide, feel and comfort differs based on the material used to manufacture the product, but they all offer "gaming grade" precision and accuracy.