If you are a gamer or an artist, who spends most of his time in front of the computer screen, you have an idea of how important smooth cursor movement is, whether it’s tracking a target or drawing a complex design.
Sometimes, while you are working, your cursor instead of following the motion of the mouse starts moving and jumping randomly on the screen, this is known as mouse jitter or mouse stuttering, and it is annoying enough to make your experience unenjoyable.
It may be the malfunctioning of your mouse that causes this scenario or even the software that you use can be the reason behind the mouse jitter. One way or another, we all come across this experience. That’s why we are going to shed some light on it so you’ll prevent it in the future or cope with it if you are stuck in such a situation.
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What Is Mouse Jitter?
It can be caused by a multitude of things, here are some of the main reasons.
1) Cheap Hardware
Cheap hardware can be one of the primary causes behind mouse jitter, that’s why people have stopped using regular office mice. This is the era where no matter if you are a gamer or not, everyone goes for the gaming mice.
The first reason is that they are super-easy to form a good grip and the second thing is that they go a long way. Gaming mice may cost a little more, but it is better than wasting your bucks on cheap regular mice.
Gaming mice are trendier and if you are an artist, it would be a bonus because they also can perform with high precision.
2) Radio interference
This term may force you to think that we will talk about some rocket-science or highly technical stuff, but it’s not like that. Radio interference takes place when you plug any such thing in your PC which has a virus or corrupt data, this slows down the performance of your PC, and eventually, we witness mouse jitter.
This may be due to the USB that you just plugged in or any card reader which wasn’t under use for a long time. Such stuff can be pretty harmful to your PC, and mouse jitter can be one of the symptoms that your computer has just started suffering.
You can try to unplug everything except the keyboard and mouse and then see if there’s any jittering.
3) Stuck Dirt
If it’s been ages since you last cleaned your mouse, then it is time to work on it. Most of the time, when we leave our mouse unattended, dirt gets stuck and the result is mouse jitter.
Not only a dirty mouse but without giving your PC system a good blow, dirt can get stuck in it as well and this can cause consequences like the malfunctioning of computer parts or mouse jitter. That’s why it is always important to attend to your computer and mouse every once in a while.
4) Surface problem
This is very crucial to note because anytime we see anything that can make our PC look trendy or funky, we just can’t wait to put our hands on it. It is relevant to today’s age. Many local companies have sprung up that sell funky mouse pads with a multitude of patterns. In the end, we fall for it, just because they “look” good.
It is a trap and what happens is that mouse can’t recognize these patterns or bright colored surfaces and they just start doing what you fear the most, mouse jitter. That’s the reason we recommend you use only black flat surfaces to avoid any such outcomes.
5) Software
How could we miss this one? The very ultimate cause, as when all the reasons mentioned above fail. It is most likely that corrupt software is behind it. There are gazillions of software present on the internet. It doesn’t mean that we have to download each one of them.
The best way is just to use a branded software or the one which you paid for. Because the paid ones are more refined as they aren’t under everyone’s influence. You will notice your mouse stutter especially after downloading such software, so just uninstall it and try troubleshooting. It should pretty much sort it out.
How To Deal With It?
Mouse jitter can be a pretty tricky technical problem to deal with. But don’t worry we won’t leave you hanging there. Keep reading to find out how can you figure it out without any professional help!
1) Stop The Fast Startup Feature
Fast startup is a feature in Windows 10 that helps in booting up your computer faster than ever when you start it. This feature works as in between the shutdown mode and the hibernation mode, so you may think that when you shut down your computer, it’s not off and is working, that’s the secret behind the fast startup.
In this case, the long mode activity can also be behind the mouse jitter. So all you have to do is just to open your Windows 10 settings and disable fast startup. After this, when you shut down your computer. It would stop working immediately rather than keeping everything at the stand-by mode.
2) Update Your Graphics Drivers
Graphic drivers are often the reason behind the mouse jitter, this is easy to cope with. All you have to do is to search for the latest driver software update. You can hunt through a multitude of options on the internet and you will come across a variety that you can use.
The other easiest way is just to visit your graphics driver’s manufacturer site. There you will see hundreds of options. The amazing thing about it is that they all are specifically for your driver. Hence, there’s no risk of safety. Once it updates, the mouse jitter hopefully will vanish.
3) Disable Inactive Window Scrolling
Another aspect introduced by Windows 10 is it lets you randomly explore the screen through the cursor and the mouse wheel. The contents of the inactive window will appear in front of you. Another thing is that it will shut down any other tab, and the focus will be on the tab you are viewing.
This also causes mouse jitter. You can disable it in the settings too, and then restart your computer to see if it resolves the issue.
In essence, we know the question What Is Mouse Jitter gives you a tough time. That’s why you can use these ways to figure it out without seeking any professional help.
Learn what is a gaming mouse vs regular mouse.
