How Optical Mice Work

• Optical mice use LEDs to track signals.
  
  The optical mouse was introduced in 1999 in hopes of rendering the "rolling ball" mouse obsolete. If you've ever seen an optical mouse while it was plugged into the computer, you probably have seen the red light at the bottom. That is what makes the mouse detect movement. Optical mice have small, red light-emitting diodes that reflect light from virtually any surface. The optical mouse will read the light signal through a semiconductor inside it, which later relays the image to a digital signal processor for pattern detection. Through these very minuscule fluctuations in the signals, the processor is able to determine how far the mouse moved from its original position. It then relays the data to the computer, and your pointer moves.
  
  

How Laser Mice Work

• Laser mice use invisible lasers to track signals.
  
  In 2004, Logitech released the first laser mouse for the public to use. You might notice that the red light is no longer present. This is because it uses an invisible laser that doesn't emit light. However, the mouse works similarly to an optical mouse. Just like optical mice, laser mice process laser signals to detect patterns and relay movement data to the computer according to the results.
  
  

Similarities

• Optical and laser mice operate in similar ways. They emit signals and process the reflection of these signals to determine the movement of the mice. Both mice, therefore, operate without using the rolling ball that was found in mice for many years.
  
  

Differences

• While optical mice operate using an LED, laser mice use invisible lasers. This is one of the most noticeable differences between the two kinds of mice. Another difference is the sensor capacity of each mouse. An optical mouse can track signals at resolutions of up to 800 dots per inch. A laser mouse is much more sensitive, able to track signals at resolutions of up to 2,000 dpi. This can pose problems for people where sensitivity is concerned.
  
  

Advantages of Laser Mice Over Optical Mice

• The higher tracking resolution of laser mice makes them more accurate in applications where a user requires precision. Such is the case with displays that have very high resolutions. However, with a normal system (1,280-by-1,024 resolution or lower), you might never notice a difference in performance between a laser mouse and an optical mouse.
  
  

Advantages of Optical Mice Over Laser Mice

• Optical mice are generally good for any sort of application. Not only are they more affordable, but their tracking resolution is not too high and not too low for the average computer user. For normal home applications, optical mice are usually ideal. Not many people will notice the difference between 800 (optical resolution) and 2,000 dpi (laser resolution).
  
  

Problems with Oversensitivity in Laser Mice

• Some people prefer less sensitivity so that the mouse pointer does not shake when trying to move it to a particular coordinate on a computer's display. A solution for this problem is to tone down the sensitivity of the mouse through the system settings of the computer's operating system (the exact method of toning down mouse sensitivity varies from operating system to operating system). Gamers can tone this down in most of their games' mouse settings.