Wireless vs wired for gaming

[legend8887]

What's the real reason people don't like to use wireless for gaming? It can't be because of latency because it's nonexistent anymore. It cleans up your desk space so I think it would be worth it.

edit: im talking about mice/keyboards, not Ethernet/wifi

[zyntaxable]

It still is because of the delay i think. altho i can't imagine it being noticable.

[Railgun]

Using an ethernet cord is MUCH faster then wifi.

 

EDIT: nvm thought you were talking about internet

[ThatOneRussian]

I use a g700s and there is no input lag at all or latency whatsoever

[PlayStation 2]

With mice, it's more of a generalization.

With keyboards, it doesn't fucking matter.

[ThatOneRussian]

Using an ethernet cord is MUCH faster then wifi.

Pretty sure he means about mice. not wifi

[Castdeath97]

Unless you play games like CS GO it probably doesn't matter much, but wireless mice need charging.

[legend8887]

Unless you play games like CS GO it probably doesn't matter much, but wireless mice need charging.

I play Call of Duty mostly.

[TheCaptain53]

What's the real reason people don't like to use wireless for gaming? It can't be because of latency because it's nonexistent anymore. It cleans up your desk space so I think it would be worth it.

edit: im talking about mice/keyboards, not Ethernet/wifi

Most people are under the impression that there will be considerable latency. The truth is that there is, but probably not enough for mere mortals to distinct it from wired mice.

That is, unless someone feels like sharing their experience of a modern, high-grade wireless mouse and found considerable input latency.

[GodSpoon]

If your a hardcore CS:GO player or something, I've heard there can actually be a noticeable latency with a wireless mouse

 

I personally don't give a shit I use my Performance MX and I'm pretty happy with it

[bucklingspring]

I use a g700s and there is no input lag at all or latency whatsoever

There's always latency. It's impossible to avoid. Wireless peripherals tend to have more of it.

[Donut417]

What's the real reason people don't like to use wireless for gaming? It can't be because of latency because it's nonexistent anymore. It cleans up your desk space so I think it would be worth it.

edit: im talking about mice/keyboards, not Ethernet/wifi

I have a wireless keyboard and mouse combo. I can type a sentence and watch it appear on the screen after words. Thats why I prefer wired. 

[Watsyurdeal]

Latency, honestly with how long I've been playing on WiFi I imagined playing on Wired would be AMAZING.

[BrightCandle]

I have definitely been able to tell the latency difference in CSGO before. I used to prefer wireless as I avoided cable snag and drag effects but once I compared them side by side it was no contest and went to wired and have been there ever since. Its probably improved in the last few years but if you look at wifi you will see pings to local servers are still much higher than just using an ethernet cable and that is just inherent in using the airwaves and the cost of encoding and decoding considering all the interference that is about. We have pros complaining about mouse button latency with the old Avago chipset and that was less than the sort of latency we see in wifi mice continuously.

 

But most people don't really notice, they use 60hz panels with terrible ghosting, they play with wifi mice and keyboards. Only once you have seen how it should be and what the state of the art can actually do and practice with it and then go back do you realise how big the difference is, before then you can live in ignorance of the problem.

 

Its the latency mostly, convenience does not trump fast for gaming.

[Gibs960]

I don't personally use a wireless mouse or keyboard but I imagine that it can be annoying to charge the peripherals in the same way that charging an xbox controller can be annoying.

[Imakuni]

What's the real reason people don't like to use wireless for gaming? It can't be because of latency because it's nonexistent anymore. It cleans up your desk space so I think it would be worth it.

edit: im talking about mice/keyboards, not Ethernet/wifi

Ignoring latency issues, wireless mouse are much heavier (as it has to hold the battery) than wired equivalent can ever be. Some might prefer the the bulk, but others would rather have a feather in the hand.

 

Also, if the batteries die mid gaming (you know, we forget to charge things sometimes), you are screwed.

 

Oh, and if your peripheral is wireless only and you move it around, it's very easy to forget the dongle and be pissed. Even more so if you actually lose the thing alltogether and can't find it back.... RIP Money.

 

 

Now, I'm not saying wireless sucks. That's not it. But it has it's drawbacks, just as wired does.

[JSG509]

I don't personally use a wireless mouse or keyboard but I imagine that it can be annoying to charge the peripherals in the same way that charging an xbox controller can be annoying.

Agreed!

 

When I play with friend online its always a pain in the ass when we have to wait for some one that needs to replace battery's or when their stuff dies mid game.  I could honestly care less about the input lag, Ive done wireless for years with consoles and for me that was the only way a console should be played.  Wireless is Nice but I dont have time to replace battery's or wait for something to be charged.  

 

So to answer your question OP Wired Wins for the single reason of not having to ever worry about battery running low or have any interruptions mid game.  

[olbaze]

I owned and used a Sidewinder X8 for a fair bit of time. For me, it had the following issues:

• Charging. Some wireless mice, gaming mice in particular, tend to come with a charging cord rather than a charging dock. This was true for the X8. All was good... except that the cord got worn and wouldn't properly charge the mouse. A lot of people, me included, also feel that having to use your wireless mouse with a wire is silly.
• The batteries.
  • If the mouse does not use regular AA batteries, the batteries just add weight and mean that you're forced to use the charging cord/dock at some point. If it's a dock, you can't use the mouse during that time, which is an issue for some people.
  • Even if the mouse uses regular AA batteries, it will add significant weight to the mouse. And by significant, I mean something like 20% more weight.

 

I personally don't think that actually running out of juice in the middle of a game is an issue with wireless peripherals. That issue has been pretty much completely fixed with battery indicators.

 

As for the justifications most people have for using a wireless mouse:

• It means less wire clutter. No it does not. You're either stuck with a charging cable or a dock. And there are measures you can take to manage any cable clutter.
• It doesn't add a significant latency. At high performance levels, you're not going to talk about seeing a difference, but feeling it. Your nervous system (muscle memory) is in an entirely different category of responsiveness compared to your eyes.
• The weight doesn't matter, mice are too light to begin with. Subjective opinion. People have different preferences, that's exactly why some mice come with weight systems.