John Chad, Bachelor Degree in Computer Science & Computer Engineering.
Russel Collins
The cursor suddenly moving slowly can be quite an annoying issue, but it’s also not uncommon. It could happen at any time and the consequences vary from minor annoyances to lost productivity as you try to hunt down where the cursor has gone off to. If the cursor is moving slower than usual, here are several solutions that should help.
Check Your Cursor Speed Settings
First things first; check if the speed setting on your computer is set too low. Many people have their cursors set pretty low when they’re playing games or running intensive software like Photoshop.
To change these settings quickly, right-click anywhere on your desktop and choose Properties then choose ” Mouse “.
You’ll see two sliders under Pointer Options — Natural Scrolling and Maximum Tracking Rate.
Both control how many pixels per second you move your mouse in relation to what your cursor looks like on-screen (i.e., faster means more pixel movement).
Make sure neither slider is turned up beyond 3200 DPI as it’ll likely be too fast, as well as make sure that it isn’t below 800 as anything below that is usually too slow for most people.
This will ensure that there isn’t actually something wrong with your hardware slowing everything down. If you’ve recently changed anything else about your system performance, such as adjusting memory management options or installing new drivers, then restart your PC and run through our troubleshooting guide to fixing slowdowns caused by faulty updates.
Finally, consider turning off Desktop composition effects in the Control Panel ” Ease of Access ” Display. These may seem nice while you use them, but they don’t always work well together.
In general, disabling compositing makes windows less jittery and reduces overall CPU usage. If you find yourself suffering from stuttering after doing this, go ahead and turn Composition Back On again.
Run SFC / DISM
If nothing above helped, next we recommend using System File Checker (SFC) and Deployment Image Servicing Management (DISM), both free tools built into Windows 7/8.1.
These scan your entire drive and report back whether there are corrupt files causing problems. Running them only takes a few minutes — much quicker than trying out every other fix listed below!
Download and install one of the versions based on the windows version you’re currently using.
When installed, launch each tool and follow the instructions until the process completes successfully. Then reboot your machine.
Disable Tablet Mode
Tablet mode allows touch input over USB ports without driver support. Unfortunately, tablet mode comes with certain drawbacks that often cause issues.
While it does allow for better multi-touch support, sometimes it causes cursor lag even on systems with good video cards. Thus, I highly recommend turning it off unless absolutely necessary.
Open Device Manager via Start Menu ” Search ” devmgmt.msc and expand Universal Input Devices.
Right-click on Human Interface Core and select Disable Tablet Synaptics TouchPad option.
Restart your computer, and hopefully, you won’t have a slow mouse anymore.
Use Logitech SetPoint Software
Logitech SetPoint is a utility designed specifically for Logitech mice that lets you customize various aspects of your mouse behavior.
One feature called SmoothScroll keeps track of scroll speeds and adjusts itself accordingly based on the amount of scrolling that happens between keystrokes.
Another called SmartClicks detects small movements made during typing and prevents accidental clicks from happening.
Lastly, the Auto Button function constantly checks your buttons and uses them best for specific actions. If none of these features worked for you, try updating SetPoint to the latest version.
Instructions for doing so depend on which model of Logitech mouse you own.
Enable PrecisionX Hardware Acceleration
PrecisionX provides additional precision controls for gaming enthusiasts, including sensitivity adjustments, dead zone sizes, polling rates, etc.
Enabling it might improve responsiveness for applications requiring precise mouse movements.
First, head to Start Menu ” Control Panel ” Appearance and Personalization ” Region and Language ” Administrative Tools ” Performance Monitor. Under the Processes tab, look for wmpncsvc.exe and drag it onto the graph window.
Now, right-click on the graph icon and select Enable full processing.
Next, locate wmiksvcl.exe and do the same thing. Repeat these steps for mspolice.exe. That should take care of improving accuracy in games.
Change Battery Level
Sometimes batteries die, leaving behind the residual charge. As a result, battery life gets lower than expected. Even worse, sometimes laptops with dying batteries don’t notify you properly.
Luckily, Windows includes a way to test the health of your main power source.
Type Power Statistics into your Start menu search bar and open the Best Match. From here, navigate to Power Source ” Change plan settings.
Click on the Advanced plan settings button, followed by Scan.
Wait for the scanner to finish scanning, then return to the previous page.
Find the Health Status field, highlight the current value (which probably says 100%), and press Enter.
If it shows Critical, wait patiently for Microsoft to send you replacement parts. Otherwise, grab a new battery pack or buy a new laptop.
Tweak Gaming Features
Gaming is notorious for draining your system resources.
Fortunately, Windows offers ways to reduce graphical glitches while boosting frame rate.
Head to Start Menu ” Games Explorer ” Graphics properties and switch Force Fullscreen mode on.
Also, increase the Anti-Aliasing level from 1 to 4. With higher AA levels, game graphics become smoother, resulting in fewer visual artifacts.
Keep in mind that increasing AA levels will consume more GPU cycles, thus lowering framerate further.
You can tweak PhysX settings separately. Go to Start Menu ” Video playback ” Manage Additional Drivers… ” NVIDIA Control Panel.
Look for the highest resolution supported by your monitor and enable High Definition Enhancements. Remember to disable Vsync otherwise. Tweaking these settings shouldn’t require additional tweaking.
Just keep in mind that they might impact performance slightly.
Try Other Mice
In cases where no solution above applies, perhaps your problem lies with your actual mouse rather than your operating system.
Try plugging in a different mouse and seeing if that works before giving up hope.
If everything fails, contact your mouses brand Support directly. They typically provide replacements within 30 days.
Hopefully, at least one of these tips solved your problem. Good luck!
Have you ever experienced cursor slowdown? What did you try, and were you successful? Let us know in the comments!