Tutorial: What is ‘Enhanced Pointer Precision’ and how to disable it

If you have ever dug around the mouse pointer’s setting in Windows, you might have noticed a setting that reads Enhance pointer precision. Although it sounds kind of straightforward, most people do not know exactly what it does. Since it is enabled by default in Windows 7 and Windows 8x systems, you might actually want to know exactly what the setting does, how it influences your everyday computer use and how to disable it if you do not actually like it.

A simple explanation of enhanced pointer precision

As you probably know already, the mouse pointer in any computer can be configured to be more or less sensitive depending on what the user likes. Most users leave these settings at their default values but others, especially gamers, regularly change these settings to better fit a specific game or specific playstyle.
Now, the speed of your mouse is also under constant regulation from your system and you might have already noticed this. When you move your mouse at a slow pace across a surface, the pointer moves very slowly as well so in order to go from one side of the screen to the other, you have to move your mouse across a large area. When you move your mouse fast, however, the mouse pointer jumps on the direction you quickly turned your mouse to so getting to the edges of the screen requires a simple but fast twitch motion.

Now, enhanced pointer precision can be more or less defined as mouse acceleration. It changes the sensitivity of your mouse automatically so that it always moves smoothly. Without the setting, the pointer will sometimes be a bit wonky although the effect is kind of subtle and a lot of people might not even notice it. The important thing to note is that this setting is fantastic for using the computer casually like surfing the web, chatting with friends and things like that. But when you need precision, like in an FPS game, then this setting might actually hinder your abilities.
Turning the setting off means that you will gain full control over the speed and precision of your mouse, but at a cost. Most people are used to enhanced pointer precision as it is turned on by default so when you turn it off for the first time, the mouse will most likely feel very weird. The movements might seem jerky and you might feel that you cannot really control it. However, once you get used to it, you will see that the more precise and accurate controls are very much worth the trouble.
How to disable the setting

If you have decided that you want to try using your mouse without enhanced pointer precision, disabling the setting is very easy. Press your Windows button, type mouse and press Enter. This will take you to the Mouse Properties window. Go to the Pointer Options tab and disable the option that reads Enhance pointer precision right below the pointer speed setting. Click on OK to close the window and save your setting.
Some notes
If you disable the setting, I highly suggest holding out for at least a day or two before re-enabling it in case you are frustrated with how your mouse works without it. As I said before, it might take a bit of time to get things going but once you get used to it you will really appreciate the greater accuracy that you can control without enhanced pointer precision.
It is also worth noting that the setting might turn itself back on again. If that happens, it might mean that your mouse’s software does not allow the setting to be turned off. If you have any third-party apps that control mouse properties, you might want to check there first.

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