What you need to know
- Razer pioneered 8,000Hz polling rates in high-end wired gaming mice in 2021, raising the bar for mouse accuracy and responsiveness.
- Wireless HyperPolling has been limited to 4,000Hz for a while now, but parity was reached when Razer figured out how to enable 8,000Hz polling on the wireless Razer Viper Mini Signature Edition earlier this year.
- Today, Razer announced that it’s planning on expanding support for 8,000Hz to more of its premium wireless gaming mice.
- During the next few days, players can expect their mice to receive firmware updates enabling 8,000Hz polling rates through the HyperPolling wireless dongle or Mouse Dock Pro.
Razer stands among the best at the forefront of gaming hardware innovation, especially when it comes to PC gaming accessories like keyboards, mice, and headsets. Razer has pioneered several technologies and trends with gaming mice in particular, and the company is moving the needle again today — at no cost to customers already invested in the Razer ecosystem.
Starting today and finishing by Nov. 10, 2023, Razer will be gradually rolling out a free firmware update to five of its premium wireless gaming mice, enabling a feature previously exclusive to the exorbitantly expensive Razer Viper Mini Signature Edition: 8,000Hz polling rates. Why does this matter? Polling rates refer to how often a mouse reports its current cursor position to your computer — the higher the polling rate, the more often your mouse refreshes its position. This increases your precision, increases your mouse’s responsiveness, and decreases the risk of latency or ghosting.
Razer was the first to begin pushing for higher polling rates in gaming mice, with the Razer Viper 8K being the first mouse in the world to reach heights of up to 8,000Hz. Other high-end wired mice from Razer have achieved those same astounding speeds, eventually reaching more affordable price brackets with the incredible Razer DeathAdder V3. Wireless mice have been left out, though, with even Razer’s impressive and consistent HyperPolling wireless technology maxing out at 4,000Hz.
That changed in April of this year, when Razer released a free update to the Razer Viper Mini Signature Edition enabling 8,000Hz polling rates in a wireless mouse for the very first time. Now, that same feature is being rolled out to five more of Razer’s mice in a completely free firmware update. As long as you own one of the following mice and the HyperPolling Wireless Dongle or Mouse Dock Pro (depending on the mouse), you’ll be able to game at up to 8,000Hz.
It’s an impressive milestone, although 8,000Hz is a little overkill for most people. For years, the standard for a high-end, performance-orientated gaming mouse was 1,000Hz, and most games are still built with that speed in mind. Only modern, competitive games that benefit from higher polling rates can take full advantage of this technology, like Valorant and Counter-Strike 2, but it can be a game changer for players in those titles. Just be aware that higher polling rates can take a toll on your computer, with 8,000Hz requiring a beefy CPU to keep things running smooth.
When it all comes together, though, higher polling rates help you be more accurate and reactive, ensuring that your mouse cursor is always actually where it is on-screen. With this firmware update, the five above wireless mice will be able to reach these levels of performance. You’ll need the Razer HyperPolling Wireless Dongle (compatible with all five mice) or the Razer Mouse Dock Pro (compatible with Basilisk V3 Pro and Cobra Pro) to make it happen.
I asked Razer how the company made this update happen, and was told “We achieved our upcoming update the same way we upgraded the Viper Mini Signature Edition from 4000Hz to 8000Hz earlier in April 2023, through firmware optimizations and protocol updates (nothing on the hardware).”
If you already have the setup, all you need to do is wait for the free firmware update to be released through Razer Synapse. If you’re missing something or are interested in picking up one of the best PC gaming mice (now capable of up to 8,000Hz polling), you can find all you need below.
