Sony DualSense

Inner Dead Zone

The inner dead zone is an important parameter for stick control. It helps avoid drift or accidental movement, but if this zone is larger than the necessary minimum, it can significantly impact aiming accuracy in games. Therefore, it is better when the inner dead zone is minimal or absent.

Gamepad Sony DualSense has no inner deadzones, which has which has a positive effect on aiming accuracy and micro control.

Outer Dead Zone

The outer dead zone indicates the extent to which there is an area where stick movement is not registered when fully deflected. If it's small, it indicates high stick calibration accuracy. In the case of a large outer dead zone, it significantly limits the useful range of motion and can have a negative impact on control.

The Sony DualSense gamepad has normal external stick dead zones (0.4mm). Its significant presence does not limit the range of motion and does not have a negative impact on control.

Stick Resolution

The stick resolution of the Sony DualSense gamepad has a motion resolution of 0.00826. This means that it can register 121 positions from the center point of the stick to its outermost edge. This is similar to the resolution of a monitor, where more pixels provide a clearer image. In the case of gamepad sticks, higher resolution ensures smoother and more precise control. As a rule, 125 positions are more than enough for a comfortable game.

It is important to know that some gamepads do not have a constant resolution and give out 0.0078 or 0.0150 (for example). Therefore, the number of end positions may differ from the real ones.

Asymmetry Index

The Asymmetry Index measures the difference in the left-right and up-down deflection of the joystick. A higher difference indicates worse joystick movement. The largest difference in the X and Y axis deflection is selected as the index. This indicator helps to understand the joystick's performance during small, precise movements that are critical for aiming and typically use 25-60% of the joystick's range of motion.

The asymmetry index of the Sony DualSense gamepad is 3.1% for the left stick and 5.5% for the right stick.
Learn more about how the measurements are made.

Circle Error

The "Circle Error" parameter determines the behavior of the stick at its extreme diagonal positions. With the Joystick Tester program, you can check how accurately the gamepad stick draws a circle in its movement. The lower the error value, the better. The Sony DualSense gamepad has 8.2% left circle error, and 7.8% right circle error.

Central Accuracy

The stick centering parameter indicates how well the stick returns to the central position after the player releases it. This characteristic is responsible for stick drift: the lower the Central Accuracy value, the better. The average worst position at which the joystick stops is taken as a measurement and is not touched.

In the case of the Sony DualSense, the Central Accuracy for the left joystick is 5.1%, and 2.7% for the right stick.

Disclaimer

All conclusions of the Sony DualSense gamepad are based on a single gamepad, which does not rule out the possibility that other units of this model may perform better or worse. However, this variation is usually insignificant. The test data was obtained using Joystick Tester program, and some parameters may differ in other programs.