Optical sensors beat laser on almost every mousepad.

Yes, and the difference is pretty noticeable — optical sensors are just more consistent on fabric surfaces.

Laser sensors are great at tracking on weird surfaces like glass or a polished desk, but on cloth mousepads they can get jittery. Coarse weave textures especially cause problems: the laser picks up tiny fabric patterns as noise, leading to random cursor jumps or “sensor spin.” That’s not a thing you want in a game.

Optical sensors are simpler and more predictable. They work well on fine weave pads and still handle coarse textures just fine. They also don’t go haywire if you lift the mouse a bit. The only place optical falls apart is on reflective surfaces, but you shouldn’t be using those for a mousepad anyway.

Don’t overthink it — pick a decent optical sensor and a cloth pad you like the feel of.