How the F1 reaction test works
It takes two taps. The first one starts the sequence: five red lights come on one after another, the pad says “Wait”, and after a pause of unpredictable length all five go out together. That is the signal. Tap, click or press the spacebar the instant they go dark, and the pad turns green to confirm the start.
This copies the start of a Formula 1 race, with one change. At a real race the lights come on one second apart. Here they come on twice as fast, so that five starts in a row do not drag.
The test takes five starts and scores the average. Every start is charted so you can see how consistent you are.
Why it is not a countdown
The lights coming on are not a “three, two, one”. If the start came on a beat, you could time your tap to the beat, and the test would measure rhythm instead of reaction. The pause after the fifth light is random for exactly that reason, at a race and here. Nobody can know when the lights will go out, so the only thing to do is wait and react.
Why it feels different from a plain reaction test
On the standard reaction test something appears. Here something disappears, and it does so after a build-up you can watch. The five lights coming on at a steady beat tempt you to keep counting and go on the sixth beat. Stop counting once the fifth light is on, and watch for the dark.
Jump starts
Click while any light is still on and the start is void: it is a jump start and you take it again. A reaction faster than 100 ms is also void, because nobody responds that quickly and it can only have been a guess. Neither one counts towards your five, so gambling on the lights cannot improve your average.
Getting a better start
- Look at the whole row of lights rather than at the fifth one. The change is easier to catch when you are not staring at a single point.
- Keep your finger resting on the button with the slack taken up, so the press is as short as it can be.
- Breathe out as the fifth light comes on. People tense up during the pause, and a tense hand is slower.
- Use a mouse rather than a trackpad, and close heavy tabs. The delays your equipment adds are explained on the main reaction test page.