How exactly does the Korok mask work?

Question

The in-game description says

A mask inspired by those fun-loving Koroks. It shakes when one is hiding nearby. If sold, this rare find can't be replaced.

Which is all well and good but I'm not sure is strictly accurate, or at least light on the details.

• Is there any sort of directional component, or is it simply proximity based?
• Proximity to what? Is it relative to the Korok itself, the puzzle that reveals the Korok, or both? I have noticed that around the tree stump/yellow ring puzzles, the mask will shake both at the stump and near the ring itself (where the Korok is actually located), but I don't know if it will shake near the ring if it's not currently visible. If the mask starts shaking and I can't find a likely looking puzzle, should I start looking for tree stumps that could potentially be rather far away?
• What sort of three dimensional awareness does the mask have? I've seen at least one "push the boulder into the hole" puzzle where the mask was shaking on a cliff high above the location of the Korok, near the boulders that needed to be pushed off the cliff.
• Does the mask respond the same to every Korok, or does each Korok puzzle have its own defined area which trigger the shaking? (I.e., if the mask shakes can I say "there is a korok within $distance from my current location", or do I have to be more discerning with my assessment?)
• Anecdotally it appears that the mask will begin vocalizing when you're close enough, but what counts as "close enough" I have no idea.

Answer 1

My observations, based on finding almost all korok seeds.

• The location that you need to interact with has an invisible sphere around it. When you enter this radius, the mask makes an initial voice, then shakes and chimes constantly. The voice only plays when initially entering the detection sphere, but can be heard again if you leave the sphere and re-enter it.
  • For moving hidden koroks, the detection radius moves with it.
  • For flowers, the next flower you need to touch emits the signal. A prime example of this is in thundra plateau, where the flower korok there is widely spaced out.
  • For tree stumps with a leaf imprint, the stump itself emits the signal. Once you step on it and activate the timer, the destination temporarily emits the signal until you find the korok or time runs out, in which the stump again emits the signal.
  • For large boulder holes, the hole itself emits the signal. Boulders themselves do not.
  • For metal cube patterns, the final destination of the metal cube emits the signal. The metal block itself and reference pattern do not.
  • For small rock patterns, the destination emits the signal. The rocks nearby do not.
• There is no form of distance or direction measurement, other than being 'nearby'.
• All koroks have the same distance threshold.
• Koroks that have already been found do not emit a signal.

In short, the korok mask will never send you on a wild goose chase. At the origin point of a korok mask signal, it will always be something that you can do, or something very obvious you can bring (e.g. a rock) to reveal it. Sometimes they are difficult to spot, like an acorn inside the hole of a tree, but there's always an action you can do.