The optional wrist rest takes up a lot of desk space but makes the Expert Mouse more comfortable to use. If you love the Expert Mouse but can't deal with the gritty scroll ring, you can take it apart, remove a magnet, and add some lubricant yourself. Our budget pick, the Kensington Orbit with Scroll Ring, doesn't suffer from this problem. Many owners report the same problem, and Wirecutter senior editor Dan Frakes has experienced it, too: "It's a shame the trackball itself works so smoothly, but the scroll ring feels so jerky and janky." Kensington representatives told us that "this goes away with some use" and then "the scroll ring becomes very smooth and usable without any noise." After about a week I modified my scrolling technique to have a lighter touch and minimize the resistance, but it's still just as gritty.
But the scroll ring felt gritty when we turned it, as if two pieces of metal were skimming across each other. Instead of a scroll wheel, the Expert Mouse has a scroll ring around the ball. By default, the Expert Mouse's two bottom buttons are right- and left-click, while the two top buttons are forward and back. The Expert Mouse's four large buttons have a crisp click that doesn't feel mushy or hollow, unlike the buttons on our budget pick, the Kensington Orbit with Scroll Ring. Dead-skin gunk accumulates underneath the ball, as it does with every trackball, so we recommend doing this every couple of weeks. To remove the ball, just pull it out or flip the Expert Mouse over. The ball's large size makes it easier to move your cursor across high-resolution displays or across multiple monitors than the smaller balls of the Kensington Orbit with Scroll Ring and the Logitech MX Ergo. The Kensington Expert Mouse's 55 mm ball (nearly the size of a pool ball) moves freely and smoothly. The Expert Mouse's trackball (left) is the biggest of the bunch, followed by the Orbit's (center) and the MX Ergo's (right). If you don't want wireless, consider the slightly cheaper but otherwise identical wired version of the Expert Mouse. It usually costs between $60 and $80, but the premium build quality, well-crafted ball, and number of buttons make it worth the price. It connects via either a 2.4 GHz wireless dongle or Bluetooth, and the included AA batteries provide long battery life. The Kensington Expert Mouse Wireless Trackball is the best finger-operated trackball because its large ball is responsive and smooth, the design is comfortable for both right- and left-handed people, and its four buttons are easy to customize with Kensington's software. The best finger-operated trackball: Kensington Expert Mouse We also spoke with Alan Hedge, director of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Laboratory at Cornell University and one of the country's foremost ergonomicists, to learn who might benefit from switching from a traditional mouse or trackpad to a trackball. During this research, I laid hands on almost every available trackball. For this guide, I used each style of trackball for a week before assessing individual models. Why you should trust usīefore joining Wirecutter, I spent six years at Lifehacker writing about technology. Although trackballs can help some people with some symptoms of repetitive stress injury, they can't help everyone-we recommend consulting a doctor first if you're considering a trackball for that reason.
(For more information, see Should you switch to a trackball? below.)Ī trackball isn't as accurate as a good-quality mouse, but it can be more precise than a trackpad for anyone looking to eliminate repetitive motion from mousing around too much. We also have budget picks-the Kensington Orbit Trackball with Scroll Ring and the Logitech M570 Wireless Trackball-if you don't mind sacrificing build quality and a couple of features for a more affordable trackball.įinger-operated trackballs with center-mounted balls work for both right- and left-handed people and encourage better wrist posture, while thumb-operated trackballs are more similar to traditional mice and therefore easier to get the hang of using.
#KENSINGTON EXPERT MOUSE TRACK BALL FULL#
Read the full guide to trackballs.Īfter spending more than 120 hours testing eight trackballs during weeks of work, we found that the best trackballs are the finger-operated Kensington Expert Mouse Wireless Trackball and the thumb-operated Logitech MX Ergo Wireless Trackball. When readers choose to buy Wirecutter's independently chosen editorial picks, Wirecutter and Engadget may earn affiliate commission.
This post was done in partnership with Wirecutter.
0 kommentar(er)
