Has anybody used these, either as old 80's tech or modern optical versions? I vaguely remember using one with an Apple Macintosh, but left no great impressions me.
Feels like they been obsoluted by TrackPoint and touchpads. How does it compare to a TrackPoint or a touchpad? I find these are vastly inferior to an actual mouse. Is a trackball any better?
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currently using the Logitech M570 wireless trackball, I like it much better than a regular mouse. unless your a Sup Forums babby trackballs are great for productivity
This is the only one i've ever used that was tolerable.
Every other one sucks in comparison.
I think trackballs are the best pointing device. I love my kensington orbit with scroll wheel. You might want to avoid m570s though because they usually break in a year or two due to shit build quality.
I'm retarded.
Forgot pic
>I like it much better than a regular mouse
How so?
It's for cool boys,you woul not understand.
Used one with the ball in the middle rather than on the thumb, shaped like pic. Got really used to it but sometimes after long nights my finger would cramp up like crazy. Would definitely try a thumb one though
I returned my M570 after like 5 days. My fingers are just too shaky for it to be comfortable. My thumb got easily tired using it and it wasn't precise at all because of that. Maybe one day I'll try a "ball in the middle" kind of trackball.
I've been using a trackball for around 10 years and it completely dwarfs using a mouse, I have the mouse sensitivity high as well so pointing all over the screen is easy as fuck. I've never had any pain using it.
My father had one while I was growing up.
It always became greasy and hard to turn, constantly had to remove the ball and clean it, but it would still just end up getting scratchy
It's unprecise as the ball can move in unpredicted ways, for example instead of going sideways it could also spin and tilt and the cursor would move in unpredicted ways.
It's hard to tell where exactly the 90 degrees
It's almost impossible to draw straight lines
Do not use them in anything that require precision, like vidya or drawing
I am using a Logitech Marble trackball for almost 2 years. Pretty cool and easy to use after you get used to it. I want to try a M570 but I am short in money right now.
Logitech released a new trackball a few months ago. Maybe they want to pander to the trackball elitist. There are no gaming trackball till this day.
I love my Logitech marble, bought two of them. they're huge mice but don't need to move around at all. perfect for my computer setups.
scrolling support is iffy at best, because there is a trackball in stead of a scroll wheel. I had the best luck downloading a 3rd party driver for scrolling
>3rd party driver for scrolling
what did you use?
here
Let me rephrase my recommendation:
Do not use them at all, unless you know it will improve your wrist health, or you have only very limited space for your mouse. They're space savers at the cost of everything else.
I got this fancy new MX Ergo a few days ago
It has a USB port solely for charging, doesn't work without the wireless adapter, that's stupid
Other than that it feels solid and comfy
>It's unprecise as the ball can move in unpredicted ways,
I can't totally confirm this behaviour with this trackball, it's not unpredictable but small movements (like aiming for 14x14px icons, like the tab close button) are a bit hard on high sensitivity
>It's almost impossible to draw straight lines
vertical straight lines don't seem to be an issue for me, but horizontal yes.. moves in a curved line
fewprojects.com
links at the bottom.
I've been using this one since March. It was supposed to just be temporary till I got a CST one but it works well enough that I haven't bothered upgrading.
How sore does your thumb get? I might buy one today
>new Logitech MX Ergo
>still no 4th finger button
I have no idea why. You don't need any fingers to maintain hold of the device, so just put more butans under them. One of a few turnoffs keeping me from returning to trackballs.
>small movements (like aiming for 14x14px icons, like the tab close button) are a bit hard on high sensitivity
IMHO, one valid reason to have accelerated pointer movement. Fast swipes get you monitor edge to monitor edge in a single swipe. The slow swipe penetrates the shield.
Not him but your thumb will be sore on the first day of use and then you won't notice it after. I love mine (I have Trackman which is the older version because I wanted it wired and in white).
Why do you need more buttons?
How are you going to remap them?
If you think you might have trouble with your thumb, try the Kensington Orbit Trackball with Scroll Ring - pic related
PgUp/PgDn/Home/End
cut/copy/paste
macros
Currently using a G600.
2x 570s
previously 2x whatever the logi red ball wired ones were. they lasted over 5 years. still working but look kinda shitty.
didn't know about the ergo til this thread. thanks i'm getting one.
>doesn't have trackpad, trackpoint, and a trackball all on the same desk
heh
Sup Forums here
m570 is good shit, even though not optimal for rts high level play. my only gripe is they die off every few years or so due to shitty contacts (from what i hear, i just know im on my 3rd in 8 years)
there is no better mouse for curling up in blanket and playing civ
Pic related is the first one that I owned. I loved it.
A4Tech Scroll Tech
I've been using a Kensington Expert Mouse for the last 30 years. Once you get used to a trackball, it is unlikely you'll ever use anything else.
After that I bought a Logitech Marble, and I love it even better.
But I have to install überOptions to use cruise up / cruise down.
I use one almost daily and my thumb has never been sore using one.
they're a bit of a shit meme but when it comes to laptops they're better than trackpoints and far better than trackpads imo but I've never really tried tweaking a trackpoint and have never used an apple trackpad so ymmv
I had thumb fatigue on my m570 so I doubt it'd be much different from what you're experiencing now, except the m570 has really shit buttons and the mousewheel feels like it's out of the early/mid 2000s, logitech are putting out a premium trackball which might have better buttons/mousewheel but it's expensive
>It always became greasy and hard to turn, constantly had to remove the ball and clean it, but it would still just end up getting scratchy
pretty much this honestly, anyone who has used a ball mouse will be familiar with having to pop the ball out to clean it frequently but instead of just getting dusty it'll also get greasy no matter how much you clean your hands
>It's almost impossible to draw straight lines
I had the opposite experience, with sensitivity turned up I could get some decently straight lines with the ball with a run up, but it's definitely far too imprecise when moving slowly to do anything like fps/drawing - I'd agree there
pic related, top is done with a mouse and bottom with the trackball but with sensitivity on windows turned up to 11
>are a bit hard on high sensitivity
agreed, and you need the high sensitivity for higher resolutions
>even though not optimal for rts high level play.
I'd get slaughtered at noob level aoe or any rts that requires any sort of micro at all
I do agree that they're fantastic to use in bed or on a couch or something, it's where they excel
any opinions on MX ergo?
Seems decent enough, more modern M570. Thought one of the big features is being connected to multiple machines and switching between them on the fly. This mouse can do this between 2 separate machines. However their new keyboards with the same feature appear to support 3 machines.
Why they didn't make them all 3 is beyond me.
I want one, but not for $100.
have been using these for 3 years or so for anything non gaming. Much more relaxed, because I don't have to use my arm/shoulders any more and much much comfier, at the cost of tolerable levels of reduced accuracy.
Any trackball with:
-a ball that is not operated with the thumb
-a dedicated scrolling wheel
-a dedicated button 3 for middle click
-no wireless
I'm eyeing toward a Kensington Orbit and remap one of the 4 buttons to button3
Have you had any experience with fingerballs?
...
I have a buddy who's been using these for games since day 1 and I've never seen anyone so accurate in a first person shooter
That thing looks nice.
I've got a CST. It's alright, but nothing to write home about.
Vastly superior. Once you go track, you won't go back. Older models tend to suck, but the kensington expert mouse, CST, and most elecom mice are fantastic.
I do not care for logitech trackballs except the marble. Others feel scratchy and bad.
I game on a CST and have no issues. I'm not super hardcore though, so if you are MLGPro, balls may not be for you.
Is it still produced?
Logitech Marblemouse is the best. Symmetrical, so you can use it with either hand. Nice and ergonomic.
Elecom Huge, M-HT1URBK. Released this year, there are wired and wireless versions. Go look it up.
using the OP model
love everything about it except for having to remove the ball and clean it once a day
I just might have to. It is one of the few designed like the Trackman Vista.
I'm jealous of that GameBoy