Kensington Expert Wireless Trackball Mouse (K72359WW)

I am a film and video editor with more than 25 years of experience. I only write reviews when I think i can really help other people by sharing information. I film a lot but when editing comes, I can spend 9 hours editing per day. Weeks ago I started feeling some pain in my shoulder, after doing some research I realized it was a mild case of RSI. Surely, I realized that to stop RSI you need to tackle chair, posture, desk, keyboard, etc. So, keep that in mind when reading my review. So, lets talk about the mouse. I tried several vertical mouses, I tried ergonomic mouses and even some gaming mouses, the pain was the same and with some of them even worst. I tried the logitech m570 trackball and found that the way its built you need to use your thumb to handle the trackball. Also, really precise movements as the ones needed in graphic design or video editing are hard to perform with the m570, even more if you are a fast editor, or an editor who thinks fast and wants to keep what your hands do up with what your mind solves. I tried the Kensington Expert Trackball (wired version) and, at the beginning, I liked the big trackball but did not find much difference. Still, precise movements were not easy. But then I read some useful reviews and found the solution, and now I love this trackball. I can edit for hours without arm fatigue and, best of all, I do not feel my arm while editing!!! Without any doubt, this trackball is the best mouse replacement device ever. My next step will be to try a Wacom Tablet, but for now I am in a honeymoon with my Trackball!!! So, the keys to effectively use this trackball for video editing or other activity that requires extremely precise movements is: 1.Move the trackball with your index finger with occasional help from middle finger. DO NOT use your thumb to move the trackball because that will put you in more pain if you have RSI or will develop other problems if you are OK. 2. I use a MAC, but I assume you can do the same in PC. In Mac, go to Control Panel, Mouse speed control (not the specific speed of trackball but the general mouse speed) and put it right at center or one line before (slower) than center. 3. I use a MAC, but I assume you can do the same in PC. In Mac, go to Control Panel and in the panel of the Trackball, check for the tab that controls speed, set the speed between 20 - 40% (the exact number will depend on your style of editing, fast or slow movements). This will help you to do precise movements without problem, but will reduce the speed of the pointer to traverse big distances fast. So, to help with that, in the same tab, set up the acceleration of trackball around 40-70%. This will help the trackball to catch some speed when you spin it to move the pointer from a one point to another in the other side of the screen or in a second screen. 4. The trackball has 4 buttons that you can customize in the same tab mentioned before. As default, the lower buttons are set to right and left click. I suggest you to set up the upper left button or the upper right button to drag lock, that way you will stop one of the worst activities for RSI, the dragging. With drag lock, you click on item with the drag lock button, you move it and then you drop it with another click of same button. I hope this review can help other video editors, or graphic designers, or sound mixers, looking to protect their hand/arms, or trying to stop RSI or even carpal tunnel.

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Ive been using trackballs ever since I got my first Mac Performa in 1995. Its a personal choice thing, but after all these many years I have no carpal tunnel and I dont have to have the extra mousing space on my keyboard tray. I type reports for a living, so I spend at least 8 hours every day at my computer. For the past 13-15 years I have been using a PCAlly Glitterball trackball, which has functioned remarkably well (probably because the ball is heavy for its size and is on steel rollers), but lately the old Glitterballs right mouse button has become somewhat sporadic in response, so I decided to try something new and see if I could get used to it. I bought one of the Logitech M570s but alas the ball was not heavy and it seemed somewhat "scratchy" and was hard for me to move it smoothly. Plus, the ball was too small for me— I have large hands, and Im used to hovering my fingers over the ball and moving it with my hand instead of finger pinching. So I bought this Kensington Expert Trackball Mouse, and my first impressions are quite good. It took my Mac a few seconds to latch onto it for use, but now its working just fine right out of the box. I have not installed any software (will look into that to see if it would be useful for me). The ball is LARGE, very large. And the one I bought moves as smooth as silk right out of the box. Because my keyboard tray is positioned pretty low, I am more comfortable using the wrist rest, it seems. (time will tell). The ball platform and the ball are both heavy and I like it that way, it seems to allow the ball to move more fluidly. The left and right click buttons are just where I need them to be too. I wasnt sure how I would like the scrolling ring, but I think its going to do OK for me, once I get used to it; it was a little noisy and scratchy feeling right at the onset but has become smoother and quiet over the past few hours of use. Yes, this was a pretty pricey item, but if it lasts like I hope it will, Ill consider it money well spent. ======== update May 1, 2018: still using the wired Kensington trackball and loving it. I have continued to use the wrist rest. The ball is still smooth as silk. This trackball is worth every cent I paid for it, and I really recommend it for serious computer users.

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This is my first time using a trackball since 1980 when I used to play Missile Command. Anytime I had to help another developer at work and needed to "drive," I hated it if they had a trackball...because they were always weird, awkward things (the trackballs, not the developers). The little ball had to be operated by the thumb, and it seemed to me that excessive thumb movement could cause issues as well. So that was my opinion of trackballs for many years. Lately, Ive been trying to address ergonomic issues from many years of long hours at a desk, so I wanted to try something different. To provide brief background, I cant keep my wrist on the desk as with a mouse, and no "wrist rest" of any kind is comfortable to me. I can also completely wrap my fingers around a mouse, so I wanted something bigger. Refer to the photo for a size reference, shown with a tape measure and a Logitech M510 (a somewhat larger, heavier mouse) for comparison if you are switching from a mouse. I bought two of these separately. My first one was amazingly smooth and precise. Seriously, I was quite surprised. I really like how a light touch with precise movements can drive this thing. There was a slight learning curve, being a long-time mouse user, but it didnt take long. Ive been using it at the office for a week for complex , and even I brought that one to the office and then bought a second one for my home office. (I like my input devices to match so theres a "unified" desktop experience between the two environments.) The included (detachable) rest is firm, but for me, it works because its actually the naturally padded parts of the hand that absorb the pressure. It keeps my wrist and forearm off the desk and just feels like a good fit. I wonder if it would work as well with small hands... This actually started as a four-star review. I was even considering three stars. The second trackball, which I just set up today, felt a bit heavy and sluggish. My fingers slipped over it because there was more resistance than the first, and it required more pressure to control. However, while writing this review, I have been indulging my short attention span on four monitors (curse you, YouTube and Facebook!), so Ive had this review open for well over an hour. In that time, the trackball seems to have loosened up and feels smoother now. So if you get one that feels like it takes too much effort, it might just need to be moved around for a while.

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As far as Im concerned, this is the ultimate pointing device/mouse/trackball, etc. Ive progressed from a basic mouse through ergonomic mice, through various trackballs, but the underlying problem always seemed to be tension created in my hand and wrist because of the tendency to tense the muscles do to the layout of the various devices. They all seemed to be designed such that you naturally grip them. I finally decided to try the Kensington Expert Wireless Trackball Mouse about 6 months ago now and I have tremendously less pain and strain in my hand and wrist. It is not the kind of device you grip, but rather your hand basically rests on it and move your hand much more freely. The included, optional wrist rest has also worked out great. This trackball is especially good for larger hands, as it allows your fingers to remain relaxed and stretched out, instead of curling them up trying to remain on buttons that are too close together. It may appear to be large, and I guess it is, but it allows the hand more freedom than any other pointing device Ive used so far. The large size of the ball itself allows for moving the cursor over a large portion of the screen with just a simple flick when needed.

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I was using an older version (Expert Mouse 5.0), which I loved, but there was an issue with the old drivers and Windows 7 that if you Sleep the computer, it wouldnt work properly after waking, and there is no 64 bit version. Additionally I like the idea of the scroll ring on the current model. I had enough credit card points to get it free, so I bit the bullet after thinking about getting one for a long time. Hardware: compared to the old version, it is just as good, with certain improvements. The button switches are the same quality with a solid tactile click. The ball now rolls on micro ruby bearings, which are much smoother than the old stainless steel rollers. Out of the box it was stiff, but after some use it smoothed out nicely. The scroll ring, which receives criticism from other reviews, is good, but not perfect. It has a good feel with a light touch, but there is a slight plastic on plastic feel with a little pressure. The wrist rest is excellent as well. Software: The old Kensington Mouseworks software was a lot more flexible than the current TrackballWorks version. The old version allowed more button customization, the ability to combine keyboard modifiers (Ctrl, Alt, Shift) for more functions. Additionally, there is no option to assign a button to scroll with the ball. It may seem unnecessary with the scroll ring, but while scrolling through a long web page or PDF, it would be nice to be able to use the ball, as in the old version. I own many trackballs, Expert Mouse 5.0, Orbit with Scroll Ring, Logitech Trackman Marble, ITAC Mouse-Trak, CST PC-Trac, and now the current Expert Mouse. Overall, this current model Expert Mouse is the best one Ive used. My biggest complaint is the lack of flexibility in the software compared to earlier versions.

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