[vintage] Micro Innovations trackballs

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davkol

14 Apr 2018, 17:36

For the sake of tracking trackball history, I was browsing eBay and stumbled upon an auction for a vintage trackball from some "Micro Innovations" brand; I had never seen it before, hence did some research…

Micro Innovations Corp. was a computer-peripheral company; their website mic-innovations.com was last seen in spring 2009 by Archive.org.

I have found trackballs on their website from as late as spring 2005. Those were three models:
  • PD700T (Scroll Track) with 5 buttons, scrolling and PS/2 connection
    • fingertip-operated ambidextrous trackball with a long body, buttons on the sides (I can see only one button on each side, though), a scroll wheel on the back (similar to Kensington TurboBall), presumably (opto-)mechanical sensing
    • there were white and silver versions
    • Amazon listing
  • PD705T and PD710T (Optical Trackball) with optical sensing, scroll wheel, programmable buttons and USB connection
    • thumb-operated right-handed trackball with a shape similar to Sanwa MA-TB39 (?), two buttons (I wonder how they were "programmable"), a scroll wheel, optical sensing
    • it appears that PD705T was white and PD710T black
    • Amazon listing for PD710T and CNET page for PD705T
Some links for the Optical Trackball actually contain pictures of different products, such as an older generation of a Micro Innovations' thumb-operated trackball (see below) or a _mouse_ with a trackball for scrolling.

An older revision of the Micro Innovations website lists another model:
  • PD100I (Track) with dual wheel scrolling
    • (presumably) fingertip-operated right-handed trackball that looks identical to A4Tech WWT-13, with three buttons and two scroll wheels to the right of the ball, presumably (opto-)mechanical sensing
    • the only listing that I could find
Going to an even older revision, there are some other products:
  • PD99i (Micro Track)
    • (presumably) an identical-looking predecessor to the newer PD100i listed above
    • original listing
  • STK2000 (Star Track), STK3000 (Web Track) and STK4000 (Web Track II)
    • thumb-operated right-handed trackball with adjustable distance between the ball and the rest of the chassis with three buttons, opto-mechanical sensing (supposedly with "up to 6000 dpi")
    • the difference between Star Track and Web Track was that Web Track shipped with software for scrolling emulation
    • it appears that STK2000 was white, I speculate that STK3000 was also white, and STK4000 was black
    • eBay listing for STK4000
That's all that I could find.

What I find interesting:
  • STK2000-4000 being adjustable thumb-operated trackballs. Imagine a modern trackball with discrete trackball and body modules that you could position and tent independently.
  • PD100I/PD99I looking identical to A4Tech WWT-13. Was one a rebrand of the other? Such a trackball was also rebranded by Belkin (see Belkin Trackmaster Wheel Mouse).
  • PD700T looking like a cross between Logitech Marble Mouse and Kensington TurboBall.
  • PD705T/PD710T looking similar/identical to Sanwa MA-TB39.
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