deskthority

Any suggestions or experience with ergonomic trackball mice? I've been interested in trackballs for some time and I like the look of ones like the Logitech M570.

It's all down to what ergonomics you need. The M570 would kill my will to live (De Quervain's tenosynovitis is NOT recommended). For me personally the Elecom HUGE is the best I've found. I have rather small hands and everything about it forces me to get away from the same tiny repetitive movements that hammer the same tendons and move around quite a bit more. The rubber pad is super comfortable too.

The only downside is the software SUCKS. It doesn't save your settings to the hardware, it has to be running at all times. It also uses really weirdass codes for many things, such as defaulting to numpad 3 and 9 instead of page up and page down. As in, it sends the code for numpad 3 and expects the computer to have numlock off. It's also not terribly good at remote desktop connections, which I really don't get.

Aside from the weirdness it's physically a great bit of kit.

Can't say anything about thumb-driven trackballs - but as for me, one of the best are Elecom Deft Pro and Kensington SlimBlade. Ergonomic is highly personal thing, and nobody will make the optimal choice for you - so, just try different models.

I've got an MX Ergo I picked up refurbished a few years ago. It's OK. I don't care for the rubberized surface coating and built in battery. It's also too expensive new IMO. I don't use the Logitech software so no comment there. The dual pairing is nice, you can swap between machines on the trackball without needing to re-pair on BT again. I just needed one that was BT since my XPS laptop was USB C only and carrying dongles was annoying.

If I were doing it again today I go for the Ergo MX575 instead. No soft touch rubber to wear off or get just gross and a replicable battery. Also a lot cheaper. I like the MX570 a lot but it wasn't BT and needed a USB A port for the receiver.

Archie wrote: ↑

06 Apr 2021, 22:57

Can't say anything about thumb-driven trackballs - but as for me, one of the best are Elecom Deft Pro and Kensington SlimBlade.

I second that! I use both trackballs to reduce repetitive strain on my wrist.

I try to switch between devices whenever the pain starts creeping up again. I switch between Magic Trackpad 2 (with several different wrist rests, hover supported by chair arm, etc.), Kensington Expert, and Elecom HUGE. Right now I'm just going from HUGE back to the trackpad because holding the fingers up to work the ball causes strain. It took about a week to get to this point. With the trackpad I'll be resting my arm on the chair arm so my wrist is flat and using my middle finger to move/tap and trying to move my whole arm instead of flicking with my wrist.

Got a Rollermouse on the way and a V-shaped wrist rest to try with the other devices in the hope that I can get some relief.

My favorite is the Logitech MX. It is ergonomic, stylish and very comfortable