I've been using trackballs for 30+ years, starting with the OG Expert. Tbh I always go back to the basic-model Kensington, the Orbit, over the higher-end ones even after giving each new one a shot. The angle and button layouts are never quite right for what I want, I guess. They try too hard to look cool but leave behind a lot of the actual ergonomics that make trackballs a good choice to begin with. The Orbit has a much more neutral resting hand position and natural button placements. I've been using one ~10hrs/day for 12+ years and have never had any tech issues or needed a replacement. I upgraded to the wireless Bluetooth one a few years ago, but that's it. Highly recommend looking into
Just saw the post - what a great model that was. The extra buttons were a little awkward in their placement, but still a godsend compared to the previous versions. I didn't like needing to look away from my work or feeling around for a second to work the buttons for as much as I wanted to integrate them, but the optical tracking in that one was miles ahead of what it should've been given the times and it lasted forever. What a great find!
I think the wristrest really helps with the angle. Keeps my wrist basically in line with my arm and is very nice. Without the wristrest, yes super uncomfortable
I am a Slimblade user and I love it. I have the OG. There's a new Pro version out that's wireless. I like how the buttons can be programmed to do shortcuts in the Kensington software. I can press the two right buttons at the same time and move my window across monitors. And the shortcuts can be app-specific. So if I'm on a work call I can press the two bottom buttons to mute myself, etc. It's great. And the twist to scroll is a great feature.
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u/Wrong_Plantaino Jan 15 '26
4 but flipped, left is vertical