Kensington Orbit Optical Trackball Mouse 64327

It is well made, and has a nice heft. However, I am disappointed for several reasons. First is the ergonomics. The ball is significantly smaller than the Expert Mouse's, which is makes precise control more difficult. But more significantly, the relationship between the trackball and the buttons is poorly done. When I positioned my hand for optimal trackball control, I found it difficult to double-click quickly and would have to move my hand again. The buttons need to be more towards the user's wrists.

But the biggest complaint is the stalling, reported in a previous review. I don't think it's dirt--I think it's the pattern on the trackball. There is a cool pattern of silver and black swirls, except at one spot. This spot is black, patternless area about 1/2 inch (1.5 cm) in diameter, and I think the optical sensor has difficulty in picking up movement in that area. Every time it stalls, I look at the ball and note that this area is over the sensor. Microsoft optical trackballs are completely covered with a dense pattern.

Yes, it is only 1/3 the cost of the Expert Mouse. But all these complaints aren't a reflection of its lower price, but rather, design flaws.


Not bad...   May 13, 2004
25 out of 25 found this review helpful

I've been a trackball user for over 5 years now. The last one I had was Kensington's one with the big clear blue ball. It lasted a good 4 years before the lil rubber rollers gave out. So I decided to replace it with an optical trackball. I chose this one because it had the same layout and left/right click capabilities as my previous one. I am pretty pleased with it. I am amazed at how little I have to work to move the ball... I never realized how much effort I needed to move the old non-optical one. There are only a few design issues I wish I could fix.

1) My old one you could turn the whole thing upside down and the ball wouldn't fall out. On this model the ball has no locking-in device. I use this with my laptop and have to search for the ball at the bottom of my bag every single time.

2) The lil indent the optical lense is sitting in is a prime place for dust and crap to settle, disrupting the performance. They should cover it up and make it flush with the rest of the interior.

3) I wish the buttons were moved a lil more towards the front. It's the fine for clicking with your thumb... but a lil too far back to click on the otherside with your pinky or ring finger.


my wrists dont hurt!   May 7, 2003
Mark (Kuwait)
18 out of 19 found this review helpful

this is the first time i buy and use a trackball. before this i was using a mouse for nearly 20 years. i am on my Mac nearly 14 hours a day if not more and my wrist was always hurting me. Since i got this orbit trackball the pain is gone! and in such a short time, took only a few days before my wrist stopped hurting.

how is the trackball? since this one is optical u dont have a problem with dirt building up inside so it will always be smooth. if you sweat a lot you might find this trackbal could get slippery and in return harder to control.

i am a graphic designer and for me the mouse is more accurate, but since this trackball really solves my wrist issues i dont mind the extra trouble in some situations.

this trackball looks great and is very comfortable. i definetly dont regret my purchase..


Smooth, accurate, elegant   March 10, 2003
11 out of 11 found this review helpful

I've used Kensington Turbo Mouse trackballs at work for years with a great deal of satisfaction. I especially like the solid feeling and control of the billiardball-sized trackball in my hand. But I recently bought a laptop, and wanted an input device that is more portable than the Turbo Mouse. I tried a co-worker's Kensington Orbit and hated it. The bearings seemed cheap and unresponsive and the trackball felt clunky in my hand. So it was with some trepidation that I decided to try Kensington's Orbit Optical trackball. It is everything that I had hoped and more.

Appearence: It is smooth silvery plastic with an elegant sculpted shape. A matte black, slightly rubberized texured area runs down the middle. Beneath, and easily visible from the sculpted sides, is a translucent plastic that allows the varying-brightness of the red optical light to shine through -- lighting up the desk surface like a Close Encounter mothership coming in for a landing. The trackball itself is a grey-black marblized plastic ball about an inch and half in diameter.

Comfort: It feels great in your hand. Can be used left or right handed. The black texure and shape of the casing orient your hand so you always find the sweet spot immediately. The two generously sized buttons are always where you expect and have a positive click for both feel and sound. Even using the Orbit Optical all day, your hand, wrist and arm are neither tired nor strained.

Accuracy: The trackball feels every bit as accurate as the best full-size mechanical turbo trackballs that I've used. I make my living as a professional computer artist. I have no time or patience for inferior products. The Orbit Optical does the job in spades. The accelerating cursor flies when you want to cover some serious real estate across the screen, and yet will slow down to pixel-by-pixel accuracy when you need to bear down on fine detail. Kensington's simple-to-use Mouseworks software allows you to infinitely tailor the speed and sensitivity of the device to your individual needs and preferences. Mouseworks also lets you program each button for custom clicks, drags -- even launching programs and visiting websites. Works with PCs and Macs (including OS X).

Portability: It's relatively light and small but without feeling delicate or fragile. Tucks into my backpack without a bulge. I considered some cordless models, but ultimately decided that the USB cord takes up little space, weighs next to nothing and is more bulletproof reliable than cordless. I keep most of it permanently wrapped up -- allow about 18 inches to unfurl to sit the trackball next to my PowerBook.

Price: Although it is among the least expensive of Kensington's line and a bargain among other trackballs too, I am more than satisfied with its performance. Pretty cool-looking, too.

Overall: If you're tired of pushing around a mouse, or find carpal tunnel calling, you'll likely be very pleased latching onto one of these babies. Kensington hasn't done a great job marketing these gems and their copywriting doesn't do the Orbit Optical justice.


3'rd Different Kensington Trackball   May 4, 2004
dknysa
10 out of 10 found this review helpful

This is my 3'rd trackball and it is very good - fast, smooth, very silent and easy to point. I like this better than the K64226 because of its quietness. I bought this to use with my laptop and the trackball is much quicker and easier to work with than the pressure pad.

K64226 Orbit (2nd) trackball -My wife & I both like this one.She was a mouse user but finds the the ball much better for the same reasons that other user-reviewers have touted.Particularly, no more sliding, lifting, banging the mouse around on the table or pad.

K64210 Turbo Mouse with 4 buttons - my first trackball - is also very good.The larger ball does provide better pointing, however slowing down the pointer speed will improve pointer accuracy.

Feel /Touch-wise, both Orbit trackballs are about the same - fitting the hand comfortably (mine are not large). The center rubber-like strip does provide a wee-bit more traction for the hand to rest on. Which Orbit to choose? Basically which look do you prefer? These 2 orbit trackballs would be the ones to go with if you are looking for a mouse replacement or for on-the-go laptop use. Both work well, works like a mouse using the pc's given mouse controls and zips me thru my excel, word and graphics applications - cut, paste, edit, crop, enhance, etc.

For the turbo mouse, if you like having 4 buttons to control menu functions (via the free Kensington download software) that is fine too. I have tried earlier versions, but left and right button functions are more than adequate.

I have tried the L-tek t-balls. They are much smaller to carry but the control via the thumb is not very good vs. index & middle finger movement. Other slimmer models with the ball in the center are too narrow. One still has to curl one's fingers to trigger the buttons. With all of the Kensington's, you just rest your hand on top of the trackballs and your fingers will naturally fall onto the trigger buttons. No gripping, just clicking.

Get a Kensington. Dare I say that you will have a "ball":)

Note : I am right-handed but use my left hand to use the track-ball - the ring finger triggers the left click button while the thumb bangs the right click button. Frees up the right hand to input numbers via the 10-touch keypad, scroll or quickly bang on the enter key. Muscle fatigue in one arm and wrist is reduced since the right and left hands share the workload.