Orbit with Scroll Ring

I've had the trackball for about a month now. I bought it to replace the wireless Mighty Mouse that came with my Mac 'cause it ate batteries like no tomorrow. VERY, VERY pleased with the trackball. It took me about a week to figure out how to comfortably use it as I had exclusively using a Wacom tablet in place of the mouse, before deciding to get some sort of mouse. The software: To start off, for those reading reviews of those complaining about the program, you CAN plug and play it. You don't actually need the program for the trackball to work. The mouse adjustments that you can make in the System Preferences will still work for the trackball. However, in order to access the additional features, you will need to download the software. It's a very easy process, just go to the website, download and install it (the instructions come in the packet). The icon will show up in your System Preferences window under the Other header. I don't know where it appears for Windows as I've only transferred the trackball between our Macs. In the trackball program, you can adjust the usual features (scroll speed, click speed, etc) and also the left/right combo click which you can set to do stuff like go back or forward. The program also allows you to choose which direction to have the scroll ring turn to go up or down. The default is set to clockwise for scrolling down. The buttons: overall, they're pretty standard in function. However, I do find that sometimes in certain programs like a Flash game, it won't always want to click on the first try, so I wouldn't recommend this for gaming purposes for games where you do need an immediate response. All other uses, I haven't really noticed any problems. I love the option of being able to set the dual click to do something :) As a first time trackball user, something else I also had to remember to do was take my fingers off the ball before clicking as I often catch myself nudging the ball when I click and then missing the spot I wanted to click. Same goes for the scroll wheel. I seem to subconsciously fiddle with that too. Trackball: No issues with it at all. It took some getting used to with adjusting from a mouse or my tablet and I found myself trying to click on the ball itself a number of times. *lol* But no fault of the device. The scroll ring: So far, I haven't experienced any of the major problems that have been complained about so far. Up till about a week ago, I hadn't gotten around to looking into the trackball's software and once I did, it made a huge world of difference with how smoothly the ring scrolled. It felt a little slow, previously to the point where it sort of staggered sometimes. I love how I can now just give the ring a quick flick with a finger and I'll be back at the top of a web page. I've actually caught myself trying to do that with a scroll wheel on a mouse at work and wondering why it just inched up instead of flying up where I wanted it! Keeping in mind of the complaints though, I have been careful with the wheel and trying not to use it when I don't feel I really need to, as not to potentially abuse it to death as I really like it. So if I'm scrolling to skim an article or search it for something, I'll use the scroll bar on the browser, which with the trackball is pretty effortless. Extras: It includes a wrist rest that you can attach to the end of the base. I didn't bother with it as my desk has a built in one. Size of whole unit: it's a decent size for me. My hand length is about 7 inches and the size of the unit allows me to perch my fingertips on the ball and comfortably roll forward to the middle joint of my fingers if I want to do one long continuous drag. I've play tested some older trackballs in stores many years ago when the majority seemed to be a lot larger, so this works fairly well. Advice: if you find yourself needing to clean your trackball, don't use Clorox wipes. It leaves a sticky residues that slows down the ball's spin. I just pulled out the ball and washed it with hand soap and water, wiped out the dust in the holder, dried off everything and stuck it back in. User troubleshooting: If you find that your hand is more tired using the trackball than a regular mouse, try adjusting your chair height. This can make a very big difference. If you have an arm rest on your chair, take advantage of it and adjust your chair height to make the rest level with your trackball.

I've been an avid trackball user since the 1990s and have used quite a few of them. I've been trying to replace my favorite discontinued model for years, and of the many I've tried I would say this is the best. Pros: Overall feel is very nice in my hand. It was broken-in within minutes (by this I mean the ease of rolling the ball in it's socket; there is typically a bit of drag or stiffness with most of the trackballs I've tried. This usually gets better over a few days' use). The scroll ring also feels nice. I would call the build quality mid-grade. It doesn't feel high end, but it also doesn't feel like junk. The wrist-rest is just a tiny bit lesser quality plastic, and I didn't expect to use it, but after trying it out it really does improve overall comfort of use. The software is simple, although there is room for improvement. Another pro for me is the ball being in the index-finger position. I really dislike models with the ball in the thumb position, but that is really a matter of personal preference. Cons: Not enough cons to impact overall rating. I would like more buttons, although that is probably a limitation of being a low-cost model, as the more expensive Kensingtons do have more. The ability to chord (press both buttons simultaneously to function as a third button) would be nice. I don't know if that is a limitation of the software, hardware, or both. The scroll ring is a tiny bit too sensitive for my liking. In summary, this is an excellent trackball for the price, and is significantly better than more expensive trackballs I have tried (I got this one for $17 during a Black Friday sale). I wish I bought a few of these at that price, because it seems like once a model becomes discontinued, the after market prices get crazy. For example, my all-time favorite is the Microsoft Trackball Explorer, which was perfect in every way. Long discontinued, they can still be found on Ebay for several hundred dollars. I may give one of the higher end Kensington models a try. I briefly tested one in a store years ago and didn't like the ergonomics, so the only reason I tried this one was because it was insanely cheap. I'm very glad I did.

2.5 Months into ownership review Things I love about this mouse: - The trackball makes maneuvering 3 screens incredibly easy - Switching from mouse to keyboard is so much easier to transition to for some reason. Not sure why but it feels faster and easier - The hand's resting position is comfortable even for all day use. As a cubicle worker, this was a must. - The resting position also makes it very easy to reach each button, and use the track ball at the same time Things I don't love about this mouse: - The trackball needs to be cleaned regularly. More specifically the little nodules that hold the trackball in place do. They get clogged with oils and dust from your hands, which can impact the trackball's smoothness. I have to clean those off every few days or the trackball loses all fluidity - Sometimes "disconnects" so you have to unplug it and plug it back in. Not super annoying, but annoying nonetheless All-in-all I do really like this mouse, but there were some things I hadn't thought of before I bought it. Wouldn't stop me from buying it again though. Likely has better applications than what I'm using it for, but if nothing else, no one else in the office has one, which is fun.

No other style provides me the speed of navigation, browsing and cross-combo mousing moves as this thing with the scroll ring. Looks like an alien, but functions like a dream and entirely mitigated all hand/wrist strain from every other model of mouse I'd tried over the years. No mouse is as fast as this mouse - because for one, you're not chasing it all over the desk, and two, the scroll ring allows you to 'multi-task' operations. The scroll ring allows you to scroll pages 'from anywhere" without having to mouse to the app scroll bar controls, and that feature combined with keyboard shortcuts for in-app options/controls like zoom or tool selection, it massively sped up design work and research or working with data in spreadsheets. Nothing is as fast for me as this one! I use my ring-finger on the stroll, pointer+middle on the track ball. No repetitive motion injury or strain after years of using this style of!!! Depending on working environment if I'm remote vs on site or working from a lap pad, I sometimes use the wrist rest that came with it and clicks onto the rear of the mouse to extend the hand/wrist support. Kensington - you need to improve this design by adding a thin cloth-covered gel surface because its very hard and makes my wrist ache if I use it for too long. It's handy to reposition/re-angle my wrist at times and for specific conditions/environments but otherwise it's tossed aside because I can't use it for very long without pressure point pain because it's hard. As I write this, I've now purchased now my 4th of this mouse to replace the 2nd one I bought and it's identical to the first. this time, the button was going out same as the first, but the gripper strips on the bottom let go and are necessary when working on various surfaces or while traveling to hold the mouse still. TIP: the track ball works best/fastest if it's not perfectly clean. I remove the ball and clean the mouse and ball with germ-killer cloths regularly, but the ball moves slower afterward as all the oils are stripped off the surface. So I've learned to rub it around in my hands for a min or so to pick up some oils before I pop it back in and that's all it takes to reduce the friction and move at lightening speed!

After using a laptop trackpad at work all day, my wrist was beginning to give out. I was worried a regular mouse would not help much, so I took a gamble on this wacky device. It has turned out excellently, and I am able to do work tasks without issue using the Orbit. The clicks are satisfying, the trackball itself is very precise and enjoyable to use, and the scroll ring is a lovely convenience I wonder how I lived without. Thoroughly recommended.

This trackball isn't terrible, but it could be so much better. The price point is attractive, and the addition of a scroll ring is welcome. It is also nice that it is ambidextrous, since many of the higher-feature trackballs are for right-handed users only (at least with Logitech). The device itself is deceptively small and lightweight. For some reason when I looked at pics of this online, it always looked as though it were a large and bulky chunk of plastic. It is not. In fact, I found the Orbit to be very small and very low to the desk (in other words, it was not very high at its highest point - the trackball). Logitechs seem to rise up to support your palm before they curve towards the buttons. Overall, their models just seem taller on the desk compared to the Kensington. For me, the result was that my hand was splayed open all the time to hit the buttons, and it was much lower to the desk, with my wrist hitting the edge causing discomfort. There are ways to work around this, as Kensington supplied a little rubber wedge that slips on the end of the trackball housing to lengthen the supported area for your hand and wrist. This support simply slips on to the end, and there is a tiny rubber catch that hooks on the bottom of the trackball. The catch doesn't lock the pad onto the end of the Orbit, rather it just helps keep it lined up. At first this support was very uncomfortable, but after a few days, it became less so. I found that the support seemed to stay on the trackball fairly reliably. One of the great features of this trackball is how smoothly the ball rotates in its socket. After a hour or so, I felt hardly any resistance or friction, especially when compared to my Logitechs. I also liked how you could just plug it in and use Windows to configure the features for you. Kensington provides its own software for download, but I ran into several snags getting it to install and run on Windows 7 64 bit, so I stuck to the Windows drivers. It only has two buttons, which was fine by me, so that wasn't a turn off for me. The downsides I found with this trackball were the extremely light weight of the device (I found I was accidentally moving it during usage), and the overall cheap feel of the unit. The housing felt very flimsy to me, and the largish buttons made a hollow, cheap sound when clicking. They also require a bit more force to depress than other trackballs or mice, so double clicking got to be a bit tiresome after awhile. The scroll ring, which worked perfectly for me seemed cheap too; it had a plastic-on-plastic rubbing noise to it, and although it moved without resistance I wondered how long that would last. Another reviewer wrote a piece on here telling about how he took his Orbit apart and put graphite lubricant under the scroll ring. Its an intriguing thought, and if I had the time and truly loved this trackball, I might have tried it myself. All said and done, I didn't hate this trackball. I probably could have lived with it if there weren't other choice out there (granted, not many choices, which is a shame)that met my needs better than the Orbit. For me, it worked flawlessly with the Windows drivers. It just wasn't my favorite. Edit 7/22/2012 Well, I reacquired one of these Orbits, and followed that aforementioned reviewer's advice. I never really had a scroll wheel issue, but depressing the buttons was problematic, fatiguing, and ultimately uncomfortable. As he suggested, I opened up the trackball and glued two plastic shims cut from a zip tie to the plastic 'plus-sign' contact points under each button that hits the actuator (I believe that's the term). I used Loctite super glue which has held well, but I also have Plastruct Plastic Weld which I will try if it doesn't hold. After letting it sit for about 12 hours, I put it back together. Like the original reviewer, I, too, found the shims a bit thick. When the housing was screwed down the button were permanently activated. I simply loosened the front two screws slightly, and the buttons required far less effort to activate. So, I suppose with the modding done, I would add a star. But I won't do so officially for this review because it came from Kensington needing to be modded in the first place (at least in my opinion). But I hope this helps.

Works well and very easy to install. Plug and play.

4 1/2 stars from me. This isn't quite comfortable as my favorite little track mouse which is no longer made. However, Kensington includes a really nice little ergonomic pad that attaches to the back of the body of the mouse. That helps immensely. The track ball moves really freely and feels very nice and easy to manipulate. The left click is slightly weird as when I utilize that ergo pad, my reach isn't quite perfect for the left side of the unit. Overall, this looks and feels like a good quality trackball. I'm pleased with my purchase.

I've purchased two of these over the years for home and office desks and this trackball is my go to. It is comfortable and practical for the price, as cheaper trackballs without a scroll wheel are a little irritating. It also doesn't take up too much desk space either. If there it one area for improvement I'd like to see Kensington make - it is that the scroll wheel after 2-3 years of use does tend to accumulate skin cells due to the type of rubber it uses, (this is a common issue with this type of rubber, similar to the sticky issue of some tablet pens). Using a different type of rubber would really improve this design.

Review of Kensington Orbit Trackball Mouse (silver) with Scroll ring. Wired version. Mac OS Mojave (also compatible with Windows). I've never used a Trackball before but was getting fed up with hand cramp on the standard mouse. This trackball comes with a wrist rest which is how I use it. It works straight out of the box. Because the Trackball doesn't move on the desk I didn't see much need for a wireless version. Also, you know a wired version works as soon as you plug it in. The rubber pads keep it quite firmly on my desk. Intuitive to learn. Clicking with the left mouse and dragging with the ball was easy. Nice smooth action. I chose the version with the mechanical scroll ring as I wanted to be able to skim quickly through documents, and I'm glad I did as it works easily. More functionality can be added with 'Trackballworks' which is now called 'Kensingtonworks'. I didn't really need it, but decided to download the software anyway. This required two installations and several restarts before the software recognised the trackball: you have to ensure via 'Security and Privacy' in System Preferences that the OS doesn't stop elements of Kensingtonworks from operating. Once the software was operating successfully I was able to increase the speed of the scroll ring, but that was all I bothered with. I should have bought a trackball years ago. Delivery from Amazon was staggeringly quick.

Superb product and worth of money. I would like thanks Kensington for this trackball.it’s amazing,attractive,precise.ergonomic and very soothing to my finger. Now I can take full control of my laptop with finger controls. Before this I was suffering wrist fatigue vague pain and discomfort from using Logitech mouse.Thank to this Kensington trackball now my wrist worries is gone. Bye Bye mouse.

Perfect workmate!

Paso muchas horas editando video y los mouses o trackpads me acaban haciendo daño. Llevo más de un mes con este y aún no he sentido esa sensación. Puedes configurarlo para cada app y, aunque al principio te sientes un poco torpe, no tardas mucho en acostumbrarte. Lo único que me arrepiento de no haberle invertido al inalámbrico.