Hello,

Picked up a Nape Pro last week and didn't take long until I felt the urge to modify it.

Nape Pro is a lightweight device, weighs roughly around 80g and is all made out of plastic. It feels like a low-quality product. I'd price it at $49.99, not $89.99. Not sure why Keychron didn't go with their typical aluminum body, would've been so much better. Fingers crossed a future Nape will.

Stock trackball is terrible. Too light. Replacing it with a heavier ball, in my case a 65g steel ball from Amazon, did the trick. Little to no jitter and increased accuracy. Adds a bit of weight to the device as well. Might source a lighter ball (~40-50g) in the future, but so far so good.

The design of the Nape is very confusing. It's definitely not ergonomic, and I didn't like using it horizontally placed under the keyboard. Requires pretty much both hands if so. Not my cup of tea. Using it vertically makes it a lot easier for one-hand use. I use my thumb for left/right click (M1/M2), index/middle finger for the ball and ring finger for the scroll ring.

Yesterday I blind bought the Hagibis Invisible Laptop Stand to give the Nape some tent/tilt abilities, and to my surprise it was a perfect fit dimension wise (see bottom left in the image). It's made out of zinc alloy, which adds some robustness. I use it like in row 2 image 2, vertically inside my split keyboard.

Very happy with these modifications and can highly recommend this to other Nape users. The steel ball and laptop risers adds some nice weight (+~175g) and no longer feels as low-quality as it did out of the box.

So, it finally arrived. As you can see, I placed it with a Nulea M505, and Kensington Orbit with Scrolling for a sense of scale. I've already plugged it in, and will spend the next few days seeing how it plays.

I already have some initial thoughts, though...

Right out of the gates, I can say that it's tracking is very even, and fairly responsive on stock Windows 10 drivers. I'm intentionally not running RawAccel, X-Mouse Button Control, or even Perixx's own driver as yet. As that relates, I haven't looked up what the four DPI settings are, but they're all pretty usable as is. So, that's a plus. For my current habits, my ideal DPI seems to live between the third and fourth setting. But, again, it's new. So, maybe I'll see how I feel about it after the weekend.

I can already say that the silent switches are throwing me off. Humorously, I didn't think they'd actually be so quiet. They're also very short travel, and have precious little tactile feel to them. They're making me realize a conditioned expectation I have. I never would have guessed how adapted I am to both the sound and feel of the click and release in normal switches. Just something to get used to... In fact, since I initially posted this, I'm already appreciating how little effort it takes to hit that right click. And I'll say right now that these silent switches will be a grand feature for recording studios and other quiet places.

Strangely, I reflexively feel like I want more buttons... No idea why, either! I don't do that with the Nulea M505. And I just accept two buttons and a scroll as part of the idea with the Kensington Orbit. I think it's because I got used to the 6-button set from the original GameBall. And mapping a two-stage DPI switch opposite the primary click was a very smart move on GameBall's part. I'll eventually look into what kind of mapping options Perixx drivers offer. Regardless, this is a prime example of why I plan to work with it a while before giving a more thorough, settled opinion. 'Cause that's an odd quirk of a reaction it drew out of me.

Now, in terms of button positioning, it obviously carries forward what Logitech had established with the TrackMan Marble. The Kensington Orbit continues to be a slightly more "forgiving" design, but not by a lot. Also, the sculpted button tops on the 522 are more noticeable than they were on the TrackMan. They're domed just a little bit more. And that is already making for an interesting movement. I'm catching the right click with less effort. With the right click, I find I'm also alternating between a quick bounce off the bottom of my ring finger distal joint, and a slightly claw-like move. Kind of interesting. I think I did the same thing with the old TrackMan Marble; but that was too many years ago to be dead certain.

Anyway, off to see how it does! In the hour or so that I've had it on the computer, I'm already starting to get used to it. I have a music project to focus on, right now. But, I hope to find time to wring it out in The Division 2.

Welp. It's a mark. Didn't affect any performance but the scar is there. Also I didn't realize my trackball stopped holding the ball in place. I guess it really did wear out from all the poppin in and out

Hey ho, just got a kensington orbit wireless to try out for the first time. I wanted to know if what i'm feeling is normal? At the very start, right out of the box, it feels amazingly smooth, no drag at all. But after using it for a maybe 20 minutes, it becomes increasingly stuttery, small, micro adjustments become very hard. But large movements remain the same. What's up? Is this what stiction is?

Appreciate any help!

Hi to all,

I work everyday with Simulink and even thought I've a vertical mouse I start feeling pain at the thumb and wrist (I'm 50 years old man).

So I'm thinking to move to a trackball but I need it to be recognised by linux without any additional driver and I'm thinking that I should chose one operated with fingers (not the ones operated through thumbs). Moreover I do not know if trackball is suitable for working with simulink. Is there anything below 50€ ?

Hello everyone, I've just recently switched to trackballs on the search for something comfortable. Went from a standard deathadder, to vertical mice, to a graphic tablet, and now experimenting with these balls.

Just wondering if anyone has had experience with the F-33 Pro by Zelotes? Just ordered one after trying the Porlei thumb ball mouse. And hoping for a smoother ball experience with a better sensor. The F-33 Pro also seems to have an interesting configuration button wise. Many thanks 🙏

Full and comprehensive review: absolutely splendid device, well worth waiting for! :-)

If seriously, just wanted to let the community know it's practically ready: real review will be posted on https://forum.trackballs.eu/ at some later time. u/Skippydamule: thank you for the sample: your hard work gave excellent result once again!

Hi everyone,

I've recently ordered a ProtoArc EM06 and have a few questions about third-party software compatibility.

Has anyone used the EM06 with SteerMouse (macOS), X-Mouse Button Control (Windows), or Karabiner-Elements (macOS)?

I'm particularly interested in:

1. Does the ProtoArc Web Driver allow extra buttons to send standard HID mouse button signals that third-party software can recognize and remap?
2. Can SteerMouse or XMBC recognize all the extra buttons, including the dedicated Drag Scroll button?
3. Do button chords (pressing two buttons simultaneously) work with SteerMouse?
4. Are there any differences between USB, 2.4GHz, and Bluetooth connections?

I'd prefer to handle button mapping and drag scrolling through SteerMouse or XMBC rather than the ProtoArc web-setting.

Any firsthand experience would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

This will probably be of no avail, but I am open to suggestions. I have been a user of Kensington Expert Mouse trackballs for more then 30 years, both at home (various Macs) and at work (various pc boxes). I have not had one that was not wired.

Last year, my home one (mac Mini M1) stopped working and after buying a replacement expert mouse (which also didn’t work), I bought an elecom huge which works fine for me. Don’t love the scroll wheel, but I use that less at home.

Tuesday, my work one (docked POS Dell Laptop running Windows 10) stopped working. I brought in my old one from home (and the new one I bought) and tried them both. After deleting/uninstalling Kensington Konnect, deleting it from the system settings, and restarting, I was able to connect the old one (but not the new one) as a generic HID mouse. It worked in the sense of moving the cursor, but wouldn’t click and drag. I tried installing X-Mouse Button Control and turning on the drag. It let me swap the buttons (which I like), but did not fix the won’t let  hold down the left click (or right click) button and let you drag a file. I deleted X-mouse (and all the system parts) and reinstalled Kensington Konnect, which just succeeded in making the trackball not work at all.

Any suggestions? I am probably going to retire in 27-28 if not sooner, so I am not really interested in buying a new trackball for work. I’ll try XMBC again, but if it doesn’t work, I’ll just make do with the $10 dell mouse that I borrowed from IT.

Hi everybody, I got my first TB (the wired Kensington orbit) about 6 months ago and I absolutely love it. But, I am thinking I'd like to get another TB that could compliment my multiple devices workflow.

You see, I've got a BT Keyboard that can quickly change from my work laptop, phone, and personal laptop vía Bluetooth and a single button click. I want something similar to my mouse. My only thing is that I don't want the change button under the mouse because I feel like that would be quite slow for my workflow.

Do any of y'all have a TB that you like for quickly changing devices?

I love the Kensington TB675 I recently got (a longtime fan of its wired precursor), but the newly updated Kensington Konnect App is annoying on Mac.

It doesn't behave like a proper citizen: it opens up full screen on startup and then continuously presents as an active, foreground application, occupying a place all the time in the app switcher and cluttering up the experience of tabbing between apps. I can't quit it because then button remapping doesn't work.

I think it should run in background agent or a menu bar "tray" item unless the settings window is explicitly open.

I suppose I should be taking it up with Kensington, but venting here first...

I stumbled across trackball controls a few weeks ago and since fell down the rabbit hole. These are my daily drivers, the blue dotted one is for my right hand and the all black is for my left hand. Right hand used for controlling my phone and Left hand my laptop. I love that these are small, my hands don't have to leave my laptop keyboard. They also are great fidget gadgets!

I don't know who the real developers of these trackball handhelds are but if the trackball was larger but the overall form factor is kept the product would be even better.

Anyone else using these?

Edit: I purchased these on Amazon. Search term "aleenfoon wireless trackball mouse"

Just one trackball to use for the rest of your life, across any desk and any setup. What’s your pick?

Mine is Endgame.

I strongly prefer finger-operated trackballs featuring a large ball over thumb-style designs.

What would be your ultimate "desert island" trackball, and why?

Has anyone made a teardown of the Huge Plus yet? How do its internals compare to the Huge?

I'm wondering for the purposes of repairability, in terms of switches used, the battery, etc.

Warning, it was entirely vibe coded because I'm not a programmer. However, I've had trouble with xinput and other button remappers because they either just don't work or don't launch on boot. I hope this works, it's available for Debian, Fedora, and Arch based systems.

I tested it with my G403 and Kensington Expert, it works fine for both. It's open sourced with the GPL-3.0 license. If you'd like me to make any changes to it or if you run into any problems, let me know.

I know other button remappers exist but I couldn't find one that would load upon boot and also work with my Kensington Expert so I did this.

https://github.com/gino8807/ballkey/tree/main

Holy smokes. I was not prepared for this.

The scroll wheel is both scratchy and too loose. Kinda impressive. It feels like very cheap plastic just thrown on top of other cheap plastic.

The ball jumps out of its hole with the slightest impulse. The ball movement itself is crazy sticky and scratchy. Cursor movement is extremely stuttery.

I have no idea why this product was released the way it is. It’s bad.

Hello, I am a Gen Z guy with interest with retro tech that completely missed the whole era of DBS-9 connections, and I have a Logitech Trackman that is old enough to have a female DBS-9 port and I may need to ask with someone with better understanding of the different adapters to get it working on my Windows 10 machine. Any response can be helpful

Just wanted to post in case anyone else is on the fence. I swapped out the stock ruby bearings in my two Elecom EX-Gs with 2.5mm Grade 5 zirconium bearings. The swap was easy. I recorded a video of myself doing it... can post that if anyone is interested.

Also had the idea to use a punch to cut out the rubber over the screws, so they're permanently accessible - no peeling back the rubber to access them:

Performance is much, much better - sticktion is greatly reduced, the ball just moves effortlessly.

I have no idea why Elecom chose to use ruby bearings in the first place - I don't think they're cheaper than zirconium, and they just feel so much worse.

Anyway, really happy with this, just wanted to share.

Hey there,

Own both. EM06 since yesterday, Kensington since 2 month. I didn't like the scroll ring of Kensington bot was also not sure about the push/hold and scroll ball version of the EM06.

But after two working days the EM06 is at least for me the better option. Hold and scroll is very intuitive and double klick to enable scroll without hold is a very nice touch.

Overall is the DPI setting better and also the wrist rest is better. And even it's cheaper.

Cheers

Just received my pre ordered EM06 from ProtoArc and love it minus a few button glitches
"From" not "Trop"... damn auto correct

The Elecom BTUs are terrible. I tested two sets in a Huge Plus.

 Pros:

• Consistent performance (bad) between the two sets I have.
• They install very easily.

Cons:

• The start-up friction (stiction) is unusable, and I mean that without hyperbole. Highlighting individual letters becomes a game of guessing where the cursor will go.
• The units (the yellow guys) move in their housings (the hole they snap into). I can feel the ball push the units until it hits the side of the housing. This is very unpleasant. The stock units either don’t move like this or it’s not perceptible.
• The rolling friction is also high, higher than with the stock Huge Plus bearings.

Mods:

• First, I tried filling the BTUs with grease. This worked very well for about an hour or less.
• Second, I replaced the stock balls inside the BTUs with ceramic ones: one 2.5 mm ball and four 1.5 mm balls per unit. This helped compared with the stock BTUs, but they still performed worse than the stock Huge Plus bearings.
• I followed up with grease, which gave similar results to the first attempt.

The Huge Plus:

As for the Huge Plus, it’s a weak performer for the price. The scroll wheel should be much better, and half the left-click button being dead is odd when the other buttons can be clicked anywhere. The software is a bit of a joke but works, I guess. The ergonomics really carry this mouse.

It has scratched my itch to try trackballs again, but I don’t get why there isn’t a better bearing system after all these years. My next dip in the water will probably be one of the open-source trackballs with Rexroth BTUs, or I’ll give up on trackballs again for a long while.

 An ending note:

I know many users don't have an issue with high friction, but it's not for me. The stock bearings feel amazing, but only in one direction, really.

Welp, it came a lot quicker than I thought which is only a few days ago but I'm quite excited to use it. Probably my 2nd trackball so far.

Things I liked and thoughts

1. Tho the ball size is small, it's actually great. Since the ball itself exposed more than Elecom, maybe that helps the usability.

2. It was easy to connect for both bluetooth and USB dongle. It just shows up and connects right away.

3. Doesn't need to download a software or driver at all. Just go to their own website to adjust settings and download firmware which is great and others should do the same.

4. The trackball itself doesn't make any sounds at all. Elecom Huge Plus has roller bearings, it's quite louder. Totally smooth and noiseless. Probably need to try either steel or ruby bearings for a fair testing but Elecom bearings are quite expensive to buy

5. All buttons are quite tho not 100% noiseless.

6. Quite small and compact. Still bigger than a regular mouse but not that big too.

7. Idk anything about the polling rate but it supports 125, 250, 500, and 1000 Hz.

Things I dont like or hate

1. The design itself is not ergonomic. Well, it's an expected issue based on its design unlike Elecom Huge Plus but still, it's not easy to use small buttons especially for right side. It would be better if two buttons are located on the left side cause right side is totally meaningless.

2. Not a great grip design. Tho I'm getting used to it, cant say it's nice to put a hand on it. Elecom Huge Plus is a lot better for that and you probably need a palm rest and/or angled mouse pad but all of them aren't available for sale instead of 3D printing. Without it, I dont think you can use it comfortably.

3. I dont know why but few customized buttons dont work on Safari while they dont provide custom keys. I assigned back and forth for two buttons but none of them works on Safari. Other mouses with back and forth buttons work ok.

4. The scroll wheel is kinda small or not exposed enough to use. Not bad tho.

5. The battery life is short for sure but they already mentioned that and they are using a tiny battery so kinda expected.

6. Do NOT lose a dongle. Without it, you can not customize and update the mouse. USB-C itself only works for charging.

7. No wired mode. Only works as a wireless mouse.

Well, I would keep it as a collection as it reminds Logitech trackball mouse I used a lot time ago. Not a bad trackball for $50 so overall, it's fine unless you dont mind the design which isn't ergonomic to use.

Just like others, I was looking forward to buy Kensington TB900 EQ trackball but since there are no news about it, I got this one instead or for now. I used to have Kensington Expert but that was a long time ago and wanted to get a similar one again so kinda disappointed about Kensington.