Kensington SlimBlade Trackball Mouse (K72327U)

5.0 out of 5 stars

By Bigh - Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2018

An improvement over the Expert model

I've used Kensington trackballs for 30 years now, since the old ADB days. Kensington makes the heaviest ball, which is essential for spinning and moving the mouse quickly. Like many others, I've been a bit dismayed at the general decline in quality and smoothness over the years, but they're still the best I can find. My last two Expert trackballs were getting glitchy... one had a sticky scroll ring (even after cleaning and lubricating with graphite), and the other had electrical problems that made it 'drop' items sporadically. I decided to combine the two to get one last good one, and decided to try the SlimBlade to replace the one that was lost. Needless to say, I'm extremely picky about these things – I need to move fast and intuitively on my desktop, and if the trackball is glitchy at all it aggravates me continuously. I was pleasantly surprised to see the design of the SlimBlade – they've eliminated a lot of problems the old Expert model had and reduced the moving parts. Instead of captive jewel bearings, the bearings are now fixed. But the ball moves perfectly smoothly all the same – it still has good size and heft. The buttons are part of the surface, but still move easily and predictably. They've put a hole in the bottom so the dust falls through and doesn't collect – very nice! I was a bit thrown off at first regarding the 'ring' – I thought it must be some sort of touch-sensitive part (no, I don't read directions much). but instead, it detects when the two sensors are moving in the same direction and translates that to a scroll movement... very clever! And it eliminates one more moving piece that always seemed to gum up. It's took me 10 minutes to get used to, but I can already flick the ball horizontally and get the same or better speed I got with the Expert models (which were rarely fast or smooth). What's more, this action is nearly silent**, unlike the gritty rubbing noise of the Expert model. I record my screen and do voiceovers while I record, so having a quiet movement is a definite plus. All in all, I think this is a definite improvement over the Expert model... it immediately felt smoother, more predictable and more intuitive. I just hope it lasts (the Expert balls were pretty durable) ** by default, there's a synthetic clicking noise when you scroll. It's not annoying for daily use at all, but it definitely is for recording. In order to make it completely silent, you have to remove 7 screws from the bottom (one under each rubber foot and then three arranged in a triangle under the rubber ring). Once apart, the noisemaker is at the top of the circuit board... it's a short cylinder with a hole in the top. You can carefully pry off the top of the noisemaker and remove the disk inside. I just left the top off and put the rest back together... now it's silent and perfect for recording.

3.0 out of 5 stars

By Jason Doege - Reviewed in the United States on September 5, 2016

As new, the buttons "stick", dis-assembly and cleaning fixes.

I bought this a month ago hoping to love it. I've loved my Kensington Expert Trackball Mouse for a very long time, barring that it quickly becomes dirty. I hoped that this trackball would be self cleaning due to the hole on the bottom under the ball. So far so good on that front. This trackball had a major flaw, though, that drove me to distraction. Every time I would press one of the buttons it had a little "catch" before engaging the microswitch in the usual clicky way. It was like there was a little flash of plastic that hadn't been cleaned up before assembly that was rubbing on the button (but that was not the problem.) I call this major, because, when you are working, being distracted by an annoyance is the last thing you want. Today I had enough of this and disassembled the trackball to determine what the problem was. Inside, I found that there is a tab to prevent the button flaps from being pulled back which makes sense because that would destroy the unit. What didn't make sense is that there was a spot of sticky matter on the tabs where they engaged the button flaps. What I was feeling was that sticky matter letting go before the button depressed to engage the underlying switch. I cleaned the goop off with a cotton swab and rubbing alcohol and reassembled the mouse and now the "catch" is gone and the switches feel just like you would expect them to. If the trackball had arrive in the condition it now is in, it would receive a 5/5 from me. I should not have to dis-assemble and fix a brand new device to make it work properly. I can not image a reason why they would want that bit of goo to be in that location in the assembly.

5.0 out of 5 stars

By Z. Cherry - Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2018

The trick to scrolling is easy.

Either you like TrackBall mice or you don't, but the one "downside" I've heard on the SlimBlade vs the TrackBall Expert is the scrolling ring on the Expert, vs the twisting motion on the SlimBlade. Here's the trick: don't twist the ball on the SlimBlade. Put your finger down on the chrome ring (which is more of a track, as it is hollowed out for this exact action) around the ball and move it like you do on the Expert. Your finger will contact at the perfect angle to twist the ball as if you were using the ring, without using your thumb or another finger and it will also make an almost tactile click while doing it. Since the ball has decent weight, it will hold momentum for long scrolls with a flick of the finger, but has the distance control for fine scrolling. Besides that, it's a dream to use. I find myself being much more efficient, and my work space is much more organized while doing projects. If you like TrackBall mice, it's wonderful. If you prefer using a traditional drag about mouse that has you move your whole arm a foot back and forth a few thousand times a day, stick with that. I used to be that guy, but this has changed my mind.