Ah, my wrist works again!
Written: Nov 26 '00
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Easy to install and use, very reliable
Cons: Hard to aim quickly
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| RockguyKev's Full Review: Logitech Marble Mouse (904360-0215) Trackball |
I decided to move into the world of trackballs after a week-long, almost-constant session of Starcraft left me with severe elbow and wrist pain. While I'd love to have constant pain in my right arm/hand for the rest of my life, I decided I'd give the ol' trackballs a shot. While I still feel a traditional mouse gives a bit better precision performance, I'll never go back.
I picked the Logitech due to it's dual-handed design. I wanted to be able to switch my mouse hand periodically so I could rest one or the other. Not only does the Logitech physically have this design, it also has it set up in the software. Meaning, if you choose to you can reverse the buttons (so left becomes right and vice versa) to make it feel more realistic. Personally, I just leave the buttons as they are and it's really not a problem. The thing fits perfectly into either hand.
The installation was a snap. Windows auto-detected it without any trouble, installed the drivers and I was on my way. The plug is a standard mouse cable, not USB. Some people swear by USB, and I'm one of them in most cases, but for a mouse, it really doesn't matter at all. A mouse port is just as easy to connect to as USB so no complaints for me there.
What I do wish the mouse had is a scroll wheel and auto-scroll. We have a Microsoft intellimouse on our other computer and it has both which is very helpful. The logitech sort of has an auto-scroll. By pushing both function buttons, the cursor locks in place and you can scroll through a document with the ball. Unfortunately, you have to scroll with the ball, you can't just move the ball slightly below the cursor and have it auto-scroll like the Microsoft trackball can.
My other complaint about the mouse is the difficulty in being precise. I'm sure I'll get better at it with practice (although, I've been using this thing for half a year and I'm still not very good with it) but it is far inferior to a standard mouse. This isn't a problem in most cases but in games like Starcraft of Quake where you need quick, accurate mousing it can be a burden. Again, I've used the Microsoft mouse and it doesn't have quite the same problem. Since the ball is so huge on the Logitech it often rolls further than it should or not far enough. It is difficult to be very accurate.
The logitech is better than the Microsoft device in one major area: reliability. We have to clean the MS mouse at least once a week since it runs on rollers. The wonderful Logitech runs on infra-red and I haven't had to clean it yet. It still moves as smoothly as the day I bought it. That says a great deal for the amount I use it. Oh, and you may want to know it has VASTLY helped my elbow/arm problems. This thing is VERY comfortable to use. Losing a little accuracy is a small price to pay for my health. :)
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
RockguyKev
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Member: Kevin
Location: Riverside, CA
Reviews written: 142
Trusted by: 34 members
About Me:
I like games.
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