Rating: 
Summary: The answer to mouse-induced wrist pain
Review: As an electrical engineer, I spend countless hours working on the computer. I started to develop pain in my right wrist that I figured was likely due to grasping the mouse. A friend suggested switching to a track-ball. I bought this item, and now have no pain in my wrists! I highly recommend this item because it essentially eliminates the squeezing motion linked to ordinary mice. I actually prefer using the trackball over a regular mouse, it has a much more fluid movement. If you are looking to this item because your wrist is hurting, I think you will be happy.It takes a few hours to get used to the change, but once you conquer that you'll wish you switched earlier. It has two extra buttons which are a great idea for surfing the web, they let you jump forward and back through web sites with no effort, further eliminating wrist movement. If you like you can set them for other tasks, but I like the default. The scroll wheel is really nice. It moves very smoothly and quietly. I gave it four out of five stars because I could not get the mouse to work through the USB port of my workstation, but I think that problem is linked to Windows 2000's lackluster USB support. Linux had no problem getting it to work through the USB, neither did Windows 98. Microsoft's Intellimouse software (that comes with the trackball, or can be downloaded from the web) is nicely refined.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent, but Imperfect
Review: I bought the new trackball Intellimouse in one of those strange fits of upgraditis that come over techies such as I at unexpected moments. Several years ago I bought a Logitech thumb trackball to help me with a wrist problem. It served its purpose admirably. By the time my wrist was back to normal, I was a complete convert to this configuration. Now this old trackball was wearing out. The buttons, which rely on plastic 'springs,' were losing their bounce. They are also cut too close to the desktop, which meant that I was regularly taking the unit apart to remove something that had slipped in. It was a non-optical ball as well and the rollers, which are always getting mucked up, where getting harder to clean. It was time. On the surface, the Intellimouse looks very nice. The unit cradles my right hand perfectly and has a slightly rough surface that keeps my hand from slipping. All four buttons have excellent feel, and the center wheel but has a slight rubber coating for grip and a very nice graduated movement. The ball itself turns freely with no effort under light pressure, but is capable of good precision when pressure is increased to slow it down. Overall impression is that this is a superbly engineered pointing device. The IntelliPoint software is the usual high Microsoft standard. All the buttons are definable, pointers are customizable, and ball and wheel response is adjustable. Adjustments are also available for double-click speed, and to adjust orientation to your thumb. There is also a nifty option that lets you use a feature called ClickLock to make click and drag easier. For many, this is the ideal thumb trackball mouse. Unfortunately, for me, there is a slight design flaw that creates a source of irritation. The primary left and right mouse buttons are a tiny bit too narrow for my fingers! This means that I am perpetually hitting the outer buttons if my fingers are not perfectly placed. Under game pressure, or while engaged in heavy websurfing, this can make you crazy, fast! Since the software does not permit inner and outer buttons to be defined identically, the only corrective option is to turn the outer buttons off. Occasionally I manage to press only the outer button and find myself repeatedly hitting the button while nothing is happening -- until I realize what's going on. Gradually, I'm learning to be more precise about where I put my fingers, but I could just as well have done without the outer buttons in the first place. If you are a bit more adept than me, have the right kind of fingers or are already used to four button mice you will probably love this device. I find myself liking it more as I adapt to it. But there is no reason why Microsoft couldn't have simply made the primary buttons large enough to prevent the problem in the first place. Instead, an engineering oversight keeps this mouse from getting the full honors it otherwise deserves.
Rating: 
Summary: There are better choices
Review: I thought I would give the Microsoft Trackball Optical a try. I had enough in about twenty minutes. So I silently suffered, and kept using it to give it a fair shake. The ball seemed to have a weird movement. Not very precise. The mouse is well built, however. The buttons and scroll was quiet. If you are looking for a trackball style mouse there are better choices, like the Tracman Marble+ by Logitec.
Rating: 
Summary: weird setup
Review: i recived this trackbll mouse as a gift, but expected the ball to be at the top of the mouse. it is awkward to use themouse and click, and forces you to buy another peripheal to play demanding games that require quick clicks. its like playing doom on a laptop, without another mouse, it's impossible almost!
Rating:
Summary: Finally
Review: I have owned mine for several months now, and the product works great. The accompanying software provides good functionality and abitliy to customize. My only complaint is that inside the bay where the ball sits are 3 small rubber pads. The rubber pads become dirty very quickly and impede the free flow movement of the ball. The rubber pads do come out rather easily, but then the ball moves too freely, with almost no fiction. Overall a great product. Microsoft has finally infused their products with some style.
Rating: 
Summary: Ausome technology
Review: Yes I've had the microsoft optical for about 3 weeks now and it is great. It took a while to get used to but I'm a pro now. The technology of the optical ball is extraordinary. It works good for games too. However it will take a while to get used to to play games. Also it is a cinch to clean. Great product!! Buy it now!!
Rating:
Summary: Yet another great product from Microsoft
Review: This trackball is absolutely amazing. It's so much more accurate than my old Microsoft trackball which i have been using for the past couple of years, not to mention the low price. Along with my trackball, I have also been using the explorer intellimouse from Microsoft, which I love. Although I was debating over to get this or the explorer trackball, the price certainly makes the decision an easy one. With the performance and reliability of Microsoft, everyone should have an Optical Trackball.
Rating:
Summary: trackball optical d67-00001
Review: i really enjoy my mouse it is incredible i have never used something so nice ryan o.
Rating:
Summary: the trackball binds
Review: When I recieved this mouse, by the look of it, it was exactly what I needed - it's size was bigger than in the pictures (about 6" long), which makes for a comfortable fit, and it had the 5 buttons that I'd gotten so used to on my Microsoft Intellemouse. As other people are saying, the one thing which kills this product is the trackball binds to the "rollers". Since this is an optical mouse, there aren't any moving parts, but the ball does glide on three stationary metal balls, and two stationary plastic retainers which keep the ball inside its socket. Depending on where your thumb is at any given moment, there might be pressure squeezing the ball down onto the plastic retainers. Since the ball and the retainers are made from plastic that's similar in density, they bind to one another - sometimes requiring quite a bit of force to unbind them. This being my first foray into trackballs, I figured that I'd return it, and get the wireless logitech that everyone's howling about. Shame :(
Rating:
Summary: Sticky operation...
Review: Well, like so many others, the ball on my mouse is jerky and sticky. I went to a computer store today and got a Logitech Marble mouse. While shopping, I was able to test another Microsoft Trackball mouse and had worse results. The demo mouse ball was stuck hard. The choice of material for the ball and other material lends to the sticky motion. So sad since this could have been a fantastic mouse.
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