It does not matter if the world is perfect, some people will always find a fault. I had a kensington track ball back in the eighties, great product and still works. I have just acquired this new model and I am delighted. Precisied, smooth, four buttons (programmable), scrolling capabilities (what noise?), fast and most of all very comfortable. Trust me, I have been in the IT hardware business, maufacturing and sales, since 1975. Well before PC's and mice. Well done! Strongly recommended.

No Vista 64 support. their website states "do not install software on vista operating system." dont know why that say that. it works fine on vista 32 with the ability to program buttons. 64 bit vista you can use the lower 2 buttons and the scroll wheel. they are too lazy to write the 64 bit drivers. go with logitech trackballs cheaper and work with everything including Ubuntu (Linux)

This is a substantial peripheral. I've used mine to smash my old mouse into over 100 little pieces. Now my life's a ball.

This is my second trackball from kensington. I really enjoyed the first one. It worked very well for more than 5 years. That is why I really wanted to stay with kensington. The buttons are great and the ball is smooth to roll around. My daughter & I both love the scroll wheel around the trackball itself. Nice idea. I have enjoyed my experience with trackballs so much so that I don't like mice. Even though Mouse Works has not been updated in years, it still works well with my new Expert Mouse.

Cons: I think it is a little expensive but, if I get another 5+ years out of this one I will be satisfied. Second, and somewhat minor is the deletion of programable buttons for websites.

Bottom line; I will by another one for my other Macs!!!
Once you go Mac, you never go back!!!! (unless you are forced and you do it kicking and screaming all the way.)

Poor build quality. Herky-jerky ball rolling... Ring around the trackball is noisy plastic against plastic. Software to change horizontal scrolling is poorly implemented. My hand hurts after two days.

I LOVE the Kensington Expert Mouse. I tried a lot of other trackball mice and every one of them caused some pain in my hand or wrist. I use this mouse for 5-15 hours a day and have no problems.

I just bought another Expert Mouse because I thought it was wearing out. It turns out the problem was the program, not the mouse. So I'll use my perfectly good 2 1/2 year old mouse for my backup computer.

I've been using an ergo beads pad to brace my wrist but this time, I'm trying the support that's provided with the mouse. So far it's working fine.

I have purchased these since they weren't optical. I have to admit, the models before optical wore out within a year. Once Kensington replaced one and I bought two others...one a year. Comfort is very important to me; at the same time I'm glad they improved the design!

I keep compressed air next to the mouse and every couple of days lift out the trackball and blow away any lint that collected on the knobs that hold the ball.

A fellow co-worker had used this mouse and I thought she was crazy. This isn't necessary, I thought. When she left the company, I inherited the mouse and thought I would give it a try. Now I won't work with out it. I have since taken a new position and am now working from home and needed to buy one for my home office. It is awesome. Highly recommend!!!! You'll never go back to the tradtional mouse.

A little background: I first discovered the kensington track ball back in the early '90's while studying for my Computer Science degree. It was the greatest, coolest idea I had ever heard of relative to the PC accessories world, and ever since then I've been yearning for my own. I never really had the extra money to justify paying a $[...] for a glorified mouse, so I just waited. Meanwhile, years later, I chose the Logitech Cordless Trackman Optical. Finally, I seized the opportunity to buy this Kensington (a month ago) due to a $[...] off sale.

After using my beloved Expert Mouse, I'm not as thrilled by it as before. Over the years I think some companies have caught up and implemented a better "trackball". I'm a freelance photographer and need the precise tracking and functionality for my graphics programs.

1. All the buttons are basically the same. The same feel, the same basic shape. You can't learn the different buttons thru touch other than the 4-corner positions. The Logitech Trackman does a much better job than the Kensington on this.
2. The "reach" for the top two buttons is difficult due to the size of the ball, especially when your fingers are moving from the bottom two. Having a different texture or noticeable shape would help when you're blindly trying to control (or orient) the mouse.
3. You CANNOT program the ring!!! This is so ridiculous until its beyond me! The wheel on the Logitech is fully programmable, AND can be pushed down just like a mouse button for even additional functionality! I used to be able to assign the "ring" or "wheel" to zoom in and out on some of my graphics apps, but no more with this Kensington. I am really disappointed in this.
4. The "ring" does not track accurately in one of my apps and feels cheaply put together (that's the only part though). In scrolling up and down, sometimes you'll have to move the ring over a couple or three "notches" before the page will move, then the very next "notch" will advance the page correctly. It should move the page with each "notch". For a $[...] mouse this is unacceptable.
5. Mouse buttons are too soft. In resting my hand comfortably on the trackball I constantly "trip" the buttons because of this. Very irritating. I'll be looking at a web page, and then all of a sudden the browser will go back to the previous page because I've inadvertently pressed the "back" button.

I'm gonna try and adjust to it, but I've been seriously considering going back to the Logitech. Oh, the Logitech is $[...] regular price. I bought this one for $[...] after rebate and still feel that I paid too much.

Hope this helps someone!

Trackball is very smooth. The scroll ring works great! The design keeps my hand and wrist from getting tired or sore. I'm using it with a MAC computer. I would recommend it for anyone looking for a trackball type mouse.

I love it. I was having a lot of difficulty with my traditional mouse. I couldn't seem to get it to go where I wanted, but with the Kensington Trackball, I don't have that problem. It has made my life so much easier. I highly recommend it for anyone who has difficulty manipulating a regular mouse.

Do not buy this mouse to use on Vista! It is not supported with all its features on Vista. The "MouseWorks" software has not been ported to Vista, and the Vista drivers do not support all the features you may be expecting from use of the (formerly excellent) Kensington trackballs on prior MS Windows versions. There is a workaround (download the MouseWorks software, set the properties to "run as administrator" and "run in XP SP2 compatibility mode", and then run) - use a search engine to find more detailed instructions (e.g. http://blog.jeffhandley.com/archive/2007/12/18/kensington-expert-mouse-on-vista.aspx look for Derek Williams' explanation). This workaround is simpler and better than the one using the MS IntelliMouse driver, but doesn't work perfectly either.

One other issue: the scroll wheel feels terrible. The movement doesn't feel smooth, the wheel feels like it is fragile and will soon break, and there is no way to click the scroll wheel for the smooth scrolling you get with a scroll-wheel mouse.

In short, I love trackball mice, and I hope that one will be made that works great on Vista - if one is made, I'll be there to buy it!

I've had the Kensington Expert Mouse Optical USB Trackball for about three weeks now.

General Audience Impressions:

The Trackball is of excellent quality; I've had no problems with it. The wrist pad is comfortable. The scroll wheel makes it worth the price. The key mapping works.

Left Hander Impressions:

As you know most of the trackballs are designed for righties. This one only has one quirk for us southpaws...

I use my index finger to move the trackball and work the scroll wheel with my middle finger. This method for us lefties has the scroll wheel moving in the opposite direction from what I would have preferred - pushing the scroll wheel forward moves to the top of the screen; backward towards the bottom. I haven't checked to see if the wheel direction is configurable, but as is it is a minor annoyance.

Take all the good reviews about this product, and I agree with all the positives. I even like the Kensington Expert Trackball Mouse BETTER than my Microsoft Trackball Explorer (SHAMEFULLY discontinued by Microsoft) in some respects! But I have to admit that my Explorer mouse is a bit more comfortable for long periods of constant use.

I don't think the product description on Amazon mentions that you can assign SIX different functions at a time to this mouse! That's because not only can you assign a different function to each button (there are 4 buttons), but you can ALSO assign a function that works when you press both top buttons together, and another function that works when you press both bottom buttons together! I chose to assign "click", "right click", "cut", & "paste" to the single buttons, and chose "back" and "forward" for the simultaneous buttons. And just in case you don't want any or all of the buttons to do anything when they are pushed, you can assign them to "do nothing" as well. This might be useful for people who keep accidentally pushing a button because of their particular hand shape or hand position.

I've also found that the "fluid" vs. "space down" motion of the scroll wheel depends on the application that is running, and not a big deal to me. If you always want a fluid scrolling motion you can always choose one of your buttons to "drag" the screen fluidly up or down using the trackball.

I mostly decided to write this review to let all you Mac OS X w/ Intel chip and Leopard OS users know that you can get ALL the buttons programmed after downloading "Kensington MouseWorks® for Mac OS X Version 3.0" software from the Kensington website [...]. Never mind that it says it was last updated on 5/30/06 - once you download that version to your Intel Mac (do not click on "search for latest update" when the box comes up so you only download THAT particular version) you can then program ALL the buttons (I own a new 2008 MacBook Pro and it worked for me). At least we can use the available Version 3.0 until they create a newer updated Mouseworks Software Version that fixes the Intel Mac problem.

I LOVE the "keystrokes" option to add custom button settings (i.e. if you want a button to be "Back", first type the Apple "Command" button followed by the "[" key in the top box, and then label it "Back" in the bottom box; I've found that you must label/name it last so that the "OK" button lights up and you can click on it. Likewise, if you wanted another button to be "Paste", choose the "Keystrokes" option, then type the Apple "Command" button followed by "V" in the top box, and then label it "Paste" below and "OK" (save) it. It's so easy to assign practically anything to a button (even opening up an assigned URL or application)...very cool.

And if you aren't able to set some of the parameters for how the trackball mouse responds through the "Mouseworks" application settings, try tweaking the standard mouse application settings.

To think I almost returned this product! Thank goodness for internet searches!

I loved using this trackball under XP, but there are no Vista drivers. That means you can't map/assign the buttons. That's a BIG reason people buy this trackball.

Calling Kensington just gets a non-English-as-a-first-language speaking person telling you they are not going to release drivers for it and to use Vista's built-in support. It's a big show-stopper for me.

I'll have to look for another trackball and forget Kensington in the future.

If you have a Mac or XP, you'll love it. If you have Vista, you'll be very disappointed. I am.

First of all trackballs are not built for gamers. That's being said, Kensington Expert Mouse is an excellent pointing device. Unlike most traditional trackballs this one has an integrated scroll ring and 4 fully programmable buttons. It also comes with a fully transferable five-year warranty. Compatible with MS Windows & Mac running OS X. The only thing I don't like about it is its price. I highly recommend this product.

SINCE MY HANDS BECAME CRIPPLED, I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO USE THE STANDARD MOUSE--OR EVEN THE THUMB OPERATED TRACKBALL MOUSE-- BUT THIS CONFIGURATION IS A BLESSING! I CAN EASILY OPERATE THE TRACKBALL AND CLICK LEFT OR CLICK RIGHT WITHOUT THE BENEFIT OF AN OPPOSING THUMB. THAT LARGE SCROLL RING MAKES SCROLLING A SNAP AND THE FACT THAT THE MOUSE IS STATIONARY ADDS TO IT'S EASE OF USE EVEN FOR MY PAL WHO IS NOT DISABLED. AN EXCELLENT TOOL. THANKS!

I bought this product because I was suffering from repetitive stress injuries from using a mouse. Initially, I was ecstatic with this trackball. The interface is slick, the ball works well, and the scroll wheel worked superbly. But about 6 months into ownership, the scroll wheel stopped working. I contacted Kensington and they sent me a replacement for free. I figured it was just a freak incident. I was so pleased with this $99 trackball that I bought a second one for my work computer. Six months after purchasing that one, the scroll wheel died. I asked for another replacement and they sent one for my work computer. It's now about 6 months later and, surprise, surprise, the track wheels have both died again. I'll probably contact Kensington again and hope they'll send new replacements. But I'm definitely not going to recommend this product to anyone else. If the scroll wheel held up, I definitely would as everything else about it is great. But there is something wrong with the design of the scroll wheel. If that's an important feature to you, just be prepared to replace this every 6 months. I can't believe this is just a fluke when 4/4 have had the same problem.

Simple and elegant - this is the best trackball out there, and I've tried many. I have bought many Kensington track balls over the years, and I have 4 of this model or my various machines. It is easily the best combination of ergonomics, solid performance, quality of build, and usability.

And their customer support is second to none.

Do your wrist a favor and use this instead of a mouse!

In Vista this otherwise excellent trackball mouse degrades to a basic two button mouse with absolutely NO modifications or features. Kensington's excellent XP software does not work at all in Vista. Kensington has walked away for any responsibility for suporting its mouse in Vista. Tech support apologizes but offers zero help. Clearly, Kensington has no intention of fixing this.

I was terribly disappointed when I tried to install this trackball on my Vista laptop. There is no driver for Vista, which meant that I could not program the buttons at all, and 2 of the four had absolutely no purpose. So, I returned it. On the good side, the design is quite comfortable (I am a woman with smallish hands but long fingers), and I love the placement of the scroll ring. If Kensington writes a Vista driver, I'll get another one, but until then, my hunt continues.

Doing photo work, surfing the net or documents. This is an easy to control trackball. Wrist pad is included so you can wrist rest as you take a break.
Check it out the ball moves smoothly-with fingers or ball of the hand.
All buttons easy to access. Configured for Wndows XP but can easily be changed. Good value for the money.

I've been using the 64213 for seven years now (since 7/31/01, price paid $99, it's great and well worth it), and wanted to get one of these as a gift for a friend.

They no longer make the 64213, which rolled on stainless steel rollers.

I was skeptical about the 64325, because it was different (optical). I thought that it would have a different feel (I was right).

I'll recommend it over a regular mouse, for comfort, to prevent against carpal tunnel, and clutching, and for ease of navigation through virtual worlds like Second Life. I like the 64213 better, however, because of the size and feel. Maybe you can get it on e-bay.

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Differences I've noticed:

1.) The stainless steel rollers in the 64213 gave you more of a tactile connection between where you were rolling, and what the mouse was doing on the screen. You don't have that so much with this optical trackball. Also, the 64325 requires a lighter touch, which may actually prove to be good over time. I won't be able to say, though, because I'm giving it to someone as a gift (it's good).

2.) The length of this mouse is shorter. I can understand that about the front, since there are no quick launch buttons (I never used these on a regular basis), but I liked the extended length in the front of the 64213 better, because I have a large hand. This is not a big deal.

3.) The 64325 seems to be angled down a little bit more in front. I like the angle of the 64213 better. Maybe use one or two thicknesses of corrugated cardboard to raise it up. This is not a big deal.

4.) The scroll 'ring' works ok, although I've read otherwise in other reviews. I never regularly used the scroll 'wheel' in the 64213. Reason: I set my buttons as follows:

bottom-left: Click
top-left: Drag
top-right: Right-Click
bottom-right: Alt+Drag+Click = Alt+Left Drag ( *Use this to do Camera Zoom in Second Life )

*I previously had the bottom-right button set for Double-Click. That was useful. I was holding down the Alt-key, and using the top-left button to do Single-Click-Drag, to do Camera Zoom in Second Life - but that froze out my keyboard, I could no longer type in local chat after doing Camera Zoom . . . I just figured out that I can program the mouse button to send "Alt+Drag+Click" in the MouseWorks software, under "Standard Clicks / More Clicks" and now Camera Zoom works, no problem, with even one less key to press! (the Alt key)

If I'm viewing a web page (which is when I might use the scroll 'ring') . . . I don't use the scroll 'ring' or 'wheel' . . . instead, I use the vertical slider in the browser, on the right, my top left mouse button (Drag), and the trackball itself as the scroll 'ring' or 'wheel' . . . in my opinion, the scroll 'ring' or 'wheel' is redundant.

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Other comments:

1.) I tried the included palm pad support that you can attach. It didn't work for me, because my hand is large, and you have to position your hand relative to how it attaches. When I went to left-click on the bottom left button with my thumb, when my thumb came off of the button, I would hear a spring sound that you shouldn't hear. I overcame this by clicking a little bit further down on the button, while using a detached palm pad support that I got somewhere else (see pic).

2.) It takes a couple of hours for it to be 'broken in,' for smooth trackball movement.

3.) Use the 'Acceleration' and 'Fine Tuning' settings to get it just the way you want.

4.) It will bring my computer out of Standby when connected as PS/2, but not as USB (same with the 64213 - even when I verified that I had that option checked in properties).

5.) They added rubberized feet to it, which is nice. I did this with the 64213 (it didn't have them).

This product has worked far better than expected. Some have complained about problems using the scrolling wheel. I had no such problems. I think the secret is that you don't have to make one full rotation on the wheel with you finger but several very small strokes will do the job just fine. I hope this is helpful information.

I really love this mouse. I cannot use the regular type because of an injury to my hand. This is just so great because everything you need is right there. They even let you scroll by just moving the circle that is around the ball. It is just so great not to have to move the mouse everywhere to get it to work. I have tried other types like this but they always had some problem so far this one is perfect.My grandchildren love it too even though they are able to use any type mouse. They were afraid I might not get another one when I gave my old computer away that had the older version of this mouse.They are so happy with this one now because of the improvements. It is well worth the money.

I have been using Kensington Trackballs all my life. But I was very disappointed with the tracking ring on this one. While all the other features are terrific (regular mouse tracking is great), this is no longer good enough when comparing to other devices like Apple's Wireless Mighty Mouse.

I also found that the elevation of the Expert Trackball was higher and at a different angle than previous trackballs, making my wrist tired very quickly.

Overall, I don't recommend this. The one I purchased I have already given away.

I was in need of a trackball mouse because of lower arm pain due to a death grip I was using on the regular mouse. Since using the new Kensington, I have noticed a significant decrease in the pain. The trackball is super easy to operate. It may take a little getting used to, but not enough to have that be the reason for not getting one. The ball moves very smoothly and the ring for scrolling up and down may be a little stiff at first, but that definitely goes away with use. The Kensington proved to be better than I expected! So glad I got one!

I had been spending on average over 6 hours a day typing for the past year straight. And then got a pair of gigs that had me at the computer for at least a solid 14 per day, and there was a three week stretch where I was eating drinking and sleeping at my desk - the longest stretch I spent out of the office was 4 whole hours. About 4 weeks in to this 16 weeks of madness, I started getting the dreaded pains in my hands that were the harbinger of Carpal Tunnel. Over the next week I had gotten three different keyboards, wrist supports, I even hired students to help turn my written notes into pages. I tried a few mice and a logitech track ball was recommended... which I still use as a back up. I even plunked down 5 bills for Voice Recognition software and a headset mic (Dragon Naturally Speaking Pro - pretty cool, though takes a little getting used to. Think the standard is about 200, and should work fine). Though all of those helped, for some reason I was reluctant to spend even more on something I couldn't try out before I bought. So it was another week before I sucked it up and dropped 90 bucks on the expert trackball. And I should have done it earlier. If you like trackballs, this is the cadillac. If you are getting burning and numb claw hands, get the best ergonomic keyboard you can find (I finally have the one that's split into two halves at the office now and the MS Wireless Natural Ergo-shatsis 7000 at home.) I'm finally seeing some daylight with the above gigs, and though my hands are much better, t's going to take some good R&R to get them back to speed. But out of all the things I tried, the expert track was the most user friendly, as well as the one thing that seemed to alleviate the most pain in my hands.

Also, the ball itself is big and heavy enough that if you are getting attacked by zombies or a frankenstein, you can drop that sucker into the toe of a sock and and go wild bonking spree bonking aliens, giant rodents and /or radioactive monkeus in the head with it. Probably good to have in the pokey too for putting the bonk on a few rioters.

I would however

Tech support said it would only work as two button mouse with Intel based Mac. We downloaded 3.0 from Kensington and using keyboard commands programmed all four buttons. Best mouse/trackball we ever used.

After several weeks of using the trackball, I am having to send it back for a refund. I tried really, really hard to like this "mouse", but the buttons just are not in great positions for easy use. I tried mapping them differently with the software, but that didn't help.

Also, since I use this mainly in graphic design related work, I do a lot of click/dragging. So, I tried getting used to using a button to "drag", but this just wasn't for me. In the end, the only setup that worked halfway decently was to map the right button for right click and the bottom left for left click. This setup made me use my thumb which is where most of my cramping happens in the first place. So that didn't work either. I, of course, tried using the top buttons for left/right clicking, but the top left button just wasn't easily reachable for me for some reason.

So with much sadness I have to say this "mouse" is not for me. It may work just fine for some or most who use it, but you won't know till you give it a try.

I've used a Kensington track ball for over 12 yrs. and they have always outperformed any type of conventional mouse. Now this newer design even outperforms their old design. It's just a little pricy but anything worth having is worth paying for. I wouldn't use anything else and highly recommend it.
hydeaway

I was fearful to upgrade to Leopard as I had read that features like the scroll ring did not work with Leopard. However, I took the plunge and am happy to report that my Expert Mouse works just as well as it did for 10.4 (and 10.3, 10.2, and 10.1). Just thought I'd relay my experience as I had not seen too many positive experiences posted. Of course, YMMV, and note that I have the wired mouse, I don't know whether the wireless version would perform the same.

This product is just absolutly amazing. I have always been a fan of Kensington trackballs and have owned older version of the Expert Mouse pro. I have owner the Kensington Expert Mouse Optical for probably close to 5 years now and can't live without it. My recent purchase was for my wife who was looking for a new mouse and she's quite ahppy with it. In fact I have let people borrow this mouse at work when I go away on vacation and so far everyone who has borrowed it for just a week went out and bought one (or two) when I returned because they didn't want to be without it. The scroll wheel is such a great feature that is difficult to explain just how wonderful it is, and the Kensington Mouseworks software has some great features that can save a ton of time.

My last comment is on the company it self. I did unfortunatly have a couple problems with old Kensingotn products where they would stop tracking left or right however their warrenty service is great, little questions asked and they shipped a new device right to me, with a return label for the defective deivce.

Final Statement : Great mouse, great company, you will be quite happy if you purchase this device.

I've read some who think the angle is bad on this trackball, but I have been using Kensington Expert Mouse trackballs for over a decade and this one doesn't seem any different as far as ergonomics goes than the past models. I have not noticed any strain on my wrist or hand or fingers with the new one and I work at my computer all day every day and already have wrist issues (not computer related). In fact, it's my favorite trackball I've ever used. There may be some who have issues with the angle but I do not and have not noticed it being different or strange.

It has the smoothest movement of any pointer device I've ever used. The wrist rest is very nice, although it seems to fit onto the unit a little wonky. It's nothing that hinders its use, it just doesn't seem to snap into place as easily as I would like. I love the scroll ring which is so much better than the previous scroll wheel that I never used on older models. This model is smaller than previous models, too. They got rid of those extra buttons at the top of the thing which were a little useless in my opinion. Over the past decade plus I have been using the big ball trackballs from Kensington and they seem to last for a very long time. This is only the third one I've had in that time. I consider the high price tag worth it since it will be with you for at least three years and most likely five or more if taken care of. I also love the fact that this one is optical and has no wheels inside to get those hard oily deposits on them. This one you just have to clean the dusty goop out every now and then and that is not too difficult. For me, this is the ultimate big ball trackball and worth the price tag.

The trackball is very good. At first, the rollers didn't feel smooth at all, but by the second day they smoothed out and it feels very nice now. As mentioned by others, the trackball angles upward, so if you have wrist problems, then this mouse isn't for you. The scroll ring is a very nice innovation, and makes scrolling quite pleasant.

Now, for the negative: piss-poor Mac support. Kensington does NOT have drivers for Intel Macs. Apple has been selling Intel Macs for over TWO YEARS. Mouse drivers are quite simple to design, and Kensington doesn't even need to redesign them; they just need to recompile them. This is just sheer laziness and lack of respect for their customers. I bought this mouse because it said that there were drivers for Mac. But the drivers are only for Macs you haven't been able to buy for two years.

The ExpertMouse does work with Macs, but you can't assign the extra buttons to anything (the default to middle-click) without Kensington's driver software.

Excellent trackball, easier to clean than the Orbit and feels better on my wrist. Only complaint was that the scrolling mechanism broke after a year - that's the black circle surrounding the ball in the center, which is supposed to scroll pages when you turn it. Big fan of Kensington though, having tried so many with my Macs. Still going to continue purchasing Kensington trackballs because others don't work as well on a Mac.