My current trackball has lost its smoothness and feels “sticky” no matter how well, or often I clean it.

So, I’m looking for a trackball (thumb controlled) with the following features:

  • Bluetooth wireless with support for at least two connections (for laptop and PC media station).
  • Uses AA or AAA batteries.
  • Uses bearings.
  • Set at a tilt/ergo angle.
  • Repairability is also important, but not a total dealbreaker if the mouse is high-enough quality.

So far, most that I’ve found will lack one of those features, but I’d really like to have all of them, if possible.

  • Boozilla@lemmy.worldEnglish
    0·
    2 months ago

    When you clean it, are you just cleaning the ball? Depending on the type of trackball, there may be some small plastic rollers inside that have gunk built up on them. If you can safely take it apart and clean those well, it can make a world of difference. Back in the days of mechanical mice, this was a pretty common issue.

    If your trackball uses some kind of optical sensor(s) and isn’t mechanical, my apologies for wasting your time.

    • Showroom7561@lemmy.caOPEnglish
      0·
      2 months ago

      It looks like it has a sensor and three white “balls” that the trackball sits on.

      I do clean those, and they never have gunk built up on them (maybe I clean them too often?), but I only wipe them clean without using isopropyl alcohol or anything like that. Maybe I should try that?

        • Showroom7561@lemmy.caOPEnglish
          0·
          2 months ago

          I’ve got a Protoarc EM01 as my daily driver. An EM04 as a spare, but it’s not as good :(

          • Boozilla@lemmy.worldEnglish
            0·
            2 months ago

            I would search YouTube for a video where someone completely disassembles one that’s similar to yours and see if you can learn more about it. I’m not suggesting you take yours apart. But it might show you if there’s a potential fix for it.

            My boss uses a trackball mouse, but it’s a Logitech. I am not a fan of Logitech, personally. Their stuff always breaks on me after about 12-18 months.

        • Showroom7561@lemmy.caOPEnglish
          0·
          2 months ago

          Tried with isopropyl alcohol, and it feels worse :( Like rolling a wooden ball on more wood.

          Kensington says to use Vaseline to lube the ball. I can only imagine that would gum things up, no?

          • Hamartiogonic@sopuli.xyzEnglish
            0·
            2 months ago

            When reading your post, I started thinking of silicone lubricants. Have you tried anything like that? Ideally, you would only lubricate the parts that come into contact with the ball.