Review of Kensington Slimblade™ Trackball Mouse
12:42 am December 3, 2008 by Brian J. Ritchey · Leave a Comment
Everyone has a favorite mobile mouse; that is, except me. I have tens of them and can’t seem to get comfortable with any of them. One thing all have in common, though, is that they are bluetooth. I hate having to plug something into my USB port to just run a peripheral and already have to do that with my scanner and
presentation remote. I don’t want that with my mouse.
Kensington seems to be moving more and more into the business traveler’s briefcase and with their innovative mice, they look to be establishing a foothold on the market. I have both their Slimblade™ Bluetooth Presentation Mouse and the Trackball Mouse. This review will focus only on the trackball mouse.
First, a little history of my distaste for trackballs. Whenever I had to help someone at their desk and they had one of those large, rounded trackball mice, I winced. I hated having to try to maneuver around the desktop with this clumsy and uncomfortable mass that seemingly required strong middle fingers. I never felt comfortable using them and never really gave one a chance to convince me that there was utility in the idea.
With that prejudice, I did find the concept of this mobile trackball mouse intriguing. The reason is not so much the trackball itself; it is more the functionality possibilities. Kensington didn’t just place a trackball in it - it gave the user the choice of using the trackball as a pointer (regular mouse function) or as a (rounded) wheel to scroll down and across documents. To change the function of the trackball, you need only double-click a button surrounding the ball.
Before I get to how well Kensington delivers on this, I’ll speak to the basic functions of the mouse.
1. Footprint - the mouse is acceptably small (not the smallest and it won’t fit in your outdated PC Card slot as some will but it doesn’t take much space in your bag) and is light as you would expect from any portable peripheral. It uses two AA batteries and has a power-saving mechanism that puts it into sleep mode when your computer is turned off. You can also turn it off by pressing the button surrounding the trackball for 3 seconds.
2. Usability - I read some reviews where users complained about dirt getting into the trackball roller and causing it to lose its trackball function. I haven’t experienced that yet but understand any frustration that this would cause since it doesn’t appear that you can take the trackball mechanism apart to clean it. In my experience with the mouse, the trackball worked flawlessly as did the laser that sits under it for normal mouse function. As a regular mouse, it works well.
Underneath the mouse is a cover that opens and closes around the laser - I assume this is for transit but not sure why it is necessary if the mouse goes into sleep mode. There is also a large (relative to other mice) blue button that is used to pair the mouse to your computer.
The reason why I wanted to review this mouse was to see if the trackball function would allow mobile users to use a mouse in cramped spaces where you didn’t have room to use a traditional mouse. How did the Kensington deliver on this feature?
Pretty well in my opinion. I have found myself using it in chairs and couches, resting the mouse on the arm (or on my lap) and using the trackball as a pointer. Then, when I want to scroll the document, I double-click on the button, wait for the short delay, then scroll. When I am ready to use as a mouse again, I double click again.
Granted, this took some getting used to. At first I found myself trying to will the mouse into behaving the way I was thinking. However, after some mental training on my part, I became pretty adept at utilizing the mouse as intended. It literally allowed me to use the trackball both to scroll documents and as a pointer without moving my hand.
The only drawback goes back to my distaste for trackballs. To me they have always been inelegant and take too much effort to use with any precision. In this regard, I have to admit that with practice, the trackball can be pretty precise and without much effort. It is really just an issue of training yourself to work with your finger rather than your wrist.
I can happily say that the Kensington Slimblade™ Trackball Mouse was a good purchase that will be the only mouse in my laptop case for a long time as long as it functions properly.
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Upcoming reviews
9:49 am November 11, 2008 by Brian J. Ritchey · Leave a Comment
I will be reviewing a few new tools in the coming weeks: a Kensington bluetooth trackball mouse and a Fujitsu portable scanner.
The mouse is unique because it allows portable users to use the trackball to both scroll documents and use as a mouse pointer. Should be interesting to see how it delivers.
The scanner is claimed to be the first and only portable scanner that is an automatic document feeder, color scanner that duplexes (scans both sides of a page). There is some information about it you can read about by clicking here.
See below to watch it in action:
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Review of IPhone 3G
2:25 pm August 4, 2008 by Brian J. Ritchey · Leave a Comment
My first review is of the new IPhone 3G. I owned the first generation IPhone and was able to use the 2.0 software upgrade before purchasing the 3G so this review will contain comparisons between the two as well. It will not be as in depth as some and is geared for determining whether it is a viable option for attorneys to use as a business mobile device.
First impressions
Compared to the first generation, the 3G is slightly larger but still fit in my ISkin cover, so it isn’t by much. The case is a little different, but that is not of any relevance. The phone is all screen - there is a button at the bottom center which operates as a “home page” button by default, and a receiver at the top center. The rest is dedicated to the touch screen. There are volume and mute buttons on the left side, headphone jack, SIM card holder and power button at the top, and the docking connector at the bottom surrounded by two small speakers. On the back there is a small lense for the 2.0 MP camera.
What I have always hated about touch screens is the tendency to push buttons that I didn’t intend to hit. The IPhone solves this pretty much by allowing you to press the power button at the top which turns off and disables the touch screen.
Functionality
The IPhone is married to the AT&T network and will continue to do so for the next few years. There are hacks around, but you likely won’t be interested in using them. The first generation was hampered by closed development; ie, there were no ways to install 3rd party applications (without a hack). This was resolved in the 2.0 software, which was released on the same day as the 3G was released, but updated the first generation IPhone as well. I decided to see if I could sync to my Exchange server easily before going with the 3G.
After a few hiccups (most notably that Exchange service pack 2 that had to be installed over the Windows 2003 Small Business Server service packs), the sync worked and was surprisingly fast, even over the much lamented EDGE network. The 2.0 software upgrade is a large improvement and greatly improves the functionality of the IPhone.
One glaring defect with the IPhone that wasn’t resolved in the 2.0 upgrade was the lack of copying and pasting text. This, above all, is the biggest drawback of the IPhone. Since this is correctable through a software upgrade, I can’t believe this will remain a problem for long. Still, this is one thing that will hamper business use of the IPhone, especially if you want to take a part of the text of one email and paste it to another email.
Another limitation of the IPhone is the inability to edit documents. For me, this is no big deal, but to some, this is a deal breaker. If you require the ability to edit documents on your mobile device, then you need a Windows Mobile device (blackberrys don’t allow editing either).
Both versions are bluetooth capable, carry the Safari (Apple-developed) browser, have GPS capability (the 3G supposedly has upgraded capabilities but I have not tested them), have one button weather and stock information and are incredibly easy to use. Phone quality on both are equally excellent. Both also integrate ITunes and an IPod functionality so you can use it as a phone as well as an ipod, which is handy when working out or riding your bike.
Another group of nice features are the conferencing capability, easily displayed time on a call and the call history with the time of the call. These features are handy for billing purposes. I am not aware of any integrations with billing systems yet, but anticipate there will be options available before too long.
Another difference between the IPhone and other mobile devices such as blackberrys is that the touch screen handles the dialing and the typing. Whereas some like blackberrys have raised keys, the IPhone uses the touch screen for the keys, something that takes time to master and is futile for those with large fingers (but that is a problem with all mobile devices). I personally liked the full keyboard of the blackberry 8700 series, but have gotten used to the touch screen of the IPhone so I wouldn’t necessarily call it a draw-back. But you might.
Comparison with First Generation IPhone
The issues and features above appear in both the first generation IPhone and the 3G version. So what really distinguishes the two? Minor aesthetics, broadband internet, supposed GPS capability, and price. In fact, the price is the biggest gotcha! of all. AT&T automatically pushes you back to a 2 year agreement, increases your monthly fee by at least $15, and tries to convince you that you need to pay another fee to get the “business package” which seems to imply that you must purchase the business package to sync with Exchange. Since I was already syncing with Exchange with the first generation IPhone, I opted against the upcharge and had no problem connecting to Exchange. I am not sure what the purpose of the business package is, but I won’t be too surprised to see a letter from a law firm in a few years advising that I am part of a class that may have purchased this and am entitled to a $2 settlement award.
Some have complained about battery life, but so far I haven’t noticed the difference.
Bottom Line
Reasons to own an IPhone for business use:
- Syncs contacts, email and calendar from Exchange
- Bluetooth capable
- Good phone quality
- Ease of use
- You use or are not against using the AT&T network
- Small form factor (for the feature set)
Reasons not to own an IPhone for business use:
- You use another email server besides Exchange
- You want to edit documents
- You need to have copy-paste functionality
- You don’t want to use AT&T service
- You like raised keys instead of a touch screen for dialing and typing
In my opinion, if you already have the first generation IPhone, there really is no compelling reason to go to the 3G - the increase in speed doesn’t justify the increased up front cost and continued costs associated with the 3G. In fact, for those contemplating going with an IPhone, you should seriously consider buying the first generation IPhone since it is no longer being made and many (like me) rushed out to get the 3G model and are dumping their first generation models on places like Ebay. That said, if you don’t already own an IPhone and are considering the 3G, it is certainly worthy of consideration - and it works easily with Exchange.