Not all I had hoped for
Written: Jun 10 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Good design, great utility software, look Ma - no wires!
Cons: Remote does not always work correctly, pricey, rapid battery consumption (?)
The Bottom Line: Kensington has one of the best trackball/software combinations on the market. Stick with their hardwired models for now.
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| tenacious1's Full Review: ACCO Brands Expert Mouse Pro (K64245) Trackball |
I purchased this model as an upgrade to the Turbo Mouse Trackball for the Mac I have been using for several years. Unfortunately, I had to go back to my Turbo Mouse after only a short period of time.
The installation software worked great and the computer recognized the mouse plugged into a USB port immediately. Then the problems began. While using the mouse, there would be random pauses where the screen cursor would not respond to trackball movements for periods of 5 to 10 seconds. I would be working on a word processing document, click the mouse and the internet browser would pop up and open to my home page - apparently a mix-up in signals between the "click" key and one of the six programmable keys. The cursor movement was fluid at times, but frequently seemed as if it was out of synch with the trackball - jumping from one point to another when trying to make small movements with the mouse.
Also, according to a pop-up window that appeared on the computer screen, the batteries that were shipped with the mouse went dead in three days, but I can't imagine that the trackball eats through batteries that quickly. Changing the batteries did resolve the problem, but the same message popped up 3-4 days later.
Fortunately, the mouse was just as easy to UNinstall.
On the other hand, anyone that has used a Kensington mouse knows about their phenomenal software. With it you can perform single or multiple actions (open or close windows/programs, insert text, double/triple click, etc.) with a click of a button and can have a pop-up list show up at the cursor with minimal effort. The cursor movements can also be fine tuned with the control panel software.
I had the opportunity to test this product on both Macs and on a PC and noticed the same problems on both platforms.
Kensington has a 90 day satisfaction guarantee - I'm going to take them up on it and purchase the hardwired version of this product instead.
UPDATE:
Discussed the problem with Kensington's customer service department. Although a little difficult to reach, they were very helpful. The rep sent out a replacement trackball immediately. Unfortunately, it had similar problems. I'm waiting to receive a second replacement with the hardwired version.
Recommended:
No
Amount Paid (US$): 98
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Epinions.com ID:
tenacious1
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Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
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