Logitech M570 Wireless Trackball Mouse – Ergonomic Design with Sculpted Right-Hand Shape, Compatible with Apple Mac / Microsoft, USB Unifying Receiver, Dark GrayCarbon Neutral Certified by SCS Global Services

This is a review of the Logitech M570 Wireless Trackball.The 8,000+ people who gave this a positive review before me are right. If you’re reading this, clicking the “Buy Now” button is not likely to be a decision you’ll regret. I paid full price for this on Amazon about 9 months ago. There’s many excellent videos and photos already; I couldn’t do any better.♦BACKGROUND: Although I’m relatively young (early 30s), when it comes to using computers, I try to maximize keyboard use and minimize mouse (or trackball) use. From what I’ve observed, those who are most efficient in working with computers are this way, and I try to emulate that. I LOVE keyboard shortcuts and regularly challenge myself to adopt more (increased use of the Alt key is my current focus).♦WHY A TRACKBALL: I took a new position at the same company recently, which involves using more web-based applications (boo). Unfortunately, most of these are not keyboard-friendly, and I was using the mouse much more to the point of experiencing hand and wrist discomfort regularly.I remember my father having a trackball for ergonomic reasons when I was a child. It was the kind with the huge ball in the middle. I disliked it intensely then, but thought it was worth a try if it could help me avoid developing serious or permanent problems with my hand and wrist.♦WHY THIS TRACKBALL: When I searched Amazon for trackballs, I saw the best-seller tag on this and decided to look further. I’ve had good experiences with the other Logitech items I own. The design appealed to me: it is completely different than the one from my childhood.Prior to purchasing this, I deliberately avoided buying wireless mice or keyboards that take replaceable batteries. It’s probably irrational, but I thought I’d be having to change batteries frequently, which would be extra time, money, and an inconvenience. If the wired version of this trackball wasn’t ten times the cost of the wireless version, I definitely would have chosen the wired one.P.S. If you’re just beginning your search and you noticed and are curious about the *slight* price difference, from what I’ve read, there was a copyright/patent issue with the wired trackball and Logitech isn’t allowed to make it anymore. The difference in speed between the wireless and wired versions is enough to be noticeable to gamers; and the wired version is valued highly by the gamer community.♦LEARNING CURVE; ADJUSTMENT PERIOD?: This is silly, but I was somewhat worried that I would hate the trackball and not want to use it. I wondered if using the trackball would make me less efficient and if it would be hard to get in the habit of using it. Since I use it on a desktop and there’s no shortage of USB ports, I kept the mouse connected and plugged the Logitech Unifying receiver into another one.For a few days (not longer than a week), I used the trackball when I wasn’t in a time crunch and switched to the mouse if I needed to speed up to get something done. Although I still keep the mouse on my desk, I eventually got to a point where I wasn’t using the it at all. If the trackball is slowing me down, I don’t notice. Overall, switching to the trackball was far less traumatic than I feared.Side note: I’m left handed. I’ve always kept the mouse on the right side of the keyboard and used it with my right hand. I would consider myself on the lower end of the spatial-kinesthetic intelligence scale, but using the trackball with my right hand and moving the arrow with my right thumb is a breeze.♦WHAT I LIKE•SPEED: As a non-gamer, I noticed no difference in speed from the wired mouse I was using and the trackball.•PLUG ‘N PLAY: There’s no software to install (for reference, I’m using this with Windows 8). I could have gotten another ergonomic evaluation and had my work order and pay for some kind of mouse-alternative, but I didn’t want the hassle. Since I don’t have admin rights at work, I like that once the receiver was plugged in, the trackball was recognized right away and ready to be used. For convenience, the receiver can be stored in the battery compartment.•BATTERY LIFE: Having used the trackball at work for 40+ hours a week for 9 months, the original battery is still going strong. Another worry of mine washed away. If battery life was a concern, I could always use an Eneloop (rechargeable) battery. Side note: this gave me confidence to purchase a wireless Logitech mouse for home use. I don’t use the computer much at home, so I wasn’t concerned about hand and wrist strain there.•DURABILITY: Clumsy would not be an inaccurate word to describe me. I’ve knocked the trackball off the keyboard tray where it sits *many* times already. Usually, the ball comes out when it hits the ground. Despite this abuse, the trackball doesn’t show any wear and tear, and the ball pops right back in. The compartment where the ball sits picks up some dust and debris but it’s easy to clean out. (Other reviews provide more detail on cleaning and maintenance).•PAIN-FREE ME: The discomfort I was experiencing in my hand and wrist has vanished. Shortly before deciding to order the trackball, I would see the carpal tunnel center advertisements on television and wonder if that was my future. That no longer concerns me.♦CONS(IDERATIONS)My hands are on the small side. For a reference, with my hand outstretched, I measured the distance from the tip of the middle finger to the bottom of the palm (by the creases where the wrist starts) as 6.75”. I spread my thumb and pinky fingers out as wide as I could and the distance was 8.25”.Until recently, the fleshy part of my palm (the bottom part, under the pinky finger towards where my hand met my wrist) would get red by the end of the day on most days. At first, I was thinking that I’d prefer the body of the trackball to be made of something more comfortable. After more thought, I came to the conclusion that the redness was a result of my palm resting on the body, causing the pressure and redness. If my hand was larger or the body smaller, the weight of my hand wouldn’t be on the body.I have a spare mousepad with a gel wrist rest and decided to start using it with the trackball. Now that the gel piece supports my wrist, the weight of my hand isn’t on the body of the trackball. After a couple of weeks, the issue has largely been resolved. After re-reading some reviews today, I’m thinking about making a foam wedge as described in another review.There’s only one other annoyance for me. I assume that the index finger and middle finger are supposed to rest on the buttons surrounding the scroll wheel. Although I don’t use the back/forward navigation buttons, my index finger has a habit of resting on them, and I’ve been “left-clicking” with my middle finger. It works, I suppose, but I’d be happier if those buttons weren’t there.Recently, I’ve been using the trackball rotated about 45-90 degrees counter-clockwise. In this position, my palm doesn’t rest on it and I naturally use my index finger for the left-click button and my middle finger for the right-click button. Manipulating the trackball with my thumb is still comfortable.

I bought one of these back in 2007, and put in a AA. I had no idea at the time that I had just purchased something that would be with me for a LONG time. To be honest, I've got ADHD and ASD, and the shiny blue, perfectly round heavy ball looked amazing to play with, and super tempting. I told myself I would NOT play with this fancy toy until the mouse broke. This would be a very long exercise in keeping my word to myself and resisting temptation. This mouse was super easy to use, I just plugged in the little dongle, and it was ready to go. Loved how quick it was to plug and play, and while the tracker ball took a little getting used to, considering I had only used the movable kind of mouse before, I found it fairly intuitive and easily adapted to using it. This mouse has customizable buttons on it, that I was able to set things to for playing MMOs, It was quick and dependable for letting me get high scores on flash games. I am an artist, and one day my Wacom tablet broke, and I just.... used the mouse. Because of the smoothness of the tracker ball, I was able to draw with it and get the lines smooth and right where I wanted them. After a year or so, the mouse stopped working! I was confused at first, and then I remembered the battery! I pulled out the battery and swapped out for another AA, and it was right back to how it was before! Darn, no sparkly tempting blue orb for me. This mouse outlasted my computer, another computer, countless laptops, and is now on another desktop.... All easy swaps of the little dongle, and no fuss. This mouse started out being plugged into a computer with XP, then was moved to one with Vista, then Windows 7, then landed on Windows 10. I've used it for art, for regular computer things, for gaming, all sorts of things... All waiting to play with the blue orb of temptation. Every year or so I would need to replace the battery, and each time I was hopeful that the thing had FINALLY worn out... I would pull it apart, use a screwdriver to clear out pet hair, whatever fluff had gotten in the sensors, put it back together, add a fresh battery, and it was always as good as new.I can't tell you how many times it's been dropped, flat out thrown (I have three kids, who are super destructive) I've moved a couple of times, got married, had kids my life is COMPLETELY DIFFERENT than when I bought this thing. At one point a hot glue gun had been set on it before it was cool, and it had MELTED a hole through the plastic... but everything still worked 100% fine. I've pretty much given up on this thing EVER giving out on me. I figure it will outlive me at this point. Aliens in 10,000 years will excavate the earth, find this stupid mouse, with its a shiny blue orb of temptation, plug in the dongle (that magically will fit their systems), and start using the mouse to navigate their space ship.So this fall, when the mouse stops working, I'm like "When was the last time I changed the battery? I don't remember. Guess it's time to do that again (I've said a year, but in truth it depends, and I've gotten anywhere from 10 months to 18 months on a battery). I pull it apart, unscrew the case, clean all the components and sensors, put it back together, put a fresh battery in, and... IT DOESN'T WORK. I'm shocked at first. I assume there's something wrong with the battery. I try a new fresh battery, and it STILL doesn't work. At this point, I check to make sure I didn't mess something up putting it back together because I don't believe it's given out. It's been THIRTEEN YEARS with this thing not having issues... THIRTEEN YEARS!!! Literally teared up and felt bad throwing this away (minus the shiny orb of temptation of course). I pop on Amazon and order a new one, the exact same thing. So far this one is exactly as good and easy to use as the old one, and I figure in 13 years or so I'll probably order a third.