The Kensington SlimBlade has finally been tuned up. The company’s discreet trackball design has been around since his 2009, making him one of the older mouse replacements on the market. Given how long it’s been, you might expect Kensington to go back to the drawing board and reinvent the wheel (or ball), but the new SlimBlade Pro offers a slight price increase to $119.99. Most notably, the Pro adds 2.4GHz and Bluetooth wireless support, dual optical sensors for greater accuracy, and more customization options That’s it. These are strong improvements, but revisiting SlimBlade’s design after many years reveals some flaws that have not been addressed in updates. The SlimBlade Pro’s added comfort keeps the venerable trackball from feeling dated, but there’s still work to be done. The company’s own Wireless Expert Mouse Trackball remains our top pick for trackballs.
Low profile, big trackball
At first glance, you’d have a hard time spotting the difference between the old SlimBlade and the new SlimBlade. It measures 2.7 x 5.3 x 6 inches (HWD) and has the same glossy graphite-colored plastic base and a large ruby-red trackball. As its name suggests, the SlimBlade Pro is thinner and more compact than most desktop trackballs. Aesthetically, this is a blessing. Most trackballs are larger and bulkier than your average mouse. Like Kensington, its sleek design doesn’t look obtrusive on your desk or take up desk space.
Of course, attention to aesthetics has a negative impact on ergonomics. The flat, tapered bottom edge of the base provides little support for your wrists and arms. When using a trackball, your wrist naturally rests flat on your desk and points slightly upward. In theory, you could choke on a trackball and put your wrist on the base, but that would make it harder to move the ball precisely. After all, what’s the point of using a trackball to minimize lateral wrist movement if you’re flexing your wrist all day?
The top of the base is divided into four clickable quadrants by default: left click, right click, middle click and back. You can also use the KensingtonWorks configuration software to set up four “combo clicks” (both left panels, both right panels, both top panels, and both bottom panels). This gives you eight inputs to which you can assign media controls, keyboard shortcuts, and other functions. Instead of a scroll wheel, simply twist a trackball to scroll up and down a document or web page. It doesn’t have the satisfying click you get with a scroll wheel, but it feels very natural and reduces the need to take your hands off the trackball.
However, the click panel’s physical design hasn’t changed from the old SlimBlade and leaves a lot to be desired. The bottom panel is very large and doesn’t click consistently, requiring some pressure depending on where on the panel you click. You can feel the plastic flex a little under your finger when you press near the bottom where you need the most force. Finding those places will take some time. More importantly, there’s no point in using a jumbo click panel if you only want to press certain parts of the panel.
That said, moving around with the trackball feels smooth and responsive. Like the original His SlimBlade, the Pro has two His PixArt PAW3220 optical sensors at the base to track the movement of the ball.They offer very tight and responsive tracking. Not enough to overcome the natural limitations of trackballs—not recommended Any I used to use trackballs for precision tasks like gaming and image editing, but how quickly I went from using a mouse to comfortably using a trackball for everyday productivity and web browsing. I was impressed by
The biggest change to the SlimBlade Pro is wireless connectivity. There are three connectivity options: a USB wired link, a 2.4GHz Wi-Fi connection via a USB dongle, or a Bluetooth wireless connection. This allows you to connect up to 3 devices to the trackball and swap them freely. On the left side of the base is a switch that allows you to select connectivity or turn off the trackball. There’s also a Bluetooth pairing button on the right to quickly toggle between four preset cursor speed settings.
Kensington says the SlimBlade Pro’s battery lasts four months on a single charge, so you’ll rarely need to plug it in. Like the company’s other wireless products, the USB Dongle Link features 128-bit AES encryption, providing additional protection for employees concerned about possible cybersecurity flaws.
KensingtonWorks App
As mentioned earlier, Kensington offers configuration and button remapping for the SlimBlade Pro via its configuration software KensingtonWorks. A simple app that provides access to a basic set of features such as button mapping, cursor speed adjustment, and scroll speed when you twist the trackball. You can save different button maps for different programs, like Chrome or Zoom, so you can use different shortcuts for different apps. You can also specify different speeds to access with keyboard shortcuts, either for ultra-fast scrolling or precision mouse operations.
All KensingtonWorks features are easy to set up and control, but lack some obvious configuration options. You cannot change the cursor speed presets accessed using the buttons on the side of the base. (If it could, Kensington wouldn’t provide numeric DPI values for cursor speed settings.) Nor would it be possible to save individual trackball profiles per user (although in theory you could store certain settings in the cloud can be saved by backing up to storage). switch devices). KensingtonWorks’ simplicity makes things easier for office workers who don’t mind precise customization, but the baseline standards for mouse software in 2023 are simply higher than this.
Verdict: Everything Old…well, Most Still Old
Even with the move to wireless, the Kensington SlimBlade Pro feels dated. Or, to be more precise, a design that has always been flawed despite its longevity. Some aspects of the trackball work very well. It’s accurate, looks great on your desk, and has a small footprint. However, the lack of a wrist rest compromises ergonomic value, and the inconsistent click panel can make it unstable to use. We favor Kensington’s Expert Mouse wireless trackball, which prioritizes ergonomics over both of his SlimBlade models and costs slightly less.
That said, the SlimBlade Pro thrives that way. If avoiding bulky-looking trackballs is your top priority, adding wireless support and other upgrades for just $10 more than the original makes the SlimBlade Pro more appealing. Hopefully Kensington won’t wait another decade to make a bigger move with their new compact trackball design.
