Question 1

Which is the difference between Expert trackball and Slimblade Trackball? Which one is better? I know that Slimblade doesn't have Removable Wrist Rest

Accepted Answer

The slim blade is a lower profile trackball. Theoretically it doesn't need a wrist rest because it sits closer to the desk. Also there is no scroll ring. Instead you twist the track ball like a doorknob to scroll. I have had both trackballs and prefer the expert over the slim blade. I had significant wrist pain from using the slim blade everyday. The pain became significant after about a month of using it. I never had that problem with the expert with wrist rest. I have since returned to that style trackball. After a few days the wrist pain started to subside. After 2 weeks it was gone. I think the main culprit was the buttons. They are very stiff and require significant effort to depress them. Doing a lot of Photoshop retouching where have to hold down the button while manipulating the ball is what cause the strain injury. Stick with the expert. It's more comfortable to use and I like the scroll ring better than twisting the ball.

Question 2

Anybody else getting a screeching sound when doing twist for scrolling? Like a kid trying to play a clarinet. If "Yes" does it ever go away?

Accepted Answer

Screeching started about 8 months in for me. I tried cleaning, lubricating it, and still get the screeching when I twist the trackball to scroll. It's loud enough that other people in the office ask what that sound is, and it's annoying enough to make me embarrassed to even use the device. Been using it for 9 months now, so far, no it doesn't go away.

Kensington support's first recommendation was to "blow some compressed air around the scroll wheel." Considering there isn't even a scroll wheel on this device, it's rather hard to follow their recommendations for fixing the screech.
Switching back to a mouse until I get a better response from Kensington support. For a ~$100 trackball, I hope they have a better answer than to clean parts of the device that don't exist. Will update this answer if there's anything worth adding.

Question 3

Which is the difference between Expert trackball and Slimblade Trackball? Which one is better? I know that Slimblade doesn't have Removable Wrist Rest

Accepted Answer

The Slimblade takes a bit of "training". I use 2 fingers, one to spin the ball, while the other sits on top of the ball to keep it spinning about its axis.
Expert Advantage: single finger scrolling and no muscle training
Slimblade Advantage: MUCH more scrolling with a single gesture when I give it a hard spin; smoother action for fine control

Question 4

Does this model fit an 8 ball?

Accepted Answer

In the original Kensington trackballs you could swap out the ball for an eight ball (I had one so equipped) but you can't with their newer models. The size of the ball is different, and as another answer pointed out, these use optical tracking where the originals used mechanical tracking.

ASIN	B001MTE32Y
Additional Features	Movement detection technology:Trackball
Antenna Location	Office
Best Sellers Rank	#922 in Computer Mice
Brand	Kensington
Button Quantity	4
Color	Black
Compatible Devices	Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 8.1, macOS 10.8, Windows 10, macOS X 10.11, macOS 10.10 or above, Chrome OS 44 or above, macOS 10.9, macOS Sierra 10.12
Connectivity Technology	Wired
Customer Reviews	4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars (2,062)
Enclosure Material	Silver
Global Trade Identification Number	00085896723271, 05050914713317
Hand Orientation	Ambidextrous
Hardware Platform	PC
Item Dimensions L x W	6"L x 5"W
Item Weight	11.2 ounces
Manufacturer	Kensington
Mfr Part Number	K72327US
Minimum Required Operating System Version	Windows 7
Model Name	SlimBlade™ K72327EU Trackball
Model Number	K72327EU
Movement Detection	Trackball
Number of Batteries	1 AAA batteries required.
Operating System	Windows 8
Range	6.0 feet
Style Name	Mouse
UPC	809385660935 097009492066 100177260228 085896645887 763615904803 638458744988 640206607070 807030490470 031112194004 872182664895 800187705022 803982758279 029521830347 031112582351 662919001648 823019652431 804993501564 666667458037 809098923051 012304048473 102930735899 095009492062 085896723271 096009492069 724627170587 641438718763 809185809343 858967232718 640026224976 074437854154 8067920398…
Warranty Description	2 year warranty (Only valid if purchased through Kensington Authorized Resellers)

SlimBlade

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