Why am I just about the only person I've ever met who uses a trackball to game...

Why am I just about the only person I've ever met who uses a trackball to game? I don't see the upside to using a standard mouse, but everyone is still shocked when I tell them I use a trackball.

How/why is a standard mouse better?

Attached: 4687667543.jpg (789x826, 128K)

Other urls found in this thread:

lmgtfy.com/?q=dpi
youtu.be/Vy7RaQUmOzE?t=216
twitter.com/SFWRedditVideos

So that uses your index finger on the ball? How does it compare to thumb ball versions?

Attached: m570-gallery.png (800x687, 385K)

I switched to a trackball because of wrist pain. I love this thing but it still feels a little awkward for FPS. Great for everything else though.

Attached: slimblade.jpg (1000x1000, 58K)

I've used the thumb ones before and they feel really awkward and terrible like I don't have precise control over them. I'm sure I would get used to it after a long time, but this one uses index finger and middle finger (at least the way I use it). I have both on the ball at all times. Mostly aimed with pointer finger but my middle finger rests against the side and I add/remove pressure on the side of the ball as a sort of brake to fine tune my aim if you understand.

My first computer mouse was one of those huge motherfucker trackballs like the one you pictured, with the ball in the middle for what I assume is your palm. Great for reducing strain on your wrist, I've never had much issue with FPS games other than my sens needs to be MUCH higher than other people's.

Standard mouses have always given me the same feeling I get when I try to throw a baseball with my left hand, nothing works right. Also I have fucking huge gorilla hands so I need large peripherals and this mouse I found last year is phenomenal, I already have 5 of them, 4 still in box in case they ever stop making them. Pic is the one I used to use for ~15 years before I found this gorgeous fucker.

Attached: 436532645.jpg (1500x1500, 173K)

Yeah I did take about 2 weeks to get used to the thumb ball. They tend to feel highly sensitive when you first start out. They are precise enough after you are seasoned, but if I need extra precision I'll pinch the ball with my thumb and index finger.

>How/why is a standard mouse better?
having about a dozen times more space to work with, thus speed and accuracy

>Why am I just about the only person I've ever met

Attached: 1553984830082.gif (200x234, 2.85M)

A trackball has infinite "space" though. As long as you can perform a complete 180 in both directions without taking your fingers off the ball, you don't need more space than that. Why would I want to be moving my arm around my desk if I don't need to?

Image is 404'd for me.

>A trackball has infinite "space" though
retard
>Why would I want to be moving my arm
lmgtfy.com/?q=dpi

I got a wireless mouse for my left hand might consider a left hand trackball.

>retard
Someone is really mad that they don't have an argument.
>dpi
Pic related and it comes with software but alright champ. Next.

Attached: iJazBID.png (186x140, 31K)

I used a trackball like this one for years but it kept popping out whenever I tried to rapidly change directions, I don’t really miss it.

Standard mice are cheaper, and what games are you playing that require high precision?

>I've never had much issue with FPS games other than my sens needs to be MUCH higher than other people's.
There's the issue, ya fuck. Whenever you play FPS at any competent level, you want low sensitivity and DPI for maximum accuracy.

>Someone is really mad
You can lift your mouse too, dumbass. It doesn't mean anything. A mousepad is a lot bigger than the ball.
>sensitivity toggle
I posted that link for a reason. Seems to have gone over your head. It means "dots per inch". Now, stay with me here. Put on your thinking hat. Which has more inches, a 1" ball, or a 14" mousepad? What's the bigger number? Come on, I believe in you. You can do it!

Trackballs can be spun on momentum too, meaning you can instantly move from one side of the screen to the other just by flicking the ball, even under low dpi settings.

The ball would have to have a radius of about 1.04" to have a larger surface.

You don't understand what I meant. I mean my sens # has to be higher to be in line with standard mouses. Not that moving my mouse a little makes my cursor whip around like crazy. 2-4x your sens is normal sens on a trackball because of the surface area. A standard mouses sens on a trackball would take multiple rotations of the ball to turn around in fps games.

Cheaper I guess depending on what you go with, but I don't imagine it's price that is preventing people from using what they like considering all the goofy peripheral shit people buy. "High precision" I dunno, no more than anyone else in fps games. I used a trackball in cs1.6 when I was in my teens and was in tournaments and whatnot, I wasn't a god or anything but I was very competitive and did fine. These days I play overwatch/apex/rust or whatever else, I was more known for sniping in 1.6 than anything else but I don't know if the mouse itself contributed to that.

>I met myself

Is this for one hand users or something?

My father gave me one of these. It felt amazing using it. Unfortunately, it eventually broke and it set me back to using a normie mouse. They are unfathomably expensive and I wish I could find one that was under $80 and had a scroll wheel.

Attached: clearly_superior_technologies_l_trac_p1_large.jpg (640x320, 55K)

Yes it's good for multi-tasking while masturbating

where the fuck did you find a 14x1" mousepad? fucking idiot
and you're only using half the ball at best without lifting your finger

you're always trading accuracy and speed when setting the sensitivity, even with a mouse. That's no different for a trackball, or gyro. They just have a lot less to work with. A 1" ball is ~6cm area, or equivalent to ~2.5x2.5 mousepad
that's means you make some serious sacrifices if you ever want to make a full turn

The ball on this specific mouse has a 52mm diameter, so a 1.02" radius. This is the largest one I have seen outside of models like though. Those ones with the center ball seem more for graphic design and things like that than gaming though. My last mouses ball was maybe ~70% the size of this one.

>mousepad is bigger than a ball
user, I...
>sensitivity toggle
It's a dpi switch, defaulted to 500/1000/1500. Don't have to be mad about it, I'm not saying one is better than the other, just that I use this one and am curious why more people don't use them as I have not had any limiting issues personally.

Yeah the spin-and-stop becomes second nature after awhile. I used it more for flicks on my old mouse but now that this one has a much bigger ball I don't really use that maneuver for flicks anymore. Still pretty nice to spin your character around at mach 12 for funsies. Spinning insanely as Reinhardt with your shield up can actually be somewhat useful depending on scenario.

Attached: icXp6Aq.png (563x480, 576K)

If you have large hands look into the "HUGE Trackball" by elecom. It's the one in the OP and what I use. I liked my logitech one but no scroll wheel has become a dealbreaker because of how many games use it and the binds can never be changed for whatever reason. This one has a scroll wheel and programmable buttons. On amazon Wireless is $60, wired is $55. Not cheap but not $80 either. The padding is nice also, though I can see it eventually wearing away after a couple years of use. After about a year mine is still holding up fine.

>one hand users
How many hands do you use for your mouse?

Attached: VPQrimX.png (411x229, 186K)

>It's a dpi switch
Which, again, means dots per inch. You're increasing the -sensitivity- by adding more dots onto each inch. You're still limited by how much space you have to work with. How many inches. Now, please, I know maths is challenging to you people, but there's no shame in failure. At least try to answer the question this time. What's bigger, 1 or 14?

Fuck me I want a mouse like that, I'm stuck with this one here

Attached: mouse.png (1440x1080, 3.46M)

You're not alone. I've been quite good back in beta days of Quake Live while playing on Trackball (Top100 on European/Global ladder for some modes). I love Trackball. Currenty own this one and use it for both work and gayman. I also bought Steelseries Rival 310 which is a really fine mouse but ain't got shit on trackball.

If I can do a complete 180 in either direction without taking my hand off the ball, what is the difference? 720 jumping noscope trickshot videos? If you are using 14" of mousepad to turn where you need to and I am using 1" of ball to turn where I need to, I don't see how this argument is in your favor. The only thing you mentioned is "speed and accuracy", arguably I can move my crosshair much faster than you can, and with two fingers on the ball the accuracy is immense.

My middle finger is -constantly- adjusting my sensitivity on the fly through braking, depending on how I fast or slow I need it at the moment. Maybe I'm just missing what you're saying but I don't get your point at all.

That's what I used for over a decade because there were no better options til I found this one. Ordering them offline is always sketchy because you never really know how they'll feel so I just had to take a chance on this one. I bought several more immediately after and put them in my closet in case the company stops making them. Putting my hand back on the trackman mouse feels absolutely terrible now, and it was such a staple in my gaming life for so long. The way the ball juts out feels entirely alien to me now, and not smooth at all. I think the "bearings" in this one are just super good quality.

I could never get used to the thumb ones. It feels like I have much less range of motion somehow even though thumbs are the bees knees. I remember playing with my clan online for a long time in cs 1.6, then when we met up irl for lan games and I unwrapped my trackball they were in complete disbelief. I wasn't amazing or anything but I was definitely better than they were judging from all our scrims. One of them even bought a trackball after that, though I don't know how far along he got with it.

I feel like either you get introduced to a trackball early on or it will never feel good to use. None of my friends can use my mouse to any decent effect after years and years of a standard mouse, and I'm the same with theirs. Just feels wrong.

>If I can do a complete 180 in either direction
With a 52mm ball, that's 5.2*π/2/2.54=3.216" of horizontal space versus 14", that's 4.35 times less space. That's 4.35 times less inches. That means you need 4.35 times more DPI(dots per inch) to make the same movement. That means you need your sensitivity set 4.35 times higher. That means your accuracy(area, not %) will be 4.35 times lower.

Your 52mm trackball is equivalent to playing with a 3.2" mousepad. That's dogshit, that's your reason why. That's why you struggle with shooters.

fap less

Check the lineup I love these babies. Amazon.

Check these babies out

Attached: Trackballs.jpg (1500x1500, 144K)

I don't struggle with shooters though, I never said that I did. I don't have any problems with my mouse and don't feel limited in any way. I understand what you mean I guess but I have never felt like my aim was worse than anyone else's, outside of obvious skill gaps. I'm 32 and got my first computer when I was 7-8 complete with track ball, so maybe just using this type of mouse for this long has made up for its shortcomings (if there actually are any). I'm not an fps god or anything but I am at the very least competitive with anyone I run into online, and never feel like anyone has an upper hand on me (at least now that I've gotten a 144hz monitor, holy fuck that took me too long to upgrade to).

It seems very awkward to have to move your wrist/arm around a table to move your cursor, it feels entirely alien to me at this point and I cannot personally imagine it being more precise, but obviously it works just fine since 99.999% of "pro" gamers use standard mouses. I feel like maybe more would use them if they were ever introduced to them, but they are a very niche peripheral which is why it's so hard to find decent ones.

Doesn't your wrist hurt after using one of those for so long?

iim using the same one in the pic and after 2 days ive fully gotten used to it, feels good

I got that smallest one first before the HUGE one came out and holy fuck it was fucking awful. Seriously, avoid that one. The bearings were very scratchy, making the cursor pixel skip constantly, sometimes even getting snagged and the ball was far too small. I have giant fucking gorilla dickbeaters though so maybe that's just a "me" problem. This larger model is absolutely perfect for me, I would assume the middle one is probably good for anyone with average sized hands. Seems like the same type of ball/bearings.

Attached: F9fFoTh.png (683x425, 382K)

3.2" is very small, that's about as much as you've got if you're wrist-aiming, and that is a serious mistake.
>and never feel like anyone has an upper hand on me
You're using a DPI toggle, right? Set it to 1/4 and see how it feels. Imagine having that accuracy without losing any speed. It's no joke. Low sense takes some getting used to, but there's a good reason any FPS player will have a big-ass, ugly fucking rug on his desk.
>It seems very awkward to have to move your wrist/arm around a table to move your cursor, it feels entirely alien to me
They're both weird. A mouse maps naturally 1:1 your desktop(flat onto flat) like a drawing tablet does, a trackball your FoV(sphere onto sphere) in 3d games.
>Doesn't your wrist hurt after using one of those for so long?
I've never had any problems, but obviously other people do. I think a lot is to do with having your chair set too low, and the weird angle of your arm(vertical mice are supposedly a big help). Honestly I think it's more of an office kind of thing. FPS games are like the one thing where I'll actually maintain decent posture. Dualshock controller makes me feel 80 years old though, so I'm not some superman.

Why don't consoles use trackballs? They are perfect for couch gaming.

Attached: main1.jpg (1000x683, 108K)

I have my dpi switch set to max currently, so 1500. I used to have it set lower but I noticed I was letting go of the ball frequently to 180 and knew that needed to stop. Focusing on sens/dpi is something relatively new to me (last 5 years or so), before then I had just been using whatever felt comfortable which led to inconsistent aiming when switching between games, so basically what I do now is start the game, point my finger straight down in the middle of the ball, then move it all the way to the right border, reset, then all the way to the left border. I do this until it does an exact 180 on either side and then leave it there. This at least makes my aim more consistent but I'm sure is by no means perfect.

If I'm sniping or need to do something precise, I'll use my middle finger to brake the ball and perform much slower movements, and when needing to flick aim I release the brake. I'm not sure if this constant "sensitivity" adjustment is hurting my aim but I can be fairly consistent with this mouse now. If you're familiar with overwatch, McCree is one of my favorite characters and I can (surprisingly) consistently flick to people's heads, which is something I've been told trackballs are inherently not good at, and that flick aiming requires wrist aim for some reason. Just muscle memory either way I suppose.

My posture is for shit, I hunch over like a cavemen and have both elbows/forearms on the desk, and I have done no testing with desk/chair height or distance from monitor really. Pic is my home chair (yes, really) so there isn't much adjusting to be made there anyway.

Attached: 1555226003283.png (1549x2143, 2.42M)

Yo, got the same one in op's pic. Feels good and solid. The ball is pretty big so it helps with more precise aiming, the sensor isn't bad either. Worth the money.

Yeah that's another facet that I don't take advantage of really. You can use it anywhere, just place it on the arm of a chair or on your thigh and you're good to go for casual browsing or whatever. I'm always at my desk at home so I don't really need to but that's definitely a bonus. I like that controller mod, I've never seen it before. I would rather saw my own feet off and throw them in the trash than play an fps game on a console, but that's a start.

Uh, Steam Controller.

>fps
Ah, that explains it. Never really got into those.

Nice! Do you use the Fn buttons to the left of the ball often? I find them strangely out of reach and never bind them to anything. Also, I had to use the software to make the far right F13 button the right click instead of the normal one, it feels way too cramped on default.

I also like some RTS games like age of empires 2. I think trackball really shines in that genre, at least on a casual level.

Yeah, keeping your sensitivity constant across games is a pain in the ass. I know there's lists, but I can't be bothered to. Shitty FoV options will fuck up the visual feedback anyway. I just take the hit when I'm switching from one game to another. It's not great, but I don't have a neat trick like that.
>I'll use my middle finger to brake the ball
So actual, physical, braking? That's cool. I've no idea if that would throw you off either. I know for a fact mouse accel does, and quite a bit, but with physical feedback and conscious effort then that's a different fucking story.
I don't think a trackball is going to be especially bad for flicking. That's more of a stick thing. A ball tracks movement directly, so it's intuitive, consistent, and has no delay. Just like a mouse, or gyro. When I've tried gyro(similar limitations), I felt the parts that got hit the worst when tuning the sensitivity was very small and precise movements, and very wide ones. Either way, it takes some getting used to but if you try a mouse with low sense you will soon tell the difference. It's so much easier to click away at those tiny-ass heads when they're almost as big a target on your mousepad as they are on your screen. You don't suddenly feel better when you turn down the sense massively with a mouse, but you soon start feeling very lucky as you get used to it and keep dinking people in the head. When you can blow up the target in size by some 4x, well, that's just fucking cheating desu.
>Pic is my home chair
>I hunch over like a cavemen and have both elbows/forearms on the desk

Attached: 1542583914956.jpg (1200x857, 110K)

>braking
Yeah physical friction braking with my middle finger (pic), I press it harder or lighter against the ball to fine tune aiming on the fly. I did it on my old trackman too, I'm not sure you can be precise without doing it. It's just something that developed intuitively over the years, I didn't even notice I was doing it until a friend asked why I had 2 fingers touching it and I looked down at my hand.

>constant sens
I know it's impossible with resolution/fov/bunch of other stuff but holy shit I wish there was a universal number system for sensitivity. My 14 on CS is a 9 on overwatch is a 18 on apex etc. It wasn't an issue back in the day when I played only 1-2 fps games for years at a time but now that I switch between them frequently it can be a real headache. I have to recalibrate every time I change graphical settings. I think on some level I ignored the importance of sens/dpi for so long because I didn't want to deal with the hassle. Noticing a real difference now that I have some sort of standard though.

I had been getting stomped in fps games more and more int he last few years and I figured I was just getting old and accepted it, it felt like everyone was just way better than me. Then my friend finally talked me into getting a 144hz monitor and holy FUCK I didn't believe the hype but it leveled me off with everyone else immediately. I was blind but now I see.

A little off topic but still.

Attached: 8L8CWLz.png (385x359, 223K)

i rest the trackball mouse on my belly.

I started using this and the wired version back when I had a wrist injury. Still get it out every now and then (using it right now because me forearm has been sore most likely from excessive masturbation). You'll be please to know that I have since switched to left and my arm is mending.

Bases OP I have the exact same mouse
Trackballs for gaming has to be one of the best kept secrets ever, once you get used to it the difference is so fucking massive compared to a regular mouse that it's not even funny, especially in FPS games

I'll take your word for it and look into getting one myself. Shouldn't be that hard to reach those frame rates, most comp shooters run pretty damn well anyway.

How the fuck did it break? Those things are built like tanks, they use an identical design for the literal retard market.

I love mine, but I have to switch to a regular mouse for online FPS. You just can't compete with a trackball, my tracking after 20 years of daily trackball use is still at 20-25%, while I easily hit 30-40% with a cheapo real mouse I only pull out for the odd FPS title.

Convince me to use one.

Attached: 1551635860434.jpg (500x730, 51K)

I used to use a thumb trackball for everything including gaming when I was in high school.
Let's say you're playing an FPS and you have to execute a long turn, say 180 degrees or more.
With a regular mouse you just move to the edge of the mousepad, lift up the mouse, bring it back to the center (or the opposite edge) of the mousepad, and keep scrolling.
With a trackball you have to either:
1) roll the ball multiple times (slower)
2) turn your sensitivity way higher
3) spin the ball hard (less accurate)

>thumb
But yeah, even with finger trackballs, it's too much.

Accurate flicking is impossible on a trackball. Not only do you have to have incredibly fine finger control, but you have to have the ability to touch the ball at any point on its surface and move it to any other point, perfectly, while controlling the spin.

For everyday browsing, I would never touch a regular mouse. For most games, the trackball performs fine. But for online FPS? I'd honestly consider using a trackpad before a trackball. Even if you're a genetic freak who is somehow amazing with one, I bet you'd be even better with an actual mouse if you learned how to use it.

It's fun to pop the ball out and swirl it in your mouth. Just don't try to swallow.

You can also stick it in your butt and plop it out over and over then put it back in and your hand smells like your butt.

I promise you it isn't a meme, though going above 144hz to whatever monstrosities they have out now like 244hz IS a meme and the improvement is nowhere near the jump from 60 to 144. I used to have a very hard time aiming at people that were up close, apex legends is a good example because of all the jumping/sliding/wallclimbing in tiny ass rooms with you, I couldn't track them for shit and would lose most close range fights even when I had a shotgun. Like I said I figured I just wasn't a spring chicken anymore and my eyeballs were shorting out on me. I bought a 144 because my friend kept insisting it was my problem, and the difference is staggering. youtu.be/Vy7RaQUmOzE?t=216 (3:36) is what I linked him after my first game when plugging it in. You don't even know what you aren't seeing until you can see it, I can track everything so much better especially up close now.

I dunno read the thread, there are upsides and downsides. The biggest downside is if you've been using a standard mouse for a long time is you will feel like an absolute retard trying to use one of these, which is how I feel when I use a standard mouse. If you give yourself time to get used to it I can guarantee it will be much more comfortable, but I won't say it will make you any better at aiming though I couldn't possibly imagine not using one at this point personally.

180 is very achievable without picking up your fingers, though as I've said I use a finger braking method to achieve fluidity.
1) I can pick up my fingers and reset them faster than you can pick up and reset your entire hand holding an object guaranteed, that isn't even debatable.
2) Sens on a track ball will always be higher just because of the nature of the peripheral, but I don't use a particularly high sensitivity comparatively.
3) If you need to free spin the ball for any reason other than memes in the spawn room, your settings are wrong.

Attached: vzUXk0Q.png (1013x716, 750K)

I used a trackball for a long, long time, and consider it the superior setup for my needs, but Logitech stopped making the cabled version of the Trackman, and their replacement model is only available as wireless AND the two I had both got malfunctioning buttons after a few months, so I'm back to disgusting pleb tier shuffle mice.

If it's balls in your mouth you want I'll teabag your corpse, as is the custom.

>accurate flicking is impossible
I'm not in cloud9 or whatever memeteme is the best right now, but I do just fine. Just like a normal mouse it's muscle memory, you have to move the ball a certain distance and your hand knows the distance without you thinking about it. My flick aim on McCree got pretty damn good, resetting crosshair in between shots, and that's the only way to play that character. The 144 monitor helped a lot also. Thumb trackballs I don't sanction or understand. They very well may be as good once you get used to them but it's next to impossible to place two fingers on the ball for precision without some janky Korean clawfoot grip.

Have you considered that it's the switching causing your aim to be bad? If you stopped and just picked either one your aim would be more consistent guaranteed.

Attached: nZeX7X3.png (600x206, 228K)

if you guys love balls so much then why don't you marry them

Because the dexterity of your wrist / arm is significantly greater than a fucking finger you retard.

Because a standard mouse maps the movement of the arm directly to the movement in the game, without momentum, giving it a kinetic number of 0, while a trackball has 1. The only thing better than a mouse is a -1 input device, which can be emulated on a mouse but not on a trackball.

I've had pretty good experiences with logitech, but I've only used their one trackball The thing was a fucking tank, but no scroll wheel and for your purposes it isn't thumb operated. That's why I stocked up on so many of this model, I know how unstable these trackball markets are. There's that one famous trackball mouse (forgot the name) that goes for like $400+ online because they stopped making them a long time ago and left people with no good alternatives. Pic is an elecom mouse (same company that makes mine) that maybe you might like? I dunno though I've never used one of them. (ELECOM M-XPT1MRXBK on amazon for $72)

Attached: mtlCprx.png (574x563, 298K)

How do you do my fellow kids?

Attached: 078D775A-BB30-4C44-B3C4-47D99E60618B.jpg (3264x2448, 840K)

>this mad that people use a type of mouse he doesn't use
Two fingers*, and at least 50% of the dexterity of your wrist is not used because you're on a horizontal plane. Chill out kiddo, you're still in the majority you'll be ok. You're /just/ like shroud.

Slightly confused by this, how does moving your whole hand/arm not have momentum but rolling a small ball with your fingertips does? Not arguing, actually asking for clarification.

Back off she's MINE!

Attached: z3D1zEo.png (541x726, 886K)

Hey that's pretty shiny. There are a lot more thumb trackball users than I would have thought. I figured they were even more rare than the type I use but I guess not.

Attached: YtujjvL.png (478x304, 288K)