Trackball or mouse, what's better for PC gaming?

[orestesdd]

I am using a trackball for my PC, but while playing ME2, I found very inconvenient to use my trackball to hack the circuit board in the game. So I just want to know if it is better a mouse for PC gaming? If so, what mouse do people here recommend? Btw, I am using a trackball because I don't have enough room on my desk to use a mouse.

Thanks.

 

[ross_mitchell]

For shooters I would say that a mouse is always better, but for RTS games I would recommend a trackball.

 

[shanky887614]

it depends really, if you are using it for a long time id say a mouse is better for gaming

especially shooting/action games

 

[benski]

I prefer a mouse for everything but marble madness.

 

[bystander]

Obviously this is person preference, but a mouse gives me a lot more accuracy when moving the mouse or view point longer distances.

 

[FlintIronStagg]

Mouse definitely

 

[Zylen92]

if trackball was better pro gamers would use it. But i have never seen anyone. In my opinion mouse beats trackball because some mouses (like mamba) have incredible dpi which none trackball can compete with.

 

[orestesdd]

So if we agree that a mouse is better than a trackball, what mouse should I get? Please, recommendations for under $60.00 USD. Thanks.

 

[orestesdd]

Best answer selected by orestesdd.

 

[Zylen92]

i am a kind a razer guy so let me give you some suggestions (by the way i have used these mouses)
1-mamba (can be used wireless or with wire)
2-deathadder (same shape as mamba-which is great if you like big mouses- a low dpi version of mamba and mamba has 2 more buttons on it)
3-lachesis(this one is long in shape but have a great feeling when you hold it. different than most mouses)
4-Diamondback (a classic)
now before you buy i strongly recommend going to a electronics shop and try them there. There is more than meets the eye when buying a mouse. It is like buying a new shoe which you don't know what it is made of. Read them about in forums or write your questions here. I will reply as soon as i can.

 

[benski]

http://www.amazon.com/Logitech-G500-Programmable-Gaming-Mouse/dp/B002J9GDXI%3FSubscriptionId%3D01CTTZ2EMJ1DMFJYZ302%26tag%3Dlogicbuy-20%26linkCode%3Dsp1%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3DB002J9GDXI

 

[Nighthawk42]

if trackball was better pro gamers would use it. But i have never seen anyone. In my opinion mouse beats trackball because some mouses (like mamba) have incredible dpi which none trackball can compete with.

Trackballs actually need to be subdivided into finger and thumb as they're quite different and some people who really like one dislike the other. I'd suggest someone try all 3 controllers and see which works best for them. Mice however have a huge advantage simply from being what most people experience first and each controller requiring time to get comfortable with it.

There are a number of reasons a trackball SHOULD be superior to a mouse and it seems odd that we have gaming mice but no gaming trackballs. I think the reason we do is simply because so many more people use mice for general controllers.

Trackball Pros vs Mouse
+Trackball gives much better control and speed in combination with less sacrifice of the other.
+Trackball is a more natural use of your hands for moving. With prolonged use my wrists get sore with a mouse, but not with a trackball.
+Fingers (or thumb) are naturally capable of much quicker and more accurate motion than our arms are.
+Trackball never needs to be picked up and moved over to keep turning and operates in a tiny desk space with no problem.

Mouse Pros vs Trackball
+Mouse leaves your fingers more easily available to hit combinations of buttons than a finger trackball (while for me at least, the thumb trackball does not have as big an advantage over the mouse in terms of movement control).
+Mouse gives you a ton of options for gaming units while there are no true gaming trackballs (although CST LaserTRAC 2545 comes close).


Overall though, I think I'll continue gaming with a Logitech Trackman until someone comes out with something better or I decide to give the CST LaserTRAC 2545 a try.

Also see: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/108400-13-perfect-trackball

 

[Soryu]

if trackball was better pro gamers would use it. But i have never seen anyone. In my opinion mouse beats trackball because some mouses (like mamba) have incredible dpi which none trackball can compete with.

Trackballs actually need to be subdivided into finger and thumb as they're quite different and some people who really like one dislike the other. I'd suggest someone try all 3 controllers and see which works best for them. Mice however have a huge advantage simply from being what most people experience first and each controller requiring time to get comfortable with it.

There are a number of reasons a trackball SHOULD be superior to a mouse and it seems odd that we have gaming mice but no gaming trackballs. I think the reason we do is simply because so many more people use mice for general controllers.

Trackball Pros vs Mouse
+Trackball gives much better control and speed in combination with less sacrifice of the other.
+Trackball is a more natural use of your hands for moving. With prolonged use my wrists get sore with a mouse, but not with a trackball.
+Fingers (or thumb) are naturally capable of much quicker and more accurate motion than our arms are.
+Trackball never needs to be picked up and moved over to keep turning and operates in a tiny desk space with no problem.

Mouse Pros vs Trackball
+Mouse leaves your fingers more easily available to hit combinations of buttons than a finger trackball (while for me at least, the thumb trackball does not have as big an advantage over the mouse in terms of movement control).
+Mouse gives you a ton of options for gaming units while there are no true gaming trackballs (although CST LaserTRAC 2545 comes close).


Overall though, I think I'll continue gaming with a Logitech Trackman until someone comes out with something better or I decide to give the CST LaserTRAC 2545 a try.

Also see: http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/108400-13-perfect-trackball

Wow, this is by far the absolute best answer to this thread.
In my opinion I believe trackballs are far superior, the only reason I'm using a mouse is the lack of good trackballs designed for gaming. I do not like the thumb style ones at all but the center style ones make my precision with aiming and my versatility far superior to anything else I've yet to use.

One of the great points he makes is that the first thing you get exposed to is a normal mouse, and practice does make perfect. So if you've been gaming with a normal mouse for years, then I really suggest you don't stop unless you are really looking to up your game and are willing to put some serious time in to breaking a lot of old habits.

Initially your normal reflex is going to be to move your arms while gaming and it's going to cause your arms and fingers to twitch in reaction. My first online FPS gaming experiences were with a trackball and I used them for 15 years. Natural things that started to happen immediately were things like clocking the mouse to certain angles immediately for headshots. You just get used to what degree the ball has to be moved to hit the head and it would start to happen naturally. Another thing would be 180 degree turns with a fast spin of the ball and grabbing the ball to stop at 180° for a "crazy ivan" and then a fast flip back. This tended to happen on corners too, you start to just clock the ball quickly to 90° for the corner sweeps. I recommend trying them out at least, see how you like them. If you can get a good one and get past the fact that you won't have a lot of buttons to use they can be a great benefit. But since there isn't any development on good trackballs for gaming don't expect to be happy using them.

 

[Vince Yim]

I am using a trackball for my PC, but while playing ME2, I found very inconvenient to use my trackball to hack the circuit board in the game. So I just want to know if it is better a mouse for PC gaming? If so, what mouse do people here recommend? Btw, I am using a trackball because I don't have enough room on my desk to use a mouse.

Thanks.

It's largely a matter of what you're the most used to. I've been using thumb-movement trackballs exclusively for at least 15 years, starting with the original Logitech TrackMan Marble, then the Microsoft Trackman Optical, then the Logitech Trackman Wheel. Like a previous poster mentioned, they're great for RTS games and I've gotten used to them for shooters as well, although I'm anything but a pro-gamer.

Sadly, that style of trackball is really hard to come by, and the only one available is Logitech M570, which is wireless.

 

[solo013]

You could say I'm fluent in both Mouse and Trackball. I currently use a Logitech M570 Wireless Trackball, which.does have a gaming mode option through official software. The M570's software also allows complete button customization on a per application basis. Also, being wireless is not a downside to this trackball like it is to some mice. A good battery will last about a year in it, even with constant use. You can pair 5 or 6 other wireless Logitech devices with the same usb receiver, and you could also have one of their mice paired to it at the same time. This would allow you to switch between mouse and trackball seamlessly. So let me tell you why I have a trackball...

For about two decades I was a mouse guy, until I developed slight carpal tunnel and tendonitis in my wrist and hand. Also, besides gaming I do a lot of photo and video editing, web & graphic design, and music production. I had been doing so much video production that using the mouse had actually thrown one of the bones in my wrist out of alignment. I was told to get a vertical ergo mouse, but since I done video editing I opted to try the trackball. I found that for video editing a trackball is hands down a million times better. It's also easier on photo editing, music production and writing, web and graphic design. Although, for straight up art I use a Wacom Pro Tablet. My wrist has healed a lot, but if I use a mouse very much it does twinge a little bit usually.

For gaming I've found that the trackball is very awesome for pretty much everything except where you have to aim at something. I opt to use a controller on any game that I possible can, because to me they are far superior to mice and trackballs. I'm also more comfortable with a controller than the others. Also, to me trackballs are far superior than trackmans, due to the ergonomics of them. I do agree with what Nighthawk42 said as well. One other thing that some gaming mice have over trackballs is the amount of customizable buttons on them. I've seen some with 12 extra miniature function buttons on the side of them.