You'll see two primary types of trackballs: thumb-operated, and finger-operated. You can operate a trackball with very little arm movement and no "grip," both of which can lead to or exacerbate repetitive strain injuries. Instead of moving the mouse around to maneuver the cursor, a trackball tracks the directional movement of a sphere mounted in a housing with buttons to mirror a standard mouse's inputs. The trackball is a longstanding alternative to the traditional mouse that's had a cult following for decades. For gamers and creative professionals, who may not be able to use one all the time, the answer may be having two mice-a vertical model for everyday use, and a curved, palm-supporting conventional mouse for occasional precision work. It mitigates the musculoskeletal issues caused by overusing a standard mouse, while retaining most of the experience of using one. That may go away over time, but it's a significant change that you should know about if you want to go down this road.ĭespite this, the vertical mouse will be the best ergonomic mouse option for most people.
Even after spending multiple weeks with a vertical mouse, I've found that it takes me an extra small adjustment to line up the pointer with a small icon. The shape, which moves your hand higher up the body and thus more removed from the mouse sensor, changes the correlation between how you move your hand and how the cursor moves. The downside to the vertical mouse can be its degree of accuracy. Turning the mouse to meet your hand, rather than turning your hand to grip the mouse, removes strain on your arm, and lets you use a more natural wrist motion to move laterally. Meanwhile, the click panels and face buttons have been rotated to the side of the mouse, where they're accessible with the same finger motions that you'd make using a standard mouse. Think of a handshake instead of holding the device with your palm down. The shape is basically a conventional mouse turned 90 degrees, or the base of a mouse with a second sideways one stacked on top of it, which allows you to grip it without twisting your arm. In 2020, the design that comes to mind when most of us hear the phrase "ergonomic mouse" is vertical. With that in mind, let's break down the different kinds of ergo mice that we've reviewed and consider relevant. (That's not necessarily down to lesser hardware, as I'll get to in a moment.) They’re perfectly fine for everyday tasks-word processing, web browsing, using productivity apps like Slack and Zoom-but I've yet to use one that didn't hamper my performance while playing video games, or slow me down with certain apps that demand ultra-precise pointing and cursor movement, like those of Adobe's Creative Suite.Īgain, these designs vary a lot, so you're likely to find that one works better for you than the others. Across the board, these mice tend not to be quite as precise as a more traditional design. Some mice reduce strain on your wrist, but still require you to overextend a finger or thumb, where others may still oblige you to twist your wrist but keep hand movements to a minimum, preventing motions that could lead to damage over time. Unlike ergonomic keyboards, where there are two prominent types (curved and split layouts) that create a sliding scale of balancing familiarity and ergonomic benefit, ergonomic mice are more varied in design, and can convey different benefits. Picking an ergonomic mouse can be a bit tricky, though. There is no ironclad proof that they can actually prevent RSIs, but they are more comfortable for people who already experience pain when using a standard mouse. (Note: If any of these symptoms sounds familiar, please consult a doctor.) Ergonomic mice are designed to limit or eliminate movements that have been known to cause these injuries or aggravate them in people who already suffer from RSIs. All About the ErgoĪ poor office setup can also lead to pain in your back and shoulders. Typing on a keyboard and using a mouse have both been known to cause RSIs after years of using a computer everyday, and these ailments tend to manifest initially as pain, weakness, or numbness in your fingers and wrists.
Repetitive strain injuries-often called RSIs for short-are a set of musculoskeletal disorders caused by holding an unnatural position for too long, or by repeating the same motion over and over again. The common aim: minimizing the threat of repetitive strain injuries you may incur from using a mouse and keyboard for many hours each day.
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