Hasta La Gadget!

We know you’ve got questions, and if you’re brave enough to ask the world for answers, then here’s the outlet to do so. This week’s Ask Engadget inquiry is from Andrew, who loves his trackball and needs to help find a wireless replacement. If you’re looking to ask one of your own, drop us a line at ask [at] engadget [dawt] com.

“I’m a huge fan of trackball mice, and I’ve been using a Logitech Cordless Optical Trackman since 2002. They can’t be popular, because the company no longer makes them, and I haven’t been able to source one except at ridiculous prices on eBay. I’ve even tried the Logitech M570, but I simply can’t use it. I’ve looked at Kensington’s offerings, but they are geared towards thumb-ballers rather than index-finger ballers, so what I want to know is: is any company making a wireless trackball mouse that offers the same experience as my beloved Optical Trackman? Thanks!”

Now, if we’re honest, we did some digging and we really do feel your pain. In our searches, it looks as if the wireless trackball world has collapsed down to the Kensington Orbit or the M570, which you’ve already discounted. So, do any of you, out there in the ether, use a suitable trackball from a niche manufacturer? Heck, are you a niche manufacturer looking for an audience? The comments section below is where you need to go.

Filed under: Peripherals

Comments

Since Nest’s hardware and app go together like birds of a feather, new mobile software was inevitable after it launched the Nest Protect smoke detector. However, the startup darling has also taken the opportunity to completely revamp its app, mostly to make it easier to see all the important goings-on in your house. At a glance, you’ll now get the temperature you’ve set on your Nest Thermostat, whether it’s heating or cooling, the outside temperature and weather, and a big button to switch between home and away mode — in lieu of the former, slightly lame method of tilting your phone to landscape.

You’ll also see an icon for the new Nest Protect smoke alarm, which displays a green ring if everything’s a-okay, and yellow or red one for a heads-up or emergency, respectively. Selecting that icon will bring up the full app, showing all the detectors by room name, a green, yellow or red status for both smoke and carbon monoxide and the status of each alarm’s batteries and sensor. In addition, it’ll show the last WiFi update and time of your last manual test. Finally, the new app will bring a firmware update for the Nest Thermostat itself, with new features like “Quiet Time,” to prevent potentially noisy humidifier equipment from waking up kids, for instance, along with tweaks that make the system more efficient. Hang tight if you’re anxious to get them, because Nest said the new app and thermostat update will happen in a few days and install automatically.

Filed under: Misc, Peripherals

Comments

Source: Nest

Razer has been making some very interesting gaming peripherals for a long time including a number of mice and keyboards designed specifically for gamers. We talked about the new Razer Tartarus gamepad in August. Razer has announced a new series of Battlefield 4 themed gaming peripherals and accessories designed for fans of the video game […]

The folks at ROCCAT have revealed release information at last for the keyboards it showed off earlier this year at CES 2013. Three models appear in this series, each of them with a “top of the line” quality – as marked by ROCCAT, of course, for the whole collection. There’s a standard RYOS MK, another […]

Logitech has been making some of the most popular mice, keyboards, speakers, and other peripherals on the market for a number of years. The company has mouse for just about every need and every user. Logitech has unveiled its latest mouse called the Wireless Mouse M560. The mouse is designed to be ambidextrous allowing it […]