
The ThinkPad TrackPoint tried to build a better mouse - awiesenhofer
https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2020/6/30/21292182/thinkpad-trackpoint-mouse-nub-button-trackpad-challenges-design-user-input
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4cao
I still use a TrackPoint from time to time (on the ThinkPad X220, not my
primary computer), and personally think it's a way better experience than any
TouchPad, no matter how large, could possibly offer.

It works particularly great wherever there is the need to be precise (such as
when editing graphics) but in general I rarely find myself using the TouchPad
when I have the choice.

The TrackPoint on the ThinkPad can also be used for scrolling when holding the
middle button.

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serf
I buy Thinkpad branded keyboard/trackpoint combos for server environments
where a full size HID setup would be in the way.

I like trackpoints a lot -- the lenovo quality is suffering though. I have a
lot of problems lately with the trackpoints wandering by themselves without
human contact. This used to be because of a center cap that was incorrectly
installed on older ThinkPad notebooks, but these keyboards do it without the
cap at all -- like a problem with calibrating 'true zero'.

Oh well. It's a pretty limited market, gotta take what I can get.

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eemil
For mobile computing, there's no comparison IMO. With a touchpad, you have to
shuffle your hands to the palmrest area to move the mouse. If your machine is
on your lap, that might put your hands in a quite unergonomic position. And it
of course interrupts keyboard input. And there's the subject of accidental
inputs when typing.

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1996
The best is to associate a touchpad and a trackpoint:

\- the touchpad is used for large movements

\- the trackpoint is used for precise positioning

That was done on several laptops, but many reviews lamented the existance of 2
separate mechanism. I wonder if the same people now clamor for the removal of
touchpads on devices with touchscreens?

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kevsim
Not sure I ever really _liked_ the TrackPoint, but the trackpad on the
Thinkpads I had (this is early-mid 2000s) were so terrible that it was at
least an improvement. Doubt I'd be going back after the Macbook Pro trackpad.

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spaceisballer
My X220 trackpad is horrible so I just disabled it. I don’t prefer the
TrackPoint but yeah compared to their trackpad it’s great.

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jamestimmins
Whoa this takes me back to the days of the Dell Inspiron. The TrackPoint felt
so much cleaner and easier to use compared to the barely-responsive trackpads
of the early 2000s.

