ProtoArc EM05 NL Review – An Ergonomic Trackball

Trackballs often occupy a niche in the world of computer mice. Unlike regular mice, you don’t move the entire device—only the ball inside the trackball. This is easier on the arms, but feels unfamiliar to many users. For some users, however, trackballs can still be a very practical choice: first, of course, for those who have trouble moving their arms, and second, for those who have very little room to move. This might be due to a small desk or working on the go—such as on a train or in a camper.

The selection of trackballs is rather limited, and many models have been on the market for years without major changes. This makes it all the more gratifying to find a manufacturer like ProtoArc that’s launching several new trackballs onto the market—models that meet modern demands without being priced out of reach. In this ProtoArc EM05 NL review, we take a look at a model specifically optimized for ergonomics, designed for thumb-operated trackball control.

Specifications

Dimensions	146.8 x 100.3 x 67.6 mm
Weight	168 g
Connectivity	Wireless via USB and Bluetooth Low Energy
Compatibility	Windows XP and later (USB), Windows 8 and later (Bluetooth), Mac OS X 10.10 and later, Android 4.3 and later (Bluetooth)
Sensitivity	200 / 400 / 800 / 1200 / 1600 DPI
Battery	500 mAh
Wireless range	10 m
Warranty	2 years
Price	€56.99

By the way: The “NL” in the name stands for “No Light” and refers to the current generation of trackballs featuring a more professional design without lighting around the balls. The lighting on earlier generations was somewhat out of place in an office setting and had a negative impact on battery life.

Packaging and Contents

• Box with a professional design
• Everything is well and compactly packaged
• Charging cable, manual, quick start guide, and cleaning cloth are included

The ProtoArc EM05 NL comes in a box with a sophisticated, high-quality look. The box is compact relative to its contents, and the space is used efficiently. The sides of the box are double-layered for good protection. In addition, the accessories arranged around the trackball provide further protection from above and below. Included are, for example, a quick start guide and a brief company profile.

The trackball itself is housed in a plastic pouch. There’s also a box containing the necessary accessories: a multilingual manual, a small cleaning cloth, and a USB charging cable.

Overall, everything is easy to unpack and easily accessible. And it includes everything you’ll practically need.

Design

• Clean look with an ergonomic design
• Fits comfortably in the hand
• Elegant dark gray finish

The ProtoArc EM05 NL is a trackball whose ergonomic design is optimized for right-handed use. It’s hard to tell from the pictures that trackballs—including the EM05—are usually significantly larger than standard mice. So it fits comfortably in the hand. Typically, on trackballs with thumb controls, the ball is located on the side, but due to the ergonomic vertical design, this ball has been moved to the top. Apart from that, it features the two classic buttons, two small black buttons for “forward” and “back” (for browsing, for example), an orange button to adjust sensitivity, and a scroll wheel between the main buttons that also functions as a third mouse button.

The design looks almost futuristic, but is engineered to conform well to the shape of the hand. Ergonomics is one of the ProtoArc brand’s top priorities, and that’s evident here—both visually and physically. What you don’t feel while using it, however, are the grooves along the bottom edge of the palm rest. You can easily feel them with your finger, but once your hand is resting on the keyboard, it feels quite secure, and you don’t notice these “ridges” at all.

The trackball comes in matte black. However, the balls are available in different colors. In our review, we tested the dark gray version, but the ball is also available in red, blue, purple, and silver.

Build Quality

• The build quality is better than that of competing products from Kensington
• Impressively quiet main buttons
• The scroll wheel feels a bit scratchy

Having used Kensington trackballs for years—including various models (Orbit, Orbit with Scroll Ring, and Expert), and quite happily at that—I have to say that the ProtoArc makes a better impression in terms of build quality. It feels more premium to the touch, the main buttons are surprisingly quiet, and there are no plastic creaking noises, which is actually always the case with my Kensington models. The ProtoArc’s surface is matte and feels good, but fingerprints show up quickly. And because of the fairly fine surface finish, I suspect it might wear down to a high gloss fairly quickly after some use. But since this is purely speculative, it can’t be factored into the test rating, as the testing period was too short to reach that point. And even if that were to happen, it wouldn’t affect the device’s functionality.

On the underside, there are three contact points that look almost like those on a standard mouse, but unlike a mouse, these aren’t glide surfaces—they’re rubberized stoppers designed to keep the trackball from slipping. This also means that, in principle, you can use the trackball without a mousepad—unless you prefer a soft surface. The weight, which at about 170 grams is noticeably higher than that of modern mice, also contributes to its stability. However, since you don’t actually have to move the trackball, the extra weight feels more solid.

Another positive feature is the included cable, which has a fabric-wrapped exterior and comes with a cable tie. This makes the cable feel higher-quality than “standard” cables with a plain PVC coating.

While the keys feel great and are surprisingly quiet, the scroll wheel felt a bit gritty, though it was fully functional and provided a satisfying click with each step. The function keys are also quiet, though noticeably more audible than the main keys. As mentioned earlier, the main keys are impressively quiet and strongly remind me of the already very quiet buttons on the mouse from the Cherry Stream Desktop Comfort Set.

Setup

• Connection via USB dongle and Bluetooth
• Multiple devices can be paired via Bluetooth
• Switch between connections with a simple press of a button

The ProtoArc EM05 NL can be connected in two ways. First, using the USB dongle via a 2.4 GHz connection—that is, network technology. And second, via Bluetooth. There’s a button on the bottom that cycles through three options. These are creatively labeled 1, 2, and 3. Honestly: I would have thought a more self-explanatory label would have made more sense. 1 is the connection via the USB dongle, which comes pre-installed at the bottom of the trackball and can be plugged into a computer. 2 and 3 are Bluetooth connections. This means you can pair the trackball with multiple devices and switch between them. On the sister model, the EM03 NL, the labeling was more intuitive, featuring the dongle symbol and “Bluetooth 1” and “Bluetooth 2.” I would definitely consider it sensible to adopt this type of labeling and use it consistently across the different models.

The different connection options have their advantages. The USB connection is a bit faster, and you don’t have to click through any setup screens. But if you want to connect multiple devices, don’t want to risk losing the USB dongle while working on the go with your laptop, or have simply lost the USB dongle at some point, the Bluetooth connection is still available. By the way, the trackball appears as “ProtoArc EM05NL” via Bluetooth, so there’s no confusion.

Before use, you should charge the wireless trackball’s battery: When you plug in the cable, a red light turns on under the scroll wheel. Once the light turns green, the battery is charged and you can unplug the cable.

First Impressions

• An Unfamiliar Hand Position at First
• Thumb control of the trackball
• It took several days to develop “new muscle memory”

When testing the ProtoArc EM05 NL, the first impression is, of course, key. And this one was… strange. But that’s to be expected when using a new device with a unique design. The ergonomic design allows your hand to rest on the trackball in an unusually relaxed position. That sounds good, but it removes a kind of “base pressure” that you might be used to. Otherwise, it takes a while to get your bearings. Your “muscle memory” needs to be recalibrated at first until you get used to the grip and the positions of the important buttons and the scroll wheel.

It’s also worth noting here that trackballs controlled by the thumb differ significantly from models controlled by the index and middle fingers in terms of operation. The ProtoArc EM05 NL, for example, is designed so that the ball is moved with the thumb. Personally, I’m used to trackballs with a “center ball” and control via the index and middle fingers, and I find moving it that way easier than with the thumb. But these are very personal preferences and the downside of an online review: Without a direct comparison, it’s hard to say what you’ll like if you don’t already know in advance. For me, though, the operation felt a bit more unfamiliar than with its sister model, the ProtoArc EM03 NL, which features a center ball.

So getting used to the EM05’s design wasn’t a matter of 5 minutes; it took quite a while longer until using it felt natural. After about an hour, the controls became easier to use, which made handling the trackball feel fairly straightforward. It took about two to three workdays to fully adjust to using it naturally, without having to think about it. And even then, I still wasn’t as precise as I am with a center-mounted trackball.

Setup and Use

• No software installation required
• DPI switch for adjusting between 200 and 1600 DPI
• The trackball can be removed for cleaning

Fortunately, the ProtoArc EM05 NL doesn’t require any additional software. Consequently, there’s very little to configure. The only button that really has anything to do with settings is the orange DPI selector switch, located behind the scroll wheel. You can use this to cycle through and choose between 200, 400, 800, 1,200, and 1,600 DPI. For everyday use, 400 DPI feels just right to me. After getting used to the controls, even 800 DPI feels a bit snappier and is still easy to handle. The higher DPI settings result in more cursor movement with less physical movement of the mouse.

This lets you move from one spot to another faster, but precision decreases, which is why I consider 1,200 and 1,600 DPI to be excessive, at least for everyday use. For detailed work, such as pixel-precise graphic editing, using 200 DPI can also be useful, even though it otherwise feels too sluggish.

By the way, there’s a hole on the bottom. You actually insert your finger here when you want to push the ball out for cleaning. You should clean it regularly to keep the ball moving smoothly and prevent dirt from interfering with the sensor.

Work and Gaming

• Designed specifically for office work
• Healthier posture thanks to vertical design
• Less suitable for gaming, though possible once you get used to it

The ProtoArc EM05 NL is designed for ergonomic everyday work and is therefore intended more for office use than for gaming. In this regard, it’s very nice that the mouse buttons are so quiet that colleagues in the office—especially in open-plan offices—aren’t disturbed by constant clicking noises.

And the ergonomic, “vertical” design also offers health benefits when you spend the entire workday using it:

• Prevention of carpal tunnel syndrome: Rotating the hand reduces pressure on the carpal tunnel in the wrist. This prevents tingling, numbness, or pain in the fingers.
• Prevention of RSI syndrome (“mouse arm”): Typical symptoms of overuse caused by repetitive movements (pain in the wrist, forearm, or tension radiating up to the shoulder) can often be alleviated or prevented by the ergonomic design. This is especially true here, since trackballs are moved less frequently than mice anyway.
• Relief for the shoulder and neck area: Since the arm and its muscles rest more relaxed on the table, you often unconsciously raise your shoulders less.

As mentioned earlier, gaming isn’t the main focus. But of course, it’s still possible to play games. I conducted the test while playing a round of *Command & Conquer* from the Remastered Collection—a game that requires intensive mouse use and precise clicking. Especially at the beginning, the controls felt very unfamiliar, and I wasn’t able to achieve my usual level of clicking and scrolling precision. But over time, it got a little better, and it helped me develop a better feel for the ProtoArc EM05. So if you’re into intense gaming, this trackball probably isn’t for you, but once you’ve gotten used to it, you’ll at least be able to play the occasional game after work.

Battery Life

• Not a very large battery
• Can be used for long periods without any issues
• Battery charge indicator via Bluetooth, not via USB dongle

The ProtoArc EM05 NL’s battery has a capacity of 500 mAh, which isn’t as much as, for example, the EM01 NL, which has a capacity of 900 mAh. But how much of a difference does that actually make? At the start of the test, I fully charged this battery once, which took about an hour via USB—though, of course, the battery wasn’t completely drained when it arrived. The test period spanned a few weeks.

The battery level was not reported during the test, either via USB or Bluetooth. But over the entire period, it wasn’t necessary to recharge the ProtoArc EM05 NL again. So in that regard, there were no issues, and you’re not constantly having to recharge it.

Conclusion

Clearly, getting used to the handling of vertically designed ergonomic mice and trackballs takes a bit more effort than with standard mice. Especially since, statistically speaking, the likelihood that you’ve already used a comparable model is very low. However, once you’ve made it through this adjustment period, the risk of hand posture problems will be significantly reduced compared to standard mice—and even compared to vertical mice. The ProtoArc EM05 NL is therefore definitely worth recommending, even if it does require an intensive adjustment period. One tip, though: If you want to use this trackball, you should still keep a standard mouse on hand in case you need to let someone else use the computer on short notice.