The Kensington SlimBlade Pro Trackball mouse is a wireless trackball mouse from Kensington's SlimBlade lineup. It features a flat, low-profile, ambidextrous design that allows you to rest your wrist on your work surface while manipulating the trackball with your fingers. Instead of having a traditional scroll wheel, you twist the trackball clockwise or counter-clockwise to scroll. It has four large buttons on its top surface around the trackball that you can program using the companion software.
Our Verdict
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro is decent for work use. It's a trackball mouse with a low-profile shape that allows you to be flexible in how you use it, and it offers an ergonomic advantage if you have limited mobility. You can connect it with up to two devices at a time using its USB receiver and Bluetooth. While it has good build quality with minimal flex, the buttons feel somewhat cheap, and it has a glossy finish that attracts fingerprints. It lacks a traditional scroll wheel, further adding to the learning curve of using a trackball mouse.
- Ambidextrous low-profile design feels comfortable to use.
- Good build quality.
- Supports Bluetooth and multi-device pairing.
- Few programmable buttons.
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro is inadequate for FPS gaming, as it's not designed for this use. While its sensor is reasonably accurate and precise, its click latency is bad, so you'll experience delays, especially if you're using it wirelessly. Also, it has a low maximum polling rate and is very heavy, although this isn't an issue since it's designed to be stationary during use. With all that said, it has good build quality and is comfortable to use once you get used to it.
- Ambidextrous low-profile design feels comfortable to use.
- Good build quality.
- Reasonable sensor accuracy.
- Click latency is inadequate for competitive or reaction-based gaming.
Low maximum polling rate of 125Hz.
- Heavy trackball isn't easy to move quickly and accurately.
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro is okay for MMO gaming despite not being designed for this use. It's a trackball mouse with good build quality that's comfortable to use once you get used to it. It has four large programmable buttons on its top shell, with additional separate inputs that register upon pressing two buttons simultaneously. Still, it doesn't have nearly as many buttons as dedicated MMO mice. While its sensor is reasonably accurate, it has a low maximum polling rate and high click latency, so you'll notice some delays while gaming.
- Ambidextrous low-profile design feels comfortable to use.
- Good build quality.
- Click latency is inadequate for competitive or reaction-based gaming.
Low maximum polling rate of 125Hz.
- Fewer buttons than dedicated MMO mice.
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro has inadequate raw performance for competitive gaming but is adequate for desktop use. Its sensor is reasonably accurate, but its click latency is high, especially in wireless mode. Additionally, its maximum polling rate is capped at 125Hz, which can lead to a somewhat sluggish-feeling cursor movement, especially if you're using a monitor with a higher refresh rate.
- Reasonable sensor accuracy.
- Click latency is inadequate for competitive or reaction-based gaming.
Low maximum polling rate of 125Hz.
Changelog
- Updated Aug 19, 2025: We've converted this review to Test Bench 1.5.1. This update removes less relevant or redundant elements, including several videos. We've also adjusted our Sensor Latency testing, resulting in minor score changes. See our full 1.5.1 changelog for details.
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Updated Apr 30, 2025:
We've mentioned additional colorways in the Differences Between Variants section of the review.
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Updated Dec 18, 2024:
We've retested this mouse and determined it's no longer capable of sustaining a 500Hz polling rate over a wired connection. Its maximum polling rate is now 125Hz across all connection types. For more details, see the Sensor Specifications section of the review.
- Updated Jul 24, 2024: We've added a link to the newly-reviewed Ploopy Adept Trackball to the Click Latency section of this review.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro is available in Black/Grey, Black/Red, and White/Silver. We bought and tested the Black/Red colorway. Here's the label of our unit.
Popular Mouse Comparisons
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro is a productivity-focused trackball mouse. It features the same minimal, low-profile design as the wired-only Kensington SlimBlade Trackball. It features four large buttons on its top surface, and you operate it by resting your palm on your work surface and manipulating the trackball with your fingers. Instead of using a traditional scroll wheel, you twist the trackball clockwise or counter-clockwise to scroll. Its operation is rather unconventional compared to other trackballs like the Logitech MX ERGO, but its shape allows you to be more flexible in your grip type, which is beneficial if you have specific mobility needs. It's on the large side, so it might be unwieldy if you have small hands.
For more options, see our recommendations for the best trackball mouse, the best ergonomic mouse, and the best mouse.
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro Trackball and the Logitech MX ERGO are wireless trackball mice. The main difference is that the Kensington features an ambidextrous, low-profile design, whereas the Logitech has a right-handed sculpted design with an adjustable tilt angle. The Logitech has a more conventional set of buttons and a scroll wheel, whereas the Kensington has four large, programmable buttons on its topside. These design differences allow you to be more flexible in how you grip the Kensington, which can be beneficial if you have specific mobility needs. Build quality-wise, the Kensington has a glossy finish that attracts fingerprints, and its buttons feel cheap. The Logitech, on the other hand, has excellent overall build quality.
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro Trackball and the Kensington SlimBlade Trackball are trackball mice from the same lineup. The main difference between the two mice is the SlimBlade Pro is wireless with Bluetooth and 2.4GHz support, while the SlimBlade is wired only. Otherwise, they feature the same low profile, ambidextrous design.
The Kensington SlimBlade Pro Trackball and the ELECOM HUGE M-HT1DRBK are wireless trackball mice designed for productivity. The Kensington has a minimal, ambidextrous design that allows for more flexibility in grip type. In contrast, the ELECOM has a right-handed design with more buttons and a dedicated scroll wheel. Both mice are on the large side and can be unwieldy for users with small hands.
Test Results
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