Hi folks,
Before I do something “daft” am I correct in believing that in order to replace the trackball (https://a.aliexpress.com/_mNFyrDC) I need to unscrew the 20+ screws on the back of the keyboard unit ?
Best wishes,
Tom
@thwill so did you have to take the screws out? Mine just came in the mail and I want to know if you had to take them out.
@Rex, I haven’t done it yet (I’d quite like to enjoy it for a while before I screw it up 
), but you apparently do have to unscrew the lot:
When I do so I intend to take photos and post them here for posterity.
Best wishes,
Tom
I’m going to tackle it tonight. I’ll update here how it goes. The new track ball feels so much better rolling just in my fingers, hope it works as good as it feels.
Took about 5 minutes to do. Just don’t flip the keyboard over after you remove the PCB. The keys are loose. Feels a lot better then the original one, not as noisy and more responsive especially for small movements.
Looks better too!
Now I have to order a another one for my uConsole when I get it.
Thanks for blazing the trail @Rex, I have replaced mine now and it is an 100% improvement over the stock trackball 
.
Alas I was so pleased with myself for not getting the key-caps and screws all over the floor that I forgot all about taking a picture of the internals … maybe next time.
Best wishes,
Tom
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I confirm you do need to take the screws out, and everyone with a devterm needs to do this upgrade: It turns the trackball from something completely unusable to one that works reasonably well, and its fairly cheap to do
OK, I’ve just ordered some replacement trackballs from Aliexpress, as my original started working in only 3 directions, and the cursor ended up at the top of the screen. the replacements have arrived and I fitted one. It’s worse. There’s no movement in any direction.I checked all 10 that I got and none of them seem to move the magnet spindles when the ball is turned. the ball seems too slippery or is too small or something. This is the item I ordered:
https://fr.aliexpress.com/item/1005005502983903.html?spm=a2g0o.order_list.order_list_main.5.4d715e5bqmJ8rY&gatewayAdapt=glo2fra
Does anyone have a link to a trackball that does work? Is there a more expensive version that actually works as a trackball?
PS: The link at the top of this thread doesn’t work for me as apparently that item can’t be shipped to my address. That’s why I didn’t order that one. I tried, but had to find something that looked the same. Looks like it wasn’t
Hi @amemjet, they certainly look the part. I hear what you say about the spindles not moving and I know it’s unlikely, but just in case have you tried rotating the component as I think it is possible to install it 90’ out of alignment.
PS: The link at the top of this thread doesn’t work for me as apparently that item can’t be shipped to my address.
AliExpress often tells me that, and it frequently turns out to be wrong, I think it’s possible it uses country specific links and if they don’t match the country you are in then you sometimes get that message.
Best wishes,
Tom
@Rex i am also having the same issue
Like @thwill said make sure it’s in the right orientation.
Did you get the black or white ones?
Yes, they looked like the right part. I haven’t tried rotating them, no. I’ve ordered some more and will try that when they arrive if I still have problems. Even when holding the parts in my hand I could see that the rollers weren’t turning at all.
i tried buying the parts and Aliexpress was unhappy.
I’ve ordered a couple of more expensive ones locally, we’ll see what happens with them.
I got black ones, as they matched the ones I saw someone else used. They looked rubbery in the photo but weren’t. I’ll post back here when I see if these work or not.
i’d try rotating them first, make that little silver nub is pointing down towards the spacebar that’s how I orientated mine.
Yes, the trackball has two stubs on two sides, I think these have to go on the sides in the keyboard where there’s just one tab. It should make more sense when you are looking at the space the trackball goes into.
Anyway, I bought two trackballs from the UK, for about 2 GBP instead of about 6 GBP for 10. I’ve just fitted it and it works perfectly. The acceleration is great and it is very usable. So much so, that I’m thinking that I won’t need to take a wireless mouse with me when I have the devterm. The one I bought that works is this one:
Before I fitted it I had a look at how the rods with magnets moved when I rolled the ball, and it looked good. Roll the ball and the rods turned. That didn’t happen on the cheaper balls. It looks like the serrations on the rods that the ball grips are different, and the ball looks and feels a bit rubbery.
Oh dear! I’ve just noticed that they are out of stock.
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