Logitech MX Ergo Plus Review: Best In Class

Logitech has long been the king of thumb trackballs, and the Logitech MX Ergo Plus is the flagship thumbball to rule them all.

What makes the Ergo Plus the best of the best?

Once we take a closer look, the reasons become obvious.

Let’s see what makes the MX Ergo Plus Logitech’s best trackball.

The Verdict

The Logitech MX Ergo Plus takes a successful design and perfects it by adding a few changes that make a big difference in comfort and functionality.

The most notable change comes with the addition of adjustable tilt. With up to 3 different angles for your arm to rest in, the tilting function provides the much needed on-demand solution to ergonomics lacking in most trackballs today.

The MX Ergo gives you a mostly pronated position as well as a 20-degree pitch. If you want the wedge which adds another 10-degrees and a bit of height, you will have to spring for the MX Ergo Plus.

The wireless connectivity has always been a shining feature in Logitech trackballs and peripherals.

The MX Ergo and Ergo Plus provide not only the classic Logitech 2.4Ghz with Unifying Receiver, but the convenience of Bluetooth as well.

Logitech Flow even allows you to seamlessly and easily used your trackball between two devices, even being able to copy files between them for increased functionality.

The included micro-USB cable, however, is only meant for charging the battery and won’t work for a latency-free wired connection.

Thankfully a long battery life ensures you won’t have to worry about losing your connection, and you can even use your mouse while charging.

The Logitech MX Ergo and Ergo Plus come with many premium features but this also means a premium price.

Whether these features are worth it is for you to decide, but the overall package makes the Logitech MX Ergo Plus the most well-balanced and complete thumbball that you can buy.

Let’s see what makes the MX Ergo Plus the Best-In-Class for thumb trackballs.

Is the MX Ergo Plus Comfortable?

The Logitech MX Ergo Plus may be the most comfortable thumbball released so far by any brand.

What makes the MX Ergo so comfortable, and what took so long?

10 years ago, Logitech released what became the ideal form for a thumb trackball in the Logitech M570.

While the comfort was nearly unmatched, especially for the arm and shoulder, hand and wrist ergonomics proved to be lacking.

The Logitech MX Ergo and Ergo Plus look to solve this issue and, especially in the case of the Ergo Plus, do so with flying colors.

The Ergo’s shape and hinged design allow for a pronated flat angle, a more comfortable 20 degree tilt, and in the case of the Ergo Plus, even provide a wedge to give you an additional 10 degrees, as well as some additional height.

The difference between the MX Ergo and MX Ergo Plus is simply the included wedge.

The adjustable tilting mechanism means that you can find your sweet spot, and hands of all sizes should be able to find a comfortable position with the Ergo and Ergo Plus.

Multiple materials and textures are used and provide different tactile feelings for each part of your hand.

The trackballs’ hump is not overpronounced, and the top of the trackball is wide enough for even large hands to find supportive.

The shape overall is comfortble from most angles, and most will find it easy to adjust to the shape and size.

While the MX Ergo can feel a but cramped when using it in a pronated postition, the tilted angles provide a more natural feeling in the forearm as well as an increased range of motion for the thumb, allowing for less strain in your thumb and forearm.

The adjustable tilt is just enough to make for the perfect balance of ergonomics and space-saving design.

Ease of Usage

Logitech’s MX Ergo builds upon the success of Logitech’s simple thumbball designs.

All of the buttons are easily accessible and most hands won’t have to reach or stretch in awkward positions to use them. Larger hands with longer fingers may find the topside device-switch and shoulder-navigation buttons to be slightly inconvenient to press.

The thumbball may feel restrictive to use at first, especially in a pronated position or if you aren’t used to using your thumb for cursor control. In a tilted and more natural position, the thumbball is easy to control and allows for a greater range of motion.

Instead of adding a pleathora of buttons for each of your fingers, Logitech keeps it simple and restrained by simply adding a device toggle button, a thumb function button, and side-scrolling to the scroll wheel.

While the possibilities with these for application-specific functions are many, the design also allows for convenient media and playback control.

My preferred layout includes the side scrolling to control volume and thumb button controlling play/pause.

For side and vertical scrolling, a convenient way is to leverage the middle-mouse click. By clicking and holding the scroll wheel for fast-scrolling, you are able to use the ball itself to scroll vertically or horizontally, and simply release the scroll wheel to return to cursor control.

This technique is a convenient way to seamlessly scroll without needing to rely on your index finger or a free-spin mode, which the MX Ergo lacks.

You can also use this the traditional way by clicking once to activate fast scrolling mode, and click once again to revert to cursor control.

Make sure to turn on mouse acceleration or pointer precision. While you may be accustomed to turning this off with a regular mouse, acceleration is often crucial to the functionality of a trackball.

Build Quality

The MX Ergo is heavy and sturdy, and is the heaviest trackball in Logitech’s lineup.

The weight adds to the premium feel and the MX Ergo Plus will feel like a fixture on the desk.

The grey trackball itself is 34mm in diameter. Under the trackball are 3 bearings and a 440DPI sensor.

The tilting plate on the bottom is attached via a strong magnetic connection. The tilt is achieved with pressure placed on one side or the other.

The added wedge is also magnetic, but the connection is not as strong, and you may feel the MX Ergo slide from its initial mounted position.

The bottom of the MX Ergo Plus is simple than that of the M570 and M575 due to the lack of user-replaceable batteries.

A large rechargeable battery and necessity for magnetic tilt funtion means the bottom sports only a power switch and tilt groove.

The access hole is smaller than usual, so you may need to use a pen or other object to pop out your trackball rather than a finger.

There is no port available to stash your Unifiying receiever, which is disappointing to see in the “premium line” of peripherals, including the Mx Vertical and MX Master.

The tilt plate is made from a solid piece of metal, and the wedge is a dense plastic with soft rubberized feeling.

This coating may turn sticky over time, and may need to be cleaned with Isopropyl Alcohol or scraped off completely.

The scroll wheel is higher quality than that found on the M570 and M575, made of a shiny metallic material and ribbing or knurling for tactile grip.

The wheel itself provides a tactile ratcheting, but feels a bit stiff.

The left and right click are a medium weight tactile click, but the shoulder buttons and middle-click are noticeable harder to press.

The MX Ergo uses a micro-USB for charging, which will hopefully be updated in a future revision to bring the MX Ergo into true modernity.

Style and Design

In its untilted position, you may notice how flat the MX Ergo Plus is shaped, which does not sound very “ergo” at all.

The shape however lends itself well to the tilted positions, allowing your hand to find a natural position without forcing you into anything specific.

The design here is, again, form following function in a minimalist way.

Every curve is thoughtfully shaped and placed to fit all variety of hands, and a form that is simply understood, accepted, and even taken for granted – a sign of true design success.

The shape of each curve is simplified, and the use of both hard and soft edges creates a beautiful contrast of light and shadow, which reads elegantly on the gray trackball.

While the MX Ergo uses several different materials and textures, including both rough and smooth plastic as well as hard rubber and sleek metal, the overal design feels unified – even with the thick plastic wedge.

Ridges sculpted into the side of the trackball meant for finger support help accentuate the MX Ergo’s refined shape, especially under the right lighting.

The silhouette is simple, yet proves to be very effective for universal comfort.

While the design is of course targeted for use in the office and may be described as “professional” or “workplace appropriate”, others may call this “boring” or “uninspired” when it comes to colorway.

If you want a burst of color or added flair, try replacing the thumbball with a blue one from your M570 and M575, or ordering a new 34mm ball from Perrix.

While this may not save the aesthetics for your setup, a contrasting red, blue, or purple accent can do a lot for the MX Ergo.

Connectivity

Impressive and reliable wireless connectivity is a mainstay of Logitech Trackballs, and the MX Ergo is no different.

The MX Ergo features dual mode wireless making use of both bluetooth and 2.4ghz technology.

The Bluetooth is simple to use and allows switching between two different devices.

The 2.4ghz wireless is fast with the provided Logitech Unifying Receiver. The Unifying Receiver can support up to 6 devices, and in this case also supports Logitech Flow.

As with most wireless receivers, it is best to maintain a clear line of sight, close proximity, and avoid using a USB 3.0 port for the strongest and fastest connection.

While there is a micro-USB cable included, it is only for charging the device and won’t work as a wired connection.

You can use the mouse while charging. A 1-minute charge will provide you with 24 hours of use, and a full charge gets you close to 4 months under ideal conditions.

Logitech Flow allows you to use your trackball between multiple machines, even being able to copy files between them. Each device simply needs its own Bluetooth or Unifying Receiver, and to be connected to the same network.

From here you can copy or transfer files between the devices as if dragging to a second screen.

If your devices aren’t next to each other, this can get a bit awkward, especially if one receiver is out of range of your trackball.

Software

The MX Ergo includes two software packages: Logitech Options and Logitiech Flow.

Logitech Options is the software that allows you to change your trackball’s settings. You can set DPI in an arbitrary manner with the pointer speed slider, as well as individual button funtionality.

You are able to set universal and application specific functions for the scroll wheel, shoulder navigation buttons, and thumb button (set to precision mode by default). Unfortunately you cannot reprogram the functions for left and right click, but you are able to swap their positions.

Smooth Scrolling can be enabled, as well as inverting the direction of the scrolling.

Logitech Flow can be found in the third tab within Options, and allows you to set up your devices for seamless file transfer and increased productivity.

Why Should You Trust Me?

As an avid trackball user for over a decade, much of that time has been using a Logitech thumbball.

While thumb trackballs like the M570 are great for a number of things like arm/shoulder strain and efficiency, the overall ergonomics left something to be desired in terms of RSI prevention.

Though your shoulder and elbow may be happy with a thumbball, your hand and wrist may not be.

While vertical mice are the king of ergonomic solutions, trackballs like the MX Ergo bring a balance, giving us the best of both worlds.

Such customization in the tilt position was previously only available with a vertical mouse or custom wedge.

Logitech’s MX Ergo Plus succeeds in being the most comfortable and efficient trackball mouse that I have used thus far, finally dethroning the legendary M570 and earning its place as a permanent desk fixture.

Conclusion

The Logitech MX Ergo Plus perfectly balances ergonomics, efficiency, and functionality.

By improving on a successful design with improved connectivity, control, and comfort, the MX Ergo Plus is an ideal solution for anyone who wants the best wireless thumbball in terms of ergonomic design and proven productivity.

If you want the best, ignore the rest.

Somehow not the trackball you were looking for? Check out our guide to choosing a trackball mouse.

Thank you for reading, and remember: comfort is king.