A trackball, used as an input device to control the cursor on a computer screen. Emoji

Objects

A dark, rounded peripheral device featuring a large, central ball resting in a socket. It represents the specialized computer mouse alternative where the user rolls the ball with their thumb or fingers to move the cursor on screen.

Usage Context

Used to discuss retro computing, hardware setups, or specific high-precision workflows like 3D modeling and graphic design. It is often mentioned when comparing modern input devices to legacy gear, or alongside other peripherals like the 🖱 or ⌨️.

History

Trackballs predate the standard mouse, originating from military radar plotting systems in the 1940s. They gained popularity in the 1980s and 90s as space-saving office tools that didn't require a flat desk surface to function, eventually becoming a niche favorite for ergonomic computing.

Details

Glyph

🖲

Unicode

U+1F5B2

Shortcode

:emoji_u1f5b2:

HTML Entity

&#xD83D;&#xDDB2;

Specifications

Vendor Google

Category Objects

Subcategory computer

Unicode Version 6.0

Emoji Version 1.0

License CC-BY 4.0

Google Noto License

Emoji graphics by Twitter/X, licensed under CC-BY 4.0

Noto Color Emoji graphics are copyrighted by Google Inc. and licensed under the Apache License, Version 2.0. Font files may also be subject to the SIL Open Font License, Version 1.1.

Apache 2.0 SIL OFL 1.1 Noto Repository