I recently bought an Elecom Bitra from Amazon.com. I live in Europe, so that is not where I usually shop. I ordered from the US site because the current Bitra is not available here yet.
This is a relaunch. Elecom first released the Bitra in 2019, then discontinued it in 2023. It was gone for about two years. In late 2025 they brought it back, with some updates, and for now that new version shows up on Amazon in the US. Europe is still waiting. I did not want to wait, so I imported one.
I have been using it for a little while now and I already like it a lot. While it is small, it is convenient and it feels great.
This is my initial review.
At my desk I use a Kensington Expert. When I am on the go I have been using a Kensington Orbit Scroll. Both are solid trackballs. The Expert is the one I do not want to leave behind, but it is also the one that has no business living in a backpack. The Orbit Scroll is the travel option I have been reaching for. The Bitra is now joining that rotation, and I plan on using it on the go for a while.
The first thing you notice is the size. Elecom calls this a mobile trackball, and they mean it.
I put a Dutch library card next to it for scale. That card is credit-card sized. The Bitra is roughly the same length as the long edge of the card, and only a bit wider than the short edge. It sits in the left half of its open case and still leaves room for the card on the right. This is not a compact mouse in marketing language. This is actually small.
It is an index-finger trackball, Bluetooth, powered by a single AAA battery. Five buttons, including the scroll wheel. Silent clicks. Nothing flashy. The body is matte black, slightly contoured, and it tapers toward the front. The ball is a 34 mm metallic sphere set into the top of the device. There is an ELECOM mark on the palm rest that you will only notice if you look for it.
For something this small, it still has enough of a shape that your hand knows where to go. That is the part that surprised me. Tiny input devices often feel like a compromise you tolerate because they fit in a bag. The Bitra feels like a real trackball that happens to be tiny.
The included carrying case is the other thing I really like.
It is a semi-hard zip case, black inside and out, with a soft lining. The left side has a molded compartment that holds the Bitra perfectly in place. The right side has a small mesh pocket. There is no rattling, no spare pouch you have to remember to pack, and no chance of the ball picking up whatever else is living at the bottom of your bag.
A lot of travel mice get a soft sleeve, if they get anything at all. This case feels like it was designed with the device, not added as an afterthought. Open it, take the Bitra out, zip the case shut. That is the whole ritual.
For a device I intend to throw in a bag next to a laptop and a KeyboardIO Preonic, that matters more than a spec sheet. The Bitra is small enough that without a proper case it would disappear into a pocket of cables and collect lint. With this case, it is a finished travel kit.
Pairing over Bluetooth was uneventful, which is exactly what I want from a pointing device. It connected, the pointer moved, and I could get back to work.
The feel is better than the size suggests. The ball rolls smoothly. Cursor movement is controlled enough for coding and browsing, without the twitchy feeling some compact mice have. The silent clicks are a nice touch for trains, planes, and shared tables. You can use this in a quiet space without announcing every click.
I am not going to pretend this replaces the Kensington Expert. The Expert is a large, heavy, finger-operated trackball that stays put on a desk. My hand has a home there. The Bitra is also finger-operated, but it is a different tool. You hold more of the device in your hand. The ball sits under your index finger. After a short adjustment it feels natural, not toy-like.
That is the convenience part. I can take it out of the case, put it next to a laptop, and work. I do not need a mousepad. I do not need much desk. I do not need to clear a patch of cafe table. The Bitra stays where I put it and the pointer goes where I want.
I now have three trackballs in regular use, and they each have a job.
Here is the travel kit on a desk: KeyboardIO Preonic on the left, Bitra in the middle, Kensington Orbit Scroll on the right. Next to the Preonic and the Orbit, the Bitra looks almost like a toy. It is not. It is just that small.
The Kensington Expert remains the desk device. Larger ball, more mass, more wrist rest, more endurance for a full day of work. If I am at home, that is what I use.
The Kensington Orbit Scroll has been the on-the-go device. It has the scroll ring, and it is still much smaller than the Expert. It travels well enough, but it is not small in the way the Bitra is small. It also does not come with a case that makes packing it a non-event.
The Bitra is the one I can forget is in the bag until I need it. That is the whole point of this purchase. I wanted something I would actually take with me, not something I would leave at home because it is almost as much hassle as bringing the Expert.
Would I use the Bitra as my only trackball? Probably not. After a long day I still prefer the Expert. But for travel, hotels, trains, and working away from my desk, this is the one that makes sense. I plan to give it a proper stretch as my mobile trackball and see how it holds up.
All in all, after a short time with the Bitra I am glad I imported it. I wanted a smaller travel trackball, Europe does not have this relaunch yet, and the US Amazon listing was the way to get one. It delivered on the thing that actually matters on the go: it is small, it feels good to use, and the case means I am not afraid to throw it in a bag.
Would I recommend it? If you already like trackballs and you travel with a laptop, yes. If you want one device to do everything, get an Expert and stay at your desk. The Bitra is not trying to be that. It is trying to be the trackball you will actually take with you.
It succeeds at that.
If you have any questions or things you want me to share on my experience with this trackball, let me know. Easiest is a DM on Twitter: @appforce1 or Mastodon: @appforce1@hachyderm.io.
