> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://aftermath.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# The Nape Pro Is Not Like Other Trackballs
- URL: https://aftermath.site/keychron-nape-pro-review/
- Published: 2026-08-20T17:16:21.000Z
- Updated: 2026-08-20T17:16:21.000Z
- Description: A collaboration between Gizmodo Japan and Keychron, the Nape Pro does not replace a mouse or trackball but it does invent its own use case.
- Author: Chris Person
- Tags: Hardware Reviews, Keychron, 007 first light, Hardware

For the better part of a year I was fascinated by a specific trackball that never seemed to materialize: Keychron’s Nape Pro. It is a unique and baffling object from a company not normally known for its bold form factors but rather for making affordable versions of a category of existing products. The Nape Pro is not shaped like other trackballs; it’s a small ball set inside the body of a long macro bar. As far as I can tell, this trackball was originally intended as a collaboration with [Gizmodo Japan](https://www.gizmodo.jp/?ref=aftermath.site). Keychron’s domestic website did not mention it much until fairly recently, and outside of a handful of people online who imported it, I have seen no domestic reviews of it online. Then one day it just appeared on Amazon, someone on the trackball subreddit noticed, and people started buying them, including myself. Soon after, Keychron put up pre-orders on their site.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/30/f5/30f5b1bb-84ee-4c26-b446-fb9a5e512994/content/images/2026/08/nape_close_bright.jpg)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/30/f5/30f5b1bb-84ee-4c26-b446-fb9a5e512994/content/images/2026/08/nape_close2_bright_crop.jpg)

Buttons and positioning are arbitrary and each button is programmable.

The Nape Pro does not seem like it is meant to replace a mouse or a full sized trackball. It’s a thumb ball closer in utility to a trackpoint or trackpad. Being asymmetrical and square, it holds equal utility for lefties and righties. The ball is surrounded by a scroll ring, and six buttons can be used either on their own or using layering, a keyboard technique for programming macros under a custom map. 

The Gizmodo Japan piece about the Nape Pro.

When you first start using the Nape Pro, you may be confused as to the best way to interact with it, with the topline question being “What direction does this device go in?” The nice thing about the Nape Pro is that it’s able to be oriented in any direction you’d like. The 04 button by default serves as a rotate key, allowing you to adjust the north star of the trackball by 1/8th rotations with each press. This means the Nape Pro can sit at the bottom of a keyboard, thus mimicking a trackpad or [pointing stick](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pointing%5Fstick?ref=aftermath.site) in terms of relative utility. The Nape Pro can also sit on the left or right of a keyboard, or in my case, in between my split keyboard hugging the left side of the right half. This is closer to how I always use trackballs, not as a direct replacement for a mouse, but rather as a device that allows me to make tiny movements like copying and pasting text while working on documents or scrolling without having to lift and reposition my entire hand every single time I need to interact with a mouse. I also found that it fit in quite nicely in a living room setting to accompany the Steam Machine or as a tiny travel mouse with a Steam Deck, as both devices occasionally need some limited mousing while in desktop mode without sacrificing table space.

Because the device uses ZMK – an open source firmware [I’ve covered in the past](https://aftermath.site/i-need-an-open-source-mouse-so-i-never-have-to-look-at-razer-synapse-again/) – it can be used in conjunction with layers to create as many potential macros as you have button configurations. You can reprogram the device simply using either ZMK Studio or the Keychron Launcher locally or on their site. You do not have to have [Razer Synapse](https://aftermath.site/i-need-an-open-source-mouse-so-i-never-have-to-look-at-razer-synapse-again/) installed on your computer where it can cause trouble, and macros stay on-device. I’m overjoyed to see pointing devices move towards more open ecosystems, as the shit that Logitech and Razer have regularly pulled just to use their hardware has pissed me off to no end.

![A UI showing how the Nape Pro can be programmed and my current layout.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/30/f5/30f5b1bb-84ee-4c26-b446-fb9a5e512994/content/images/2026/08/layout.png)

The Nape Pro is ZMK-based, and you can use Keychron's web flasher.

By default the scroll wheel adjusts volume, but I already had a keystroke for that on my keyboard so instead opted to make it an additional scroll wheel. I also decided to create macros for copy and paste. I also added back and forth macros for page scrolling, and have plans eventually to make left and right clicks activate new layers by holding them, something [I already do with the thumb keys on my split keyboard.](https://aftermath.site/best-split-keyboards-diy-qmk-zmk-corne/)

The Nape Pro can be used wired, via bluetooth or via a 2.4 GHZ polling rate dongle, with three levels of polling rates (125/500/1000 Hz) able to be set by the user. The overall feel of the device is slightly muted with an emphasis on acoustics over feel. Keychron used Huanao Silent switches for these, little brown microswitches with a dampened sensation. In general I enjoy these and have several in a parts cabinet, but they can feel slightly mushy if you are used to crisp mouse clicks. I am fairly confident I could open the device up and solder new switches in, which is extremely possible because I have some Huanao pink dots in a drawer. 

The scroll wheel is also equally silent and feels a tiny bit scratchy. This is by far the achilles heel of the device and a feature that would benefit from a mod. While I wish it had a bit more tactility to it out of the box, I understand the utility in focusing on making an unobtrusive device, particularly for designers. The track ball itself is quite small and may feel slightly unwieldy to some people even at low DPI settings, which is why I would see this as an accessory device rather than a primary mousing one. In general I found that this was ameliorated by using two fingers on the ball instead of one, but overall this is not a device for repeated precision movements. At least one person on Reddit near and dear to my heart has gotten around this by putting a [25mm steel ball bearing they found in a parts drawer in theirs](https://www.reddit.com/r/Trackballs/comments/1vle1sv/nape%5Fpro%5Fpotential%5Ftrackball%5Ffix/?ref=aftermath.site). I am currently trying to find an exact replacement for that and may update this writeup, but in my experience trackball performance on chrome steel can be finicky sometimes, and often requires taking steel wool and 2000 grit sandpaper to it. 

Do you want to see a guy use a bunch of steel pins and citric acid to dull a trackball? Sure you do. 

As I spent time with the Nape Pro, I found new and exciting configurations. Normally I use an [Endgame Trackball](https://efog.tech/products/endgame-trackball-complete-diy-kit?ref=aftermath.site) directly between my split, an absolutely perverted, semi-DIY device made by a single person in Ukraine who [goes by eFog.](https://efog.tech/?ref=aftermath.site) Now, the Endgame hugs the right of my wireless split, and the Nape hugs the left. I don’t need to click with the Nape because I already have a keybind for clicking bound to holding space and pressing H on the right side of my keyboard. Alternately, I can mouse with the Endgame and use the Nape to macro. Minor desktop movements that don’t require serious mousing are now small, mirrored ambidextrous movements, and the net result of having two trackballs in the middle of my desktop feels like controlling an alien spaceship. If you tried to interface with your computer the way I do you’d probably fucking hurl.

![Two sides of a split keyboard and two trackballs in between. One is large and blue with white buttons and a steel ball. The left one is the nape pro. A yellow Vaxee mouse is on the right.](https://storage.ghost.io/c/30/f5/30f5b1bb-84ee-4c26-b446-fb9a5e512994/content/images/2026/08/terror.jpg)

Flight Of The Navigator ass layout.

The primary question around the Nape Pro is one of audience and intent. Who is the Nape Pro’s audience? The answer is whomever the baffling device calls out to. There are countless, great wireless mice that can be purchased for next to a song out there. At 90 dollars, the Nape fits into an odd price point for what you get, in the range of a “really nice mouse.” But what the Nape Pro excels in is defining its own use case, being this bizarrely-shaped half pointer/half pad device that fits into ergonomic niches that you may not have considered. You can technically pick it up and use it as a weird remote, although I’m not sure that using the wheel would feel great. Computers have gotten tremendously dull, and ideally we should be applauding hardware makers for trying some wackadoo shit, in exploring the depths of how we interface with the computer. The Nape Pro is not a device I’d recommend for everyone, but for the real sickos out there, you might end up falling in love.