I know some people love them but compared to the massive glass trackpad with multitouch that I have on my MacBook I don't understand the appeal. Is it a portability thing?

I won't vouch for the productivity savings from moving your hands less, since I think that's an absurd micro-optimization. Rather, I prefer it because I find it to be quick and accurate. After a week or so of getting used to it, when I first got a ThinkPad that only had it, it became the most natural and comfortable way of navigating. Not having to repeatedly paw at the bottom of the laptop and confort my hand to make a click (or deal with a single-finger click0 has been nice.

Mind you, I'm only speaking for the real ThinkPad trackpoints. The one in a Dell laptop I had for work was nowhere near as comfortable, and felt slippery and awkward.

Exactly, it is about not having to "paw". I own a 2016 MBP and even with the massive trackpad I end up having to swipe and reposition at least a couple times for big movements, unless I set the sensitivity to a level that makes precision movements impossible.

disabled touchpad, <3 trackpoint

I have not used a Thinkpad in 10 year but I have never seen anything that compares to the Trackoint. Anything else has always given me the urge to use a mouse.

It's a not-having-to-move-your-fingers-from-home-row thing. It is extremely important for people like me that suffer from repetitive strain disorders, if we want to keep maximum productivity.

Precisely my experience. RSI changed everything, and I find it hard to explain to those that have never experienced it.

Buses and airplanes are GREAT reasons for the nub. When you're already in really cramped space, sometimes it's elbow gymnastics to move your hand down to the touchpad, and the nub allows fairly quick/accurate mouse movements without bending your wrist into some weird contortion or elbowing the person next to you.

I fell in love with it after building a large bulk of an app on the 17 express bus over the course of a year.

Adding to what others already said: for me it's more precise and easier to use trackpoints when inside a vehicle - train, bus, car, airplane - and the vehicle is moving.

Keep your fingers on the home row. Much faster.

Love the nub!

Trackpoints are better when in a cramped situation such as air travel. No readjusting of elbows are required when switching between keyboard and trackpoint.

Yeah or please don't.

I definitely do not think adding an archaic input to a gaming focused laptop is a killer feature, nor should it be configurable, at least on this brand.

Hey, the pointing stick is an excellent input device. They are used in joysticks and gamepads all the time - hat switch and analog controller are essentially the same thing with slightly different implementation.

It works much better for many kinds of games actually than a touchpad. Heck, I'd take two or four of these in a gaming laptop, you'd essentially have a gamepad included with a real keyboard.

As a huge gamer, yea, that type of input makes sense _on a controller_ type form. In the middle of a keyboard doesn't make sense _on a gaming_ focused machine.