Comment by baxuz

It's not all about the interaction, but also the visual representation which can be much finer and granular in small spaces with a knob.

I can make a 16x16px knob where you can see almost the entire 320° of the range.

It's also easier to see fractions, such as 1/2, 1/3 or 1/4.

Sliders, especially in 16px possess none of those.