Back in July , I tell you about a tawdry solution for keep my overlap cool and well-heeled while using my MacBook Pro . As I said back then :
My solution ? A $ 10 “ lap desk ” from Target — the kind of wood - top , beanbag - bottom contraption I used as a kid to do homework on my lap . It ’s bulky and , well , a niggling ugly , but it works great for using my MacBook Pro on my lap at home .
Today , I ’m back with an update . You see , after write that pillar , I received emails from both vendor and reader with messages to the force of , “ HaveIgot a product foryou ! ” It seems I spoke too soon when I summarily wrote off the many laptop - specific lap covering desks . grow out , some of those product work well and have definite advantages over my budget example , and I ’m here to enjoin you about some of the salutary ones . ( Note that all the products covered here are for using your laptopon your lick ; I do n’t cover those designed principally as desk stand . )
For homebody
If you ’re mainly concerned with keep your lick nerveless at dwelling , and do n’t mind cheesy mathematical product name , I ’ve been impressed by theLapinator ( ) . The $ 25 stock Lapinator is 13 inches wide and 12 inches deep , make it pure for MacBooks , iBooks , and 12 - inch PowerBooks . ( 15 - inch PowerBooks and MacBook Pros fit , but hang over the left over and right edges . ) The $ 30 Lapinator Plus is 6 inch wider , make it a good fit for 15 - inch and 17 - inch laptops , or for using a mouse with a 12 - inch or 13 - column inch laptop computer . Both mannequin feature a polythene top — not entirely inflexible , but mostly so — that grips gumshoe laptop foot well . However , for just laptop computer ventilation , and an even better grip , you also get three 1/2 - inch arctic “ bumpers ” that you may attach to the Lapinator to face-lift the back of your laptop off the surface . I find these bumpers to be worth using , as they help keep my MacBook Pro cooler .
Just underneath the polyethylene top is a slight level of 3 M ’s Type B Thinsulate insulant , the same type used in winter boots , to keep the oestrus of your reckoner from reach your lick . The company claim that the Lapinator deflect 95 % of laptop computer heating ; although I did n’t have any hardware instrument on mitt to test this claim , I can tell you that my own , em , instruments felt little more than a little bit of fondness underneath the Lapinator , even when my MacBook Pro was working firmly .
Finally , the very bottom of the Lapinator provides two horizontal , molded - froth cushions that lift the master section up and off your leg approximately half an inch for even better ventilation . These cushions also make using the Lapinator a bit more comfortable that the hard - charge plate laptop computer desk I quiz ( see below ) . However , I find the fabric covering on the bottom of the Lapinator to be a bit scratchy when used on bare legs . ( Then again , the fact that I can actuallyusemy MacBook Pro on my naked legs with the Lapinator is a testament in and of itself . ) There ’s also a small Velcro eyelet on the back of the Lapinator plan to wrap up your laptop ’s various cables . However , since recent Apple laptop have their port on the sides , this loop is less useful that it would be with a laptop computer with rearward ports .
Although the company claims that the Lapinator is slender enough to slip into your laptop bag , I find that to be a stretch . The received Lapinator will indeed fit in most laptop bags , but it take quite a moment of space . And the Lapinator Plus was too wide-cut to fit into any of my bags . On the other hand , if you have a bag big enough to fit out , the Lapinator and Lapinator Plus weigh only 11 ounces and 15 oz. , severally .
I also wish Lapinator ’s $ 10Mousitizermouse domiciliation . This rigid - charge card platform attaches to the side of either Lapinator and permit you use a little computer mouse . The Mousitizer even includes an optional foam ridge to keep your mouse from slide off — I did n’t think I ’d need to habituate this , but after 15 minutes of use , during which I had to pick my mouse up off the floor half a dozen time , I promptly lend oneself it .
For travelin ’ and typin ’
I really enjoyed the Lapinator / Mousitizer jazz group at home , but as I name above , I found it to be too bulky for travelling . And during travelling is when you ’re especially potential to apply your laptop computer on your lap . For such situations , you ’ll want to check out some of the better “ traveling ” laptop computer desks I receive : MacAlly ’s $ 30icePadand LapWorks ’ $ 30Laptop Desk 2.0and $ 30Laptop Desk UltraLite . ( The latter is also available as theTargus Notebook Portable LapDesk . ) All are very exchangeable in size : The icePad is 20.5 by 10.3 inches and weighs 24 ounce ; the Laptop Desk 2.0 is 20.5 inches by 11.2 inches and weigh 22 ounces ; and the Laptop Desk Ultralight is 22 by 11 column inch and weighs less than 15 ounces . All also use a similar design : A sparse , across-the-board , polycarbonate - plastic platform , with elastomer rubber bumpers on top to keep your laptop computer from slip , that folds in half for packing material . Grooves in the platform let air circulate underneath your laptop computer to help it cool ; the binding of those same grooves allow air to circulateaboveyour legs . Although none of these locomotion desk block as much high temperature as the Lapinator — or keep your laptop computer itself as coolheaded — all make using your laptop computer on your lap sufferable , even comfortable . And they ’re all small enough , when folded up , to take with you .
LapWorks ’ Laptop Desk 2.0
LapWorks ’ Laptop Desk Ultralight
Each laptop computer desk also includes a small brace that let you use the desk as a minimal desktop stand for your laptop . By flipping the brace out as you fill up the desk , the two halves of the desk are propped open at an angle ; you place your laptop computer on the stand to raise its screenland to a well catch elevation . Although this is an interesting theme , I found that the minimum increase in CRT screen height—2.5 to 3.5 inches , depending on the laptop desk — was much less than I broadly want . For this use , you ’d be good off getting a consecrated desktop stand for your laptop computer . ( LapWorks ’ $ 25Laptop Desk 1.0is superposable to the Laptop Desk 2.0 except that it omits this feature , permit you save $ 5 if you do n’t project to employ the desk as a point of view . )
One other , unadvertised , feature of these laptop computer desks is that they go well in tight space when folded in half . For example , while sitting through the WWDC keynote a couple weeks ago , in a cramped , elbow - to - elbow row of professorship , I was n’t able to apply the Laptop Desk Ultralight unfurled — it was simply too wide . Folded up and turned 90 arcdegree , however , it was only 11 inches wide and held my MacBook Pro comfortably . ( I saw more than a few envious centre from nearby owner of hot laps . )
give the law of similarity between these desks , what are the divergence ? MacAlly ’s icePad ( ) habituate a conception that ’s wider on the ends and narrow in the heart . This gives you a better built - in “ mousing ” surface on the side than the other models ; however , it also means that deeper laptops give ear over the front or back edges of the middle of the desk . And the icePad ’s external respiration is n’t quite as good as the LapWorks models . Finally , the bottom of the icePad is bare charge card , which can get uncomfortable after strain role .
The Laptop Desk 2.0 ( ) is the most comfortable of the three , thanks to eight long , rubber strip on the bottom , which make the desk both more comfortable and less likely to slide around on your lap . It also feels the sturdiest and lug the most heat from reaching your legs . And , as with the Lapinator , an additional $ 10 will get you a side - mounted mousing open , theLaptop Desk MouzPad . If you want a undivided , sturdy laptop desk for use both at home and on the road , the Laptop Desk 2.0 is the fashion to go .
For the dedicated route warrior , however , the LapTop Desk Ultralight ( ) was my favorite of the bunch . While nearly half a pound lighter than , and half as thick as , the other models , making it a better set for your laptop computer handbag , it ’s also an inch and a one-half wider — although a moment hamper , you may practice a change of location mouse on the Ultralight ’s monotonous side venire ( assuming the mouse does n’t slide off the edge , that is ) . And gum elastic bumper on the top of the Ultralight elevate up your laptop for even better ventilation than with the other models . There are , however , two drawback to the Ultralight . The first is that , because it ’s thinner than the other products , it does n’t protect your legs from quite as much heat ; if you ’re specially sensitive to heat up and have way in your laptop bag , go with the Laptop Desk 2.0 . The 2d is that , because it ’s thinner and therefore not as tough , the Ultralight ’s “ desktop stand ” musical mode is shop only for laptop computer that librate 5 pounds or less ; if you be after to use your laptop desk as a desktop stand , as well , you should choose for the Laptop Desk 2.0 or MacAlly ’s icePad . But for the road warrior , sizing and exercising weight are everything , and in this respect the Ultralight ’s a winner — it takes up very little space in your laptop dish and earns its table every time you expend it .
Of naturally , I should point out that as good as these solutions are , they still ca n’t match my $ 10 beanbag desk in some areas . For example , the beanbag bottom micturate it much more comfortable and adjustable , and since it has a large , flat desktop , you may practice it to do other thing — like make full out crossword or Sudoku puzzles — when you ’re not using your laptop . ( If you like the thought behind a beanbag desk , but not the generally unworthy design of most inexpensive exemplar , for $ 48 you could get one made of cherry red Mrs. Henry Wood fromLevenger . ) Still , these specialized laptop computer desks have their advantages , especially when it come to portability ( or even just storability — even the Lapinator is much smaller than my “ Target Special ” ) .
