‘Book Mystique Review - Laptop Desk Futura
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
by Charles W. Moore
Apple’s Intel-based MacBook Pros and MacBooks run famously hot, and the later model G4 PowerBooks can get pretty sultry as well. In fact, the high operating temperatures of these machines is the reason why Apple, no doubt with an eye to potential product liability torts, has stopped referring to them genetically as “laptops”, substituting “notebook” instead. I lament the change of terminology. Laptop was a good and accurately descriptive word for the way most portable computer owners still use their machines at least some of the time. On the other hand, notebook is OK too, I guess, since it’s the designation that the “book” MacBook, PowerBook and iBook derives from. I digress.
Anyway, as noted, most users will want o to use these computers on their laps from time to time, and it can’t be gainsaid that they do get uncomfortably hot. There is also the matter that one’s lap can be a precarious perch for a complex and relatively fragile device that is worth a couple of thousand dollars.
The solution to both of these problems is to use a laptop desk, and the largest-selling line of these products are the LapWorks Laptop Desks, which sell at a rate of 15,000 per month, and which should enjoy another healthy sales increase with the introduction of the latest variant - the new Laptop Desk Futura.
An evolutionary development and enhancement of what LapWorks has learned building the preceding Laptop Desk 1.0, 2.0, and UltraLite products, all of which remain available, the Laptop Desk Futura is distinguished from its forbears by its sleeker, more swish styling, and three main engineering improvements.
First, to improve computer cooling over previous designs, LapWorks has incorporated open ventilation slots instead of the closed channels used in earlier models so cooling air can circulate from under the Futura. This shot is of a Futura alongside an older UltraLite unit.
Secondly, the cooling slots have been elongated by 2 inches, providing a less restrictive pathway for hot air to escape from under widescreen notebooks.
Thirdly, the Futura ha a 1/8-inch air space between the computer and the desk support surface to let cool air circulate under the notebook, facilitated by rubber pads that lift and separate the ‘Book from the Futura.
“The Futura’s design takes better advantage of the thermal dynamics of heat rising to cool notebooks,” says LapWorks’ president and chief designer Calero. “The moment hot air radiates from the bottom of a notebook, it travels laterally looking for the quickest way to rise. The new open, elongated slots let cool air in from the bottom to mix with and begin cooling the hot air seeking its way out and up. Additionally, we are confident that the Futura will not absorb sufficient heat to overheat and radiate heat downward, which is good news for the lap.”
LapWorks claims that computer heat buildup is reduced by 8% to 10% when the Futura is used in its laptop desk mode, and by 15% to 20% when employed in desktop stand mode.
The unit's 22 rubberized support pads on its top and bottom surfaces also provide traction to hold the laptop in position and to grip the user's clothes.
Like its Laptop Desk 2.0 and UltraLite siblings, the Futura is a dual-mode design that also can serve as a notebook stand for desktop use. When used as a laptop desk, the two halves of the Futura unfold to create a support surface 21 x 11 x 3/8-inches wide that can comfortably accommodate any Apple notebook, including the 17” MacBook Pro and PowerBook.
According to LapWorks’ ergonomist consultant Sally A Longyear, CIE, MPH, “LapWorks’ Laptop Desks span the entire lap so you can relax your knees naturally instead of squeezing them together to balance a laptop. This minimizes strain on the shoulders, neck, back and arms. This illustration shows correct laptop-using posture on a desk and on a lap.
For notebook stand duty, the two halves of the unit fold into a shallow wedge shape offering five different angle settings providing the keyboard rake some users prefer for typing, and a modest degree of display elevation up to 3 3/4 inches for use with an external keyboard.
The Futura’s fold-down support for the elevated leaf when in notebook stand mode is a hinged panel made from the same ABS plastic as the main unit, which is more elegant and attractive than the wire bail of the Laptop Desk Ultralight shown here.
For storage or transport, the Laptop Desk Futura folds flat into a compact wafer measuring 11 x 10 3Ú4 inches by one-half inch thick and weighing just a smidge over one pound (16 1Ú4 ounces) for easy tucking into your computer bag or backpack.
The initial Laptop Desk Futura units, which began shipping earlier this month, come in an attractive gunmetal gray livery, but this product will also be LapWorks’ first laptop cooler to be available optionally in fashion colors. “In the next three months we plan to offer the Futura in bright, modern, hand-painted colors similar to iPod/MP3 player skins,” explains Jose Calero. The company also plans to offer customized Futura paint jobs. All colors – hand-painted and customized – will be offered at premium prices. “Some of our customers have asked when we might have a trendy Laptop Desk, so we are dipping our toes into the fashion fountain with the Futura,” says Calero.
Compared with the older Laptop Desk models, the Futura is not quite as wide and provides only a minimal mousing surface, so for users who prefer an external mouse when using a laptop on their lap might better consider the Laptop Desk UltraLite which was designed to support notebooks weighing less than 5 pounds.
Actually, the Futura's "ovel-burst" shape offers no practical mousing surface at all, since the end aprons outboard of the computer are studded with two rubber pads and a raised LapWorks logo insignia respectively, which are effective barriers to mouse tracking. Later this year, LapWorks expects to offer a snap-on MouzPad to expand the Futura’s mousing area.
I’ve had a Laptop Desk UltraLite for several years, and have liked it, but the new Laptop Desk Futura is even cooler - both figuratively and literally. The appearance has definitely gone upmarket, and cooling efficiency has to be enhanced with all those open slots. I’m quite happy using the trackpad when in laptop mode, so the less expansive mousing surface is not a problem for me with the new unit, and it still has plenty of room for my 17” PowerBook. LapWorks’ build quality has always been excellent, and continues to be with the Futura, and the price won’t bust your wallet. If you use your notebook on your lap on a regular or frequent basis, you really owe it to yourself and to it to avail yourself of a laptop desk, and the Futura represents the state of the art.
The Laptop Desk Futura sells for $29.95.
For more information, visit:
http://laptopdesk.net/
Note: Letters to PowerBook Mystique Mailbag may or may not be published at the editor's discretion. Correspondents' email addresses will NOT be published unless the correspondent specifically requests publication. Letters may be edited for length and/or context.
Opinions expressed in postings to PowerBook Mystique MailBag are owned by the respective correspondents and not necessarily shared or endorsed by the Editor and/or PowerBook Central management.
If you would prefer that your message not appear in PowerBook Mystique Mailbag, we would still like to hear from you. Just clearly mark your message "NOT FOR PUBLICATION," and it will not be published.
CM