by Noah Kravitz, Reviews Editor

8 March 2006

On Your Desk or in Your Lap

edgeBlur's surfACE series of laptop stands are perhaps the most versatile, innovative, and well designed laptop stands I've ever come across. While I've reviewed stands meant to elevate your laptop to a proper height for desktop use, and others (like Rain Design's iLap designed to put your computer in a better ergonomic position when actually in your lap, I think surfACE is the first stand designed to handle both tasks with equal aplomb. Add to that a stunning industrial design based on acrylic and brushed aluminum, and you've got yourself a whale of a laptop stand.

The hitch? All that good design and solid construction will cost you. $150 laptop stands aren't for everyone, but if you've got that much to spend, surfACE is well worth a look (and worth the money, relatively speaking) ...

Build it This Way ... Or That Way ... Or That Way
edgeblur sent me the surfACE 1.5 system, which is the top of the line model in the series. The other surfACE models are essentially the same, minus a few pieces. The surfACE concept is simple: Boards of smooth acrylic with cutout holes are connected by aluminum cylinders ("raisers") that screw together to form tower-like legs, and screw into the holes in the boards for assembly. Out of the various boards and cylinders that come in a surfACE package you can construct a laptop stand that elevates your computer off of your desk and, when flipped over, supports it via an acrylic board on your lap (thus keeping the hot computer off of your legs).

The acrylic boards in surfACE come in two main varieties: Main Boards (19.5" w x 10.5" d x 3/8" Thick) and Sideboards (9.25" w x 9.25" d x .25" Thick). Main boards are large enough to hold any Apple laptop - including 17" PowerBooks - and are available with circular holes cut either just along the edges for leg assemblies or all over the board for improved laptop ventilation. Side boards, which are meant for holding the included mouse pad, coffee cups, and other accessories, have only two holes along one edge for attaching to the legs. Boards are avaialble in transluscent white and see-through acrylic.

surfACE's hardware consists of "Raisers" and "Connectors." Raisers are 3/4" tall cylinders with threaded openings on one end and screw-type protrusions on the other. Raisers screw together to form legs, and connectors can be used to cap off a tower of rasiers. Raisers come in two varities: universal rasiers with flat metal tops, and rubber-top rasiers meant to rest directly under your computer so as not to mar its undersurface. Connectors come in flat top and screw-top variations, and also in a special configuration meant to screw into a camera tripod so you can turn the tripod into a portable laptop work platform. The latter is a very clever innovation on edgeblur's part.

edgeblur's website includes a gallery of images showing some of the myriad assembly configurations possible, most of them using only the parts included in the surfACE 1.5 package. The basic configuration of main board in the middle with two side boards attached to either side via four rasier high (or so) legs allows for surfACE's main trick: use it on your desktop to elevate your laptop to a good working height, or flip it over and use it in an armchair with the side boards resting on the chair arms and "suspending" the main board (holding your laptop) just above your lap. Pictures describe the configurations better than my words can, so check out the photos above and also those in edgeblur's gallery to better understand.

Build to Suit

That's the most alluring thing about surfACE: It really is a customizable system that you can build to suit your own workspace needs. Additional pieces are also available "a la carte" from edgeblur's website should you find yourself with an idea that requires an extra raiser or rubber foot.

The various pieces of surfACE are fairly easy to assemble and disassemble, so long as you use a relatively light hand. I have a propensity for overtightening everything from faucet handles to the parking break on the family car, and sure enough I managed to get a few of surfACE's raiser pieces screwed together so tightly as to render them unusable. This was entirely my fault - the pieces didn't need to be screwed nearly so tight to feel secure - and so long as you follow directions and don't overtighten anything, you'll find it quick and easy to reconfigure surfACE to your heart's content.

Does that mean you'll want to break the stand apart to throw in your carry-on bag every time to take a business trip? Likely not, no. But should you want to reconfigure your workspace to accommodate a new peripheral, external monitor, or such, surfACE is a snap to break apart and put together again. As a bonus, surfACE makes a pretty handy book stand should you find yourself writing off computers altogether in favor of hardbound, printed tomes.

Conclusion
The only downsides to surfACE are that it doesn't fold up and pack away and that it costs a pretty penny. Neither problem could really have been avoided, however. To be sturdy enough to secure your laptop and accesories above your lap or desk, surfACE needed to be made from quality materials including relatively thick sheets of acrylic. That didn't make surfACE particularly heavy, but it did basically take the concept of "folding" out of the equation.

As for the price? Well, the system does come in four configurations, starting with the $99 surfACE 1.2. One hundred dollars is still more than twice the price of other quality laptop stands available today, but none of those stands offer the versatility or customizability of surfACE. If you have the money to spend, surfACE is highly recommended. And if you're going to get one, I'd opt for the full-on 1.5 model as it's the only model with a main board full of cut-outs for maximum air circulation under your laptop.

edgeblur's surfACE line of laptops sell for $99-149 (plus $15 shipping) and are available direct from edgeblur's website.

* * * *

Get the best price for your new Mac at PCPrices/Mac.