I’d rather be watching the rain, but I have to be working at my desk, facing a dull, blank wall. That is, until a waft of fresh air breathes some wisdom into my brain. So I pick up my MacBook Pro, head downstairs and stretch out on the sofa for some serious word processing.
LapDawg multifunction laptop stand; Price: $89
Freedom from furniture?
Isn’t that the whole point of a laptop? Take it anywhere, perch it on your lap and type away? No more inelegant computer desks with pull-out keyboard trays, a tangle of wires and an equally inelegant chair. Wi-Fi at home also ensures that I don’t have to be tethered to wires. At last, I can use any furniture for computing, or even better, experience total freedom from furniture.
Alas, my journey into this lap of freedom is shortlived. The heat from the laptop is unbearable, and a Web search on the health aspects of the thermal radiation brings little comfort.
I lug the laptop to the dining table, but it’s too low. So I improvise by placing a sofa cushion under it. Now, I’m using my forearms to pin it down while determinedly typing with my wrists hovering in the air.
That’s when it hits me: The notebook paradigm is incomplete. We have merely made the computer portable, but the word “laptop” is a misnomer. For comfortable and prolonged use, you’ll use it anywhere except the lap. In fact, I would rather find the most comfortable postures for myself, and then have the notebook somehow slide in and adapt itself to my comfort.
Right now, I am the one forcing and contorting my body into painful laptop yoga.
Gear up
Like every serious notebook user, let’s start with my favourite position: lying flat on the back with the head and shoulders resting on a pillow or cushion.
The LapDawg multifunction table helps raise the notebook above the torso and legs, but keeps it within comfortable reach of the arms and wrists.
It can also precisely adjust the angle of the notebook, locking its supports at any point in 360-degree freedom. Simple push-button locks in the joints hold the position.
Laptop Laidback is another accessory, similar in nature. It is more restrictive by design, citing ergonomic reasons for not allowing 90-degree angles or use while sitting up in bed.
The experience of watching a movie full-screen on your laptop, hovering above and ahead of you in a darkened bedroom, outclasses the experience of watching it in a theatre. The angle of view of the screen, equals that of a large cinema screen at a distance. I let the audio stream to my surround-sound home theatre system for a full immersive experience.
On the desk, the LapDawg raises the screen to my eye level, while allowing space for an extra keyboard underneath. This transforms the set-up into a laptop workstation. An anodized aluminium surface with grooves ventilates the heat. Rubber grips offer a comfortable position for my wrists.