Elevate your MacBook
MacBooks, no matter the model, can get a little tepid when used for extended periods on your lap. Apple has disclaimed as much, saying that the ubiquitous devices aren't supposed to be used on your lap (hence the advent of the term "notebook").
On a desk it's more about height. A MacBook sitting flat on a desk is too low for most people to use for extended periods of time and can lead to eye strain and neck pain. Proper ergonomics require eye height to be be level with top of the screen. A MacBook stand is especially useful when attaching an external monitor for spanning because it allows both displays to be on the same plane.
| Image Gallery: I've created a gallery of photographs of the Rain mStand. | ||||||
The stand I use currently is the mStand (US$49.90) from Rain Designs Inc. It's made of a single solid piece of aluminum that matches the MacBook Pro and Air’s sand-blasted and silver-anodized finish perfectly. mStand has a small hole in the rear that keeps my power and USB cables tucked away and out of sight. The only problem is that the opening is a little too small to fit a monitor cable through.
Although it's design will accommodate any MacBook size, I currently use it with my MacBook Air. Other than the tiny lip in front of the trackpad button it's impossible to tell anything is holding it up at all. It's a dramatic effect and makes the MBA look like it's floating in, well, air.
How do you elevate your Mac notebook?