Posted August 10, 2006
Because my laptop gets disturbingly hot, I used to put it atop an oversized art book to keep my thighs from cooking whenever I wanted to use it at home while sitting in my favorite easy chair. But my friend Chris recently turned me on to her Lapinator, a clever, lightweight laptop desk that's perfect for working at home or on the road. The beautiful thing about it is that it’s the only laptop desk on the market that uses 3M's Type B Ultra Thinsulate insulation to block more than 95% of the heat coming out of your laptop's bottom (two raised rubber bumpers keep your laptop slightly elevated so the heat can escape). And it's made for travel: It's only 11 ounces, and contains no metal parts, so it won't set off airport metal detectors. Lapinator Inc. has lately been expanding its product line from the original 13-wide Lapinator; I like the 18-inch-wide Lapinator Plus, because it provides just extra enough room for my wireless mouse. Another option: the new optional, add-on $10 Mousitizer side tray that snaps on and off either size Lapinator. Anyway, over the past few weeks I've tested half a dozen other laptop desks besides the Lapinator, and for my money the Lapinator's the best, simplest solution out there right now.

$25 to $30 ($10 extra for the optional Mousitizer) at lapinator.com.

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