Working on my laptop was starting to treat my spine badly. Not just a physiotherapist’s concept of poor posture — rather — actual discomfort that I could notice myself. It didn’t take too long after reading The DIY Cheapskate Laptop Stand for me to adapt that nice bit of work into my own version made of solid wood. Birch to be precise – left over from a stair tread that I butchered for another purpose. Call me paranoid but there’s something about hardwood propping up my laptop that is more comforting that corrugated cardboard. I’m sure the engineers out there can prove there is nothing to fear, but better safe than sorry.
I don’t have any step-by-step instructions or pictures if you want to try this at home — but — you can get a complete set of plans for the cardboard version from the same article that inspired me. Here are a few photos of the finished laptop stand in solid birch.
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- Birch Laptop Stand Raises Screen Height 20cm
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- Birch Laptop Stand Holds a 15″ MacBook Pro, and up to 17″
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- Cross-bracing and solid birch provide the strength
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- Sanding made the surfaces even, for a stable laptop base
Portability
The whole stand is held together without glue or any fasteners, so you can take it apart quickly for transport. The 6 total pieces don’t weigh much, and fit nicely inside a laptop bag if you don’t already cram a lot of other gear (or lunch containers) in there. I can already see how improvements could be made in this area, specifically total weight, and how the separate parts could pack together more tightly for transport.
A little more desk space
I don’t have any official measurements, but desk clutter like my mobile phone, pens, business cards, etc all have been tucked against the bottom rails at one time or another.
Next step — tripod like the Cricket
One of the first times anybody else saw my new laptop stand was at The Hub Halifax. Within minutes another Hub member showed me a much smaller and portable device known as the Cricket Laptop Stand. Obviously much smaller and more portable (allowing for more lunch in the laptop bag). This has raised my expectations for the next homemade wooden version I try. I’ll definitely remember to take some photos during construction if and when I decide to emulate the tripod design at home.
Tags: DIY, Laptop Stand
