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Product: The Dexia Rack

Provides: Laptop support for your laptop

Developer: Dexia Design

Requirements: A user supplied laptop

Retail Price: $49.95

Product: iLap

Provides: Laptop support for your laptop

Developer: Rain Design

Requirements: A user supplied laptop

Retail Price: $49.90

Here, we have two different approaches toward protecting your precious lap from the heat of your PowerBook or iBook. Like an episode from Junkyard Wars, two different sets of engineers approached a valid problem from two different directions, each coming up with its own resolution. Fortunately, the two approaches are sufficiently different as to provide easy selection depending upon your needs.

Literally within a day, I received two e-mails plugging two different approaches toward protecting your lap from your laptop. While the iBook is known to be hot, PowerBooks have been known to prepare breakfast or lunch while you work. Getting your laptop off your lap has developed into a priority issue for some users. The interesting aspect of these two approaches is what supports the laptop support? Your lap or what you are sitting on?

Below on the left is the Dexia Rack, and on the right is the iLap. Both are superbly designed and engineered. The quality and workmanship of both can be felt as you pick them up for examination. The Dexia rack is 1.5 lbs. and the iLap is 1.7 lbs (or 1.5 lbs. with the front cushion removed). As such, weight really isn't an issue when comparing the two.

The iLap (shown on the right below) has cushioned velour pads to lie upon your lap. The one toward you is rounded and adheres to the aluminum via Velcro. The rear pad encircles the pivoting support and is not intended to be removed. The pivoting support is designed so that the rear lies flat whether the front pad is in place or has been removed.

The Dexia Rack unfolds and folds up with two wire supports preventing over-expansion. It is designed to support your laptop while keeping the weight (and itself) away from your lap. When folded, the Dexia Rack is only 3/4" thick. Wonderful for transportation. This is a key point, and I will return to it later.

The big differences are on use. The Dexia Rack has big limitations when used either on a couch or chair, as the width of the Dexia Rack's feet (at contact) are 20.5" while the width of an average chair is 17-19". As such, it cannot be used on an average chair. If used on a couch that is narrow from back to front, the front of the feet may not be very secure, as seen below. While in use, there was a tendency for the Dexia Rack to creep forward and start to fall off the couch. Not good.

In addition, as seen above, if where you are sitting is aligned just "off" from where the cushions lie, there will be problem of lateral support as well. Also, unless you are somewhat tall (over 6 feet?), the height/angle of your hands on the keyboard is not very good. On Dexia's website, the Dexia Rack is also aimed at support of your laptop on the desk with an extra keyboard. (One of the stated reasons for the width of the feet was to provide clearance for a separate keyboard.) We found the height of the monitor on the Dexia Rack far too high and way out of line with recommended ergonomic limitations.

The one area where the Dexia Rack excels is when you are sitting on the floor as seen below. It is here where the Dexia Rack is simply wonderful, taking all the weight and heat off of your lap.

The one other problem with the Dexia Rack is that it supplies a wide area to support the laptop, and we found our PowerBook wanted to slide around too easily on the Dexia Rack's surface. Some stick-on rubber feet should be supplied with the Dexia Rack for this purpose. It's a 25¢ addition that should be part of the Dexia Rack's box.

The iLap is not quite as techy as the Dexia Rack, and doesn't open with a satisfying snap. Rather, it just sits there on your lap, and that's about it.

But, by just sitting there, the iLap is doing exactly what it should be doing—keeping the heat from your laptop off your lap. It's also more than just heat. How many of you have taken out your laptop and placed it on your bare lap and had that moment of shudder-cold until your lap and your laptop came to terms? With the nice velour pads, that's not going to happen.

Speaking of which, the front pad is attached via a Velcro strip, letting you remove the front pad if you wish when working on a desktop. Replacement is easy, and, with the rear pad pivoting for angle, support is properly balanced.

Probably the biggest limitation with the iLap is if you are short (or short legged) and have a big belly. You might find the rear end of the iLap may not reach your lap and will extend off into space. My wife (seen in these pictures) is about 5'1", if that gives you any perspective.

There is both good news and bad news with the front pad. The good news is that it doubles as a comfortable wrist support for keyboarding. The bad news is that it completely blocks access to front loading CD/DVD players such as exist on the PowerBook. On the other hand, the front pad seems to help support the PowerBook more and limited the sliding we found with the Dexia Rack.

One other advantage of the iLap is that it can be used if sitting cross-legged—a position the Dexia Rack completely prevents.

One other aspect of the iLap is that Rain Design sells five different widths covering everything from a 12" PowerBook to the 17" PowerBook. This can either be a blessing or a curse if you purchase a new wider (or narrower) PowerBook after having purchased an iLap for your previous model.

If there were some way to merge these two devices, it would be grand. We found the Dexia Rack beyond wonderful when it came to its portability. After all, since a laptop is intended to be portable, shouldn't it's support be as well? For a college student who is likely to be sitting on the floor waiting for a teacher, this could be very convenient. However, not many students are up for an extra $49.95 after spending a lot of money for a laptop. (Keep in mind as there is only a 5¢ difference between the two laptop supporters, price should not be a weighing factor.)

The iLap, despite its light weight, isn't really portable. But it is comfortable—very comfortable.

In short, the Dexia Rack:

• Advantages: Wonderfully portable and very comfortable when sitting on the floor.


• Disadvantages: Not very good for couches or chairs, and holds a laptop too high for use on a desk unless you are very, very tall.

The iLap:

• Advantages: Comfortable when the laptop is cold or hot, and can be used on chairs, couches or the floor (cross legged or not)


• Disadvantages: Not really portable, and it can be impossible to use if you are short and have a big belly.

___________ Gary Coyne has been a scientific glassblower for over 30 years. He's been using Macs since 1985 (his first was a fat Mac) and has been writing reviews of Mac software and hardware since 1995.

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