I'm thinking of getting a stand for my mbp and wanted some advice on which to get.
I was thinking of this one ands wanted to know if anyone had experience with either this one or another that they would like to recommend.
There's these too.
Personally, I use a cushion or a desk or other soft or immobile objects like this and can't see the need.
But then I've been eating from dumpsters since spending my life savings on a MBP
$50 + shipping for a piece of metal and two or three 5V DC fans. No...
This is what I have. It's the same thing: a piece of metal with three 5V DC fans. I got mine for $10. You can get one from ebay.
That's nice. And cheap. But does it keep the MBP noticeably cooler? Can you plug it into AC instead of USB? Right now iStat says CPU A is 151 degress even though yesterday I did the "Cooler Apple" modifications of Applefan and Appleblower. I'd just like to cool it down a little.
I am getting my 3rd replacement soon. I can't wait to use the stand again.
3rd replacement what? Fan or MBP? And can it be plugged into an AC power source instead of USB?
I don't believe the external fans are really necessary. When my MBP sits flat on a desk, its entire top case becomes very warm to the touch in less than an hour. But when my MBP sits on an mStand, its top case remains completely cool even after several hours of use. All it takes is some passive circulation around the bottom of these beasts to keep them from thermonuclear meltdown.
I never was a fan of iLap even with my powerbook. I found the fan ended up running internally more often than when I would just put it on one leg. Not to mention how quickly it got hot, but that could be because of vent location I suppose, in any case iLap I don't recommend.
I don't see the need for having a stand with external fans, at all. My MBP spends hours gaming, rendering FCP/Motion stuff, and more intensive activities. It can sit there all day with processor, and even GPU usage nearing 100%, and my iCurve is perfect. The ventilation is more than adequate without needing more noise.
It's now been replaced with the Elevator, which looks just as good.
The iCurve will make your MBP look "cooler"
The iLap does work, but I find that alternating between lap and table, it is a massive fiddle to attach / detach the cushion.
Perhaps they thought it out as much as they could, but I don't think it's a very good solution. The Apple is the only laptop in my possession (At the moment I have pre-SR MBPs) that actually mandates I use one of these whenever I want to use it off a desk. The initial elegance of the MBP is therefore destroyed by the kludges I have to use in order not to burn myself.
The Elevator is fine for using on a desk - in fact, it's mandatory if you don't want the wood being blistered However it's only functional improvement over the iCurve seems to be the takedown ability. I have both and in terms of a 'plonk down and leave' solution I prefer the iCurve.
Me netiher, they should have included rubber grips. The thing ended up scratching my PowerBook.
EDIT: I also have the Elevator and its pretty amazing.