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Designed by m's CURB: The minimal MacBook stand
A while back, we introduced TUAW readers to the CURB (US$16.99), a very minimalist stand for laptops that props the bottom of the device up off of a surface to allow air to circulate underneath. While I half-jokingly said that one could just as easily cut a $1 foam pool noodle to shape to perform the same task, there's no denying that this is a rather cool (no pun intended) product. It's now available, and here's a quick review -- and giveaway. The CURB is a triangle shaped bar that is placed under the back bottom part of your MacBook (or any notebook computer, actually) to prop it up about three-quarters of an inch or an inch, depending on which side you place on the desk. It's made out of food-grade silicone so it has a good amount of flexibility, and it won't slide on a desk or similar surface. There's a little notch cut in the middle of the CURB that you're supposed to drape your AC adapter cord through, presumably to keep it from sliding off onto the floor when you unplug it from your Mac. My thought on that? Since all MacBooks in recent history have their plug on the left side, why not put a slimmer notch into the end of the CURB that you can squeeze the AC adapter cord through? And that notch? It doesn't work when the CURB is in the "low" position. But I digress... The CURB comes in a bunch of colors: white, dark gray, light gray, pink, black, blue, lime, what they refer to as "believer green" and -- for a limited time only -- glow in the dark! It's functional; it's easy to throw into a computer bag; and it even works pretty well with an iPad. Conclusion If you have a MacBook that has a tendency to overheat and go into full-fan mode, the CURB is a simple and portable way to give it a cooling breath of fresh air. Pros Lightweight, portable and doesn't take up a lot of room in your computer bag Nonslip material keeps CURB -- and your MacBook -- from moving Cons A bit expensive for a piece of silicone The "cable notch" doesn't work in certain orientations Who is it for? Anyone who has issues with an overheating MacBook Giveaway Want a nice blue CURB for your MacBook? We're giving one away courtesy of Designed by m. Here are the rules for the giveaway: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before October 25, 2013 11:59PM Eastern Daylight Time. You may enter only once. One winner will be selected and will receive a CURB valued at $16.99 Click Here for complete Official Rules. Loading...
Designed by m's AL13 iPhone 5 bumper: Review and giveaway
The first time you know there's something special about the AL13 Aerospace Aluminum iPhone 5 bumper (US$59.99) from Designed by m is when you open the plain cardboard box. Slide off the top, and inside you find a slender, aircraft-grade aluminum (13 is the atomic number of aluminum, by the way...) bumper and a packet containing a screen protector. We've reviewed a ton of aluminum bumpers for the iPhone 5 over the past year, but just about all of them require some sort of special tool to install or remove the bumper. That's not true of the AL13, which features a slide cover -- like that on the brushed-aluminum box -- for assembly and removal. To install the bumper on the iPhone 5, you simply slide off the back, drop in the iPhone and then slide the back onto the bumper again. The inside of the AL13 features a thin liner to keep the bumper from scratching your precious phone, and there are precise cutouts for all of the various buttons and ports on your device. The edges are chamfered to match the general design of the iPhone 5, and the only ornamentations added by Designed by m are a tiny circled "m" logo on one side of the case and a diminutive AL13 logo on the other side. The AL13 comes in five different anodized finishes -- gunmetal, blue, slate, silver and red. As mentioned previously, there's a polyurethane screen protector to keep your display scratch-free, and for the back, there's a protective film. Designed by m notes that the design of the AL13 does cause a signal loss of about 5 to 10 percent, but counters with a comment that the average loss for other aluminum bumpers is about 25 percent. The top feature of the AL13, in addition to the no-tool installation, has got to be the weight. It's a feather-light 14 grams, or adding only about 12 percent to the weight of the iPhone 5. So, does it do what it should do -- protect your iPhone 5? Sure -- it will keep your baby from getting scratched on the sides; it provides some protection from drops on the sides; and the added protective films should help somewhat as well. Conclusion The Designed by m AL13 is a lightweight way to protect your iPhone 5 (or 4 / 4S) without hiding it in a thick plastic shell. Pros Very easy to install and remove, no tools required Reasonably priced at $60 (some other aluminum bumpers we've reviewed have cost as much as $150) Nicely packaged, would make a wonderful gift for a friend or relative Sleek, adds to the lines of the iPhone 5 rather than detracting or hiding them Cons A little bit of "play" in the case might be annoying to some people Who is it for? The iPhone 5 owner (there are also 4/4S versions available) who wants to protect his or her investment without compromising weight or the design of the device. Giveaway We have not one, but TWO AL13 bumpers to give away, both in the beautiful gunmetal finish seen in the photos accompanying this post. Here are the rules for the giveaway: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before September 10, 2013 11:59PM Eastern Daylight Time. You may enter only once. Two winners will be selected and each will receive a Designed by m AL13 Aerospace Aluminum Bumper for iPhone 5 valued at $59.99 Click Here for complete Official Rules. Loading...
Designed by m's CURB a brilliantly simple idea for cooling a laptop
Here's one of those accessory ideas that you wish you had thought of. Jon Liow of Designed by m was tired of hearing his laptop fan kicking in when he was working on something (not that it would ever happen with a MacBook Pro...), and tried a lot of different solutions. The CURB (pre-order price of US$12.99) is essentially a bumper that holds up the laptop in one of two positions and allows a recharging cable to sneak through as well. The idea is to raise your laptop just enough that air can flow all around it to keep things running cool. It's made of 100 percent food-grade silicone, in case you wish to use it as an eating utensil as well. I suppose you could cut a $1 foam pool noodle to shape to get the same effect, but it's just not as classy looking.
