Quotes

Griffin iCurve

by Simon Helton

Griffin Technology

SRP / SP:	$40 / $40
Requirements:	Virtually any laptop
What's Hot:	Cooler temps and improved ergonomics
What's Not:	Nothing worth mentioning

Over the last several years, laptops have gone from cumbersome curiosities to adequate traveling companions to full-fledged desktop replacements. The performance gap between laptops and desktops has diminished, along with the price divide. What that means is more of us are spending a great deal of time in front of our portables, spending hours a day staring at the screen and using the keyboard, despite questionable long-term ergonomics. If this is a concern of yours, the Griffin iCurve is a product worth checking out. Desks often provide a surface that is lower than ideal for using a laptop, as you angle downward to look at the screen and keep your wrists horizontal on the surface while typing. The iCurve puts the LCD in a better viewing position and angles the keyboard slightly for healthier typing.

The iCurve is made of clear plastic in a shape that resembles a doubled-over horseshoe. While plastic might not sound like the sturdiest material, I've found the iCurve surprisingly durable. It has a decent heft to it, and instead of being rigid and brittle, the design gives the plastic some flex and give that is perfect for when you set your hands on the keyboard for typing. Concerns of breakage are probably not warranted, even for the ham-fisted among us. If you're worried about your portable falling off or sliding off the pedestal, have no fears. The small rubber contact points have proven amazingly reliable at keeping my MacBook in place. The iCurve also looks quite nice, particularly with Apple's glossier portables, but I would love to see a black matte version to complement the black MacBook and earlier PowerBooks.

Another significant benefit I found with the iCurve is reduced temperatures. Everyone has by now heard about scorching-hot MacBook Pros and MacBooks with the sizzling CoreDuo processors. Using an application for measuring processor temperature, I found temperatures to drop 5-10 degrees centigrade, dependong on the situation. This might not be as significant an improvement as comes with redoing the thermal paste, but it can't be a bad thing to keep the temperature down over years of use.

After using the iCurve for a few weeks now, I have to say that my neck does feel better, and I feel like the angled keyboard is an improvement for typing. It's one of those products where it's hard to imagine a time before you used it. As I said, my only suggestion would be for a black matte offering to better suit more of the PC world, as well as the black MacBook and earlier PowerBooks.