While a review was poised a few weeks ago for AViiQ’s latest product, I felt the need to take their latest invention through a thorough review process that involved travel, a variety of MacBooks and PCs, and daily use to see if AViiQ’s Portable Quick Stand holds up to heavy use. Snapping from the fold into a prism that’s ready to leverage your laptop and bring your laptop’s screen closer to eye level, this is the alternative to the original Portable Laptop Stand which I reviewed back in February.
Unlike the AViiQ Portable Laptop Stand, AViiQ’s Portable Quick Stand (which I’ll call the Quick Stand in short) isn’t as slim or as collapsable as its older brother, but what the Quick Stand sacrifices in its profile is made up for in price, the quick snap design, and effortless portability. The Quick Stand features the same aircraft grade aluminum, sturdy construction, and rubber end caps that AViiQ incorporated into their first product. Instead of vinyl/plastic joints, rubber end caps allow the Quick Stand to fold open and close.
Unlike the Laptop Stand, which unfurls and tucks to form an aluminum slab, the Quick Stand snaps open into a triangular prism. The base of your laptop, whether it be the front while sitting or the back while standing, will remain unprotected as it rests on the typing surface. Where your laptop makes contact with the Quick Stand, however, is protected by those rubber end caps that wrap around the aluminum planks and provide the actual structure.
Above, I noted that the Quick Stand wasn’t as sturdy as the Laptop Stand. What I mean is that the Quick Stand can be potentially unstable if you push the laptop. As there is no locking mechanism to keep the stand folded open, pushing back on the laptop could cause the Quick Stand to collapse, toppling your MacBook or PC down with it. Which is to say the Quick Stand is wobbly. You can feel the stand rock as you type on it, and it personally made me nervous with laptops that had mechanical hard drives.
The Quick Stand doesn’t provide as solid as a foundation as the Laptop Stand, but as long as you’re not thrashing on your MacBook’s keyboard you’ll likely be alright with a little bit of shake. The Quick Stand, which folds closed to slide into a bag and snaps open to be seated on a table, doesn’t come with an additional drawstring bag. The drawstring bag was an excellent accessory with the Laptop Stand to keep items from snagging on the stand and to keep everything neat and organized. As the Quick Stand doesn’t offer any locking mechanism, a rubber band can keep the stand shut, and I’d even propose that AViiQ should incorporate a snap so the rubber end caps can keep the Quick Stand from unfolding when not in use.
I did notice that the Quick Stand raises the keyboard up slightly higher than the Laptop Stand. I don’t mind a raised typing angle (especially when standing for the sake of my wrists), and the Quick Stand’s height was engineered to be reasonable. The Quick Stand is a rather comfortable wedge in this respect.
While I use the Quick Stand with my 13” polycarbonate MacBook, I was interested in seeing how well it’d leverage heavier (and wider) laptops and PCs. The additional weight of a 17” MacBook does a great job of further securing the Quick Stand to the table — instead of increased rocking, I saw less with weighter machines. No matter what generic Mac or PC you happen to own, as long as the bottom of your laptop and the surface you’re typing on is reasonably flat, the Quick Stand will be okay. I didn’t have a chance to try out a MacBook Air with the stand, and I while I think the 13” model would be fine, I’m not sure about the 11”.
The Quick Stand is an excellent option for laptop owners needing a bit of elevation on the cheap. While there is a bit of bounce, the stand itself doesn’t detract from typing, and you’re not at risk of toppling your computer unless you push back hard on your laptop. The Quick Stand is lightweight, slim enough to quietly slip into a bag, and would be a nice choice for students. The Quick Stand works well when you simply want the elevation to watch a movie (or an episode of The Daily Show on Hulu), and as an improvement the Laptop Stand, is effortless to unfurl and snap down. If the idea of setting up and breaking down the Laptop Stand each time sounds rigorous, then the Quick Stand is the pinch open, pinch close alternative.
AViiQ’s Portable Quick Stand is available in a variety of colors such as black, blue, pink, green, and grey. You can learn more and purchase your own from $39.99 in AViiQ’s online store.
