Build your own laptop desk

I like this one because you could use it in bed, lying down. I'd put a pad under it. You could file off all the sharp edges to keep it from scratching your computer. You can use any light-weight gridded or slatted metal for this. From LifeHacker's reader Mike. You'll need bolt cutters or tin snips to cut the shelving - or use a file and bend the metal to snap it.

Jumpfroggy is a hacker after my own heart, he saw a good looking laptop desk for $140 and figured out how to make one for about 1/10 the price. The full instructions are at instructables.com but the gist is: cut a piece of plywood, masonite, or whatever for the base (wide enough for your hips) and four leg pieces (two thighs and two shins). You fasten the thighs to the shins with "knees" of screw-tightened knob hardware (a friend suggested insetting checkers so the serrated edges of the checkers hold the knee joints at the desired angle) and then screw the base to the thighs. Not your thighs.

The Achilles Heel of this design: the knob hardware. It's going to be very hard to keep it from slipping and I don't own any checkers.

You might be able to get a big enough piece of plywood for this in the cull bin at Home Depot. I would recommend birch plywood, though, because it's very smooth. Design it to fit your lap (remember, it has to be wide enough to span your hips). You could use any sort of hinge. I like piano hinges best for plywood because they distribute the stress but other kinds would work as well. To make the cutouts from the legs, drill a big hole in one corner of the area to be cut away and use a narrow jigsaw blade.

I don't know how this model keeps the legs from splaying out. That would take some thought.

Do sand carefully when you're done. I think I'd use plaster or wood filler on the edges before sanding.