Ten of the Best... laptop stands

Give your knees a rest

Port Design Ergo Station

Port's Ergo Station is an all-plastic desktop stand complete with four powered USB ports. It needs to be plugged into the mains to operate properly, though ours managed to drive a mouse and printer – though not a USB memory stick – using just the power drawn from a laptop's USB connecting cable. The stand itself has three lockable positions ranging from almost flat to near vertical, though we suspect most users will use it in the middle position which cants the keyboard forward at around 45° and raises it about 6in off the deck, making typing a touch tricky without a separate keyboard. Though the sculpted platter of the Ergo allows plenty of room for air to circulate it's also available with a powered fan for more serious cooling. The gloss-surface plastics give the Ergo a nice feeling of quality while the cut-out front support bar didn't obscure any of the audio sockets on our Dell.

Reg Rating 80%
Price €70 without fan, €80 with fan
More Info Port Design

Logitech Alto Connect

Solid, stable and altogether a cracking bit of design, Logitech's Alto is the must-have stand for the style conscious. Like Port's Ergo, the Alto also doubles up as a powered four-port USB hub, but Logitech place one of the ports at the front – handily labelled “Media” for the hard of thinking - for easy memory stick access. The Alto lacks anything in the way of angle adjustment which means it makes more sense with a remote keyboard and mouse, examples of which Logitech also makes. If it bundled the Alto with its entry-level EX100 wireless keyboard and mouse combo for £60, it would be a very compelling purchase indeed. Like the Port Ergo the Alto has to be plugged into the mains for the USB hub to work, though unlike the Ergo mains power is required to drive even a simple cable mouse.

Reg Rating 80%
Price £40 Click for the best online price
More Info Logitech