Page 2 - A Closer Look
LapLogic's G800 Aerogel Extreme has a pretty interesting looking design. It's not particularly pretty, but it's got quite a few features that I haven't seen before -- and I also noticed that none of it is there for decorative purposes. The reflective material you see? To prevent heat radiation by reflecting it back. The piece of clear plastic? To hold CD's or DVD's (or a USB thumb drive, if you can fit it in there). The surface which the laptop sits on is said to be non-slip -- and I can confirm that. The surface holds the laptop in place pretty well, to be honest. Also, the mousing surface - it's a navy blue colour with a canvas feel. I daresay it's actually a feasible alternative to real mousepads, although a bit lacking in surface area.
On the bottom side of the LapLogic W800 Aerogel Extreme are two pockets made of canvas -- it's hard to notice just from the pictures, but it's distinguishable when you see it up close. The pockets are actually sealed together using Velcro -- much stronger than the Velcro that my sneakers were held together with when I was a child.
The W800 makes for a friendly travel companion, although its wider frame might not fit in your laptop bag. It is also too rigid to be folded, alas, we will have to take the hit and move on. It's not as friendly as the LapLogic G800 Aerogel Extreme, in comparison -- sorry, I've been spoiled by LapLogic *blushes*.
I opened it to find a piece of reflective foil, as well as -- the famed Aerogel which the LapLogic W800 is named after. Aerogel -- the same material that they use in space? The very same. Although I received an odd surprise -- the Aerogel this time was black, not the welcoming sky blue that the G800 used. Eurgh, yeah -- the packaging and colour weren't friends when it came to my snapshooting.
In simple terms, Aerogel is similar to jelly (hence the name). Jello, originally a liquid, behaves like a low-density solid state due to the introduction of a gelling agent. Aerogel works like that, behaving like a low-density solid -- feels and looks kind of like Styrofoam or insulation in a house, but originally not a liquid, instead a gas. Aerogels are created through the process of supercritical drying, which extracts the liquid factor of a gel -- or in our case, the gas factor. Thus, Aerogel is actually the lightest and lowest-density solid in existence known to mankind. That's serious.
How's this apply to the LapLogic W800 Aerogel Extreme? Apparently, Aerogel happens to be a remarkable insulator due to its possible negation of the three methods of heat transfer. Air is incapable of circulating throughout the structure -- thus, it neutralizes convection. The next two methods of eliminating heat transfer fully rely on the material the Aerogel is made of -- Silica, being a poor conductor of heat, will not transfer the heat and thus keeps the heat away from your body. If the Aerogel is made of carbon, it will be capable of absorbing the infrared radiation that could end up transferring heat -- although it will not absorb the heat itself.
However, LapLogic doesn't totally rely on Aerogel to beat the heat -- oh, far from it. As I have already stated, there is a piece of reflective foil that serves as the second line of defense. The first line would be the surface on which the laptop would sit on; beneath the meshed sticky stuff, there is a layer of reflective material, which will reflect heat. That's all layered above the atmosphere of Aerogel.
The W800 Aerogel Extreme differs from the G800 Aerogel Extreme in more than a few ways -- for one thing, the different substance the Aerogel is made with. Also, its dimensions allow for a mousepad to be implemented into it. Although I won't go too specifically into it, the mousepad isn't that silent as it crisps a bit when a mouse is hovering over it, but the glide and control is perfectly acceptable. I also found that the W800 Aerogel Extreme might initially come to some as "awkward" or "cumbersome", it's actually a perfect solution -- the rigid body allows for it to sit perfectly on your two legs without collapsing or having to spread your legs too much. Also, the mouse positioning is interesting, because the hand only has to move a tad just to get to the mouse -- as opposed to moving downward, which would take a longer amount of time. As for the mousepad's area, I found it enough for my Logitech G5 at 800dpi, but 400dpi was really pushing it.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. A Closer Look
3. Usage, Testing, Conclusion
