Notebook Design That’s Just right

Andrew Fishkin at Low End Mac comes up with his criteria for choosing a notebook, or for manufacturers, how to design a notebook just right. His guide is kind of reminiscent of my own “perfect laptop” guide I came up with last April, but Andrew chose to focus on two things: the keyboard and the display.

Laptops are, after all, built for productivity while on the road. And one is at his peak when the keyboard feels just right, and the screen looks just right.

First and foremost for me is the keyboard. Think about it: You carry a laptop for a number of reasons, but unless you view and enter text, most of those reasons could handled with a cheaper and more convenient device. Be it watching movies or playing games, laptops, while adapted to such tasks, were not designed for them from the beginning.

Andrew includes examples of keyboard ranging from the cheap, to the good, to premium, to best, with the ones that use sturdy bases and scissor-spring mechanisms for guiding each key. IBM (now Lenovo) Thinkpads are great in this regard. higher-end Apple notebook keyboards are likewise great.

Next is the screen. It’s a choice between heft and portability. Choose a small screen, and your laptop will be portable at the expense of readability. Larger screens are for multimedia and graphics work–you have to sacrifice portability though, especially when you’re going 17-inches and higher.

In the end, a laptop is still a personal choice. It’s up to you, the end-user, how you intend to use the laptop, and whether the design of a particular brand and model fits your needs.

So the next time you go laptop shopping, do yourself a favor and focus on the keyboard and the screen. Look at the materials and assembly. You’ll not only be more productive, but get a lot more enjoyment from a laptop that satisfies your own subjective standards.

I agree that you should consider build quality and usability of the user interface (screen, pointing device, keyboard) as your primary considerations. After all, it’s your productivity we’re talking about!

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