Cooler Master released two new stands today, the JAS Pro easel stand and the L-STAND, which displays your MacBook Pro vertically when you’re using it with the lid closed. Both stands are crafted from sturdy aluminum and solidly constructed, taking their design cues from Apple. The result is two stands which complement the visual aesthetic of Apple’s MacBook Pro line.
Cooler Master is really making a push into the Apple accessories market, both with stands and supports for MacBooks as well as iPad stands and cases. With that in mind, let’s see how the new stands “hold up”, so to speak.
Not only has Cooler Master taken a lesson from Apple’s product design, they have also learned a thing or two about packaging and presentation. The stands come in beautiful white boxes with clean and uncluttered imagery of the product within. Also, the boxes are not of the cheap ‘lift the flap and tear it apart’ variety, but are more like an expensive box of chocolates, where you lift the cover off to reveal the product inside.
The JAS Pro easel stand is designed to hold you MacBook Pro in an upright open position, most suitable for using the laptop as a display. A small shelf folds out at the front to hold the front edge of the laptop, and then a kickstand folds back to support the laptop. In its fully open position, the MacBook Pro’s screen ends up at about 90 degrees on the vertical. It can hold your iPad just as well, and I found it to be very useful for propping up the iPad while cooking in the kitchen, or for just watching a video. It’s super sturdy and well built, and every part that touches either your device or the surface it’s resting on is covered in a non-scratch, non-slip gray rubber. There’s no chance of slippage with this stand, even on my slippery stone countertop. When you’re done, it folds flat and is pretty easy to store.
The aptly named L-STAND is a single purpose stand, designed for keeping your laptop off your desk and in a vertical position while you use it in clamshell or closed mode. The laptop slides in between the slim band and is protected by the same grippy gray rubber as used in the JAS Pro easel. It’s heavy and stable, and looks of a piece with the MacBook Pro design. The aluminum on both of these stands is sandblasted to a smooth textured finish and a slightly rounded edge, giving them a very nice feel. They appear to be incredibly well made.
Both of these stands are exclusively available at the Apple Store, starting today. The JAS Pro Aluminum Stand for the MacBook and iPad retails for $69.99 US and the L-STAND is $64.99 US.
To celebrate the arrival of these new stands, Cooler Master is giving one of these stands away to you, our lucky readers. All you have to do to be entered in the free giveaway is leave a comment below, indicating which stand you’d like to win. The contest will close on August 27, 2012, so hurry and get your comments in and spread the word to your friends! Only one comment per person, please.
