Reviews for Twelve South BookArc Pro Vertical Desktop Stand

This is a nice looking product, and I have set the bookarc for macbook air up with no problems. The macbooks fit snugly in the arc (I have an early 2011 15" macbook pro) and the build quality is nice, as is the weight and feel of the product.

However, one thing that is not addressed is the wi-fi problems caused by operating in 'clamshell' mode, i.e. with the lid closed and an external display connected.

My wi-fi quality decreases significantly when nested in the bookarc, sometimes to the point of being unable to connect. When I remove the macbook from the bookarc and open the lid, I am able to connect flawlessly.

I urge you to check your return policy before buying, as this has turned an otherwise spectacular product into a completely unusable piece of junk.

For the most part, I love this product. It looks vey sleek and sexy and frees up a ton of space on my small desk that I desperately needed. With that said I am a little disappointed on the fitment of my 13" MacBook Pro. It just doesn't fit perfectly snug like you would expect from this overpriced piece of gear. It stands up fine but it slightly tilts to either side which has got my OCD kicking in big time. I don't think a nice fitment is too much to ask especially for something that costed 50 bucks. Also I was hoping if I kept my Speck hardshell case on it would fill the slight gap, but nope, it's too think to get in there with it on. Bummer.

Bottom line, I still love it and am going to keep it but think it could definitely have a better fit for the price.

I've recently bought one of these for my Retina MacBook Pro 15". I've read many places online that it mostly just saves space and looks cool, but many people have also mentioned that it doesn't really keep your MacBook much cooler. However I've noticed that my MacBook runs considerably cooler in this stand as well!. I often had the lid closed lying flat on my desk connected to a Thunderbolt Display and according to iStat my SSD and CPU would fluctuate between 50-60C and GPU would be around 60 C when I'm just using it for light work and browsing the net, etc. and even sometimes my fan would speed up to 2500 RPM on hot days. However since I got the BookArc my SSD has been hovering around 35 C, CPU around 40 and GPU between 45-50 C and my fans no longer speed up when just using my mac lightly! I'm more than impressed!!

Pros:
- Stylish minimalistic design.
- Has a bit of weight to it; keeps MacBook sturdy on the desk.
- Saves a lot of space (duh!)
- Has cable management under the stand.
- Silicone inserts can be replaced and bought from Twelve South.
- Keeps MacBook MUCH cooler than lying flat on table.
- You won't find any other MacBook stand that looks quite as good as this.

Cons:
- A little bit pricey for just a piece of aluminium; although the other alternatives and similar products cost about the same.
- Stand is a little bit long and wide (has a large footprint than I expected), It would probably be about the length of a MacBook Air 11"