My Portable "Desk"
Why?
One of the reasons I had for getting a handtop in the first place was that I could take it with me wherever I go. I end up working out of a lot of different workspaces and moving around a fair bit during the work day. As a result, even a laptop would be cumbersome. However, there are times where I'd like to be able to use a large monitor, a full-sized keyboard, and a mouse. When I went out of town for various trips and conferences last year, I carefully packed up my monitor into it's original box and my keyboard, mouse, and a whole set of accessories in a laptop carrying case. Then, upon arrival, I schlepped all that stuff into my room and spent the next half-hour setting it all back up again. That's feasible for a business trip where you'll be working out of a space for at least a day, but not at all for anything less. I began to search for a solution that would work for me.
Plan A : "the laptop carrier"
My first thought, echoed by a number of folks on various handtop forums was whether or not I could somehow get a laptop "shell" with a monitor and battery power supply (and possibly built-in keyboard and touch-pad) and disect my handtop's docking cradle to create laptop-style docking station. For many reasons, this would be ideal. The laptop shell would already have a monitor, keyboard, and pointing apparatus. The battery could provide power for the monitor and for the handtop and connected periferals. The whole thing could be folded up and carried somewhat easily from place to place. The hardest part would be to take apart the docking cradle and attach the connections in the right way... or so I thought. Unfortunately, as I set about looking for laptop shells, I quickly discovered that nobody is offering them anymore. They used to be available, but now most companies are offering their own laptops with a series of end-user selected options which do away with the need to build it yourself. I couldn't find a laptop shell available anywhere. I couldn't even find a broken laptop where I could be certain that only the processor section was bad (and not the screen or keyboard hardware). I scrapped Plan A and started looking for a Plan B.
Plan B:
My next thought was that maybe I could figure out a way to put all the components I need into a case that could just be opened up and plugged in for use. Now, if I'm going to carry about a monitor, I want one with fairly good resolution. I found several nice 19-inch widescreen LCD monitors that would do that. I can imagine the store employees at Fry's wondered what I was up to with my tape measurer as I examined each monitor's dimensions. One of them even suggested a montor arm if I was having trouble fitting the monitor on my desk. (One aspect of this suggestion was the important point that almost all modern LCD monitors have the ability to remove the base and attach them to a monitor arm. Detaching the base was an important step in fitting the monitor into a case.)
After measuring the monitors, I began measuring cases. My first thought was to use a brief case. The hard shell would be good protection. Unfortunately, examination of brief cases showed that the inside dimensions were universally too small by almost an inch (and that didn't account for the side hinges that hold the top of the case upright). I started examining laptop cases, which at least had padded sides to protect what's inside. I found a Targus 17-inch Platinum case had just the right dimensions for holding any of the 19-inch widescreen monitors I'd found. ("Wait a minute!", I hear you say. "How can a 17-inch case hold a 19-inch monitor?" Cases are measured in terms of width. Monitors are measured diagonally. Amazingly, it works out.)
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My first thought was to simply hook up the power and VGA cables and place the monitor face up in the central compartment of the case. This posed two issues. First, the hook-ups would be difficult to get to once the monitor was in place, Second, I was hoping to have additional power outlets available for plugging in the handtop and any peripherals. That would mean removing the monitor each time I plugged something else in. I decided to take a different approach. The Platinum case has two additonal storage compartments. If I placed the face of the monitor facing one of those compartments and removed the fabric wall between the two compartments, I could open the other compartment to see the monitor and open the central compartment to plug things in. The back compartment proved the better choice since it can (once you remove the file folder holders) open all the way (the front compartment loads from the top only) and it is flat on the bottom. (We'll see why that's important in a moment.)
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You can see the screen at the top with the handtop, in it's cradle, and my Bluetooth mouse and keyboard. (I could just as easily have used a USB mouse and keyboard.) When I'm done working, the handtop goes back on my hip. The back of the cradle goes where the mouse is sitting, the keyboard flips over (for a slightly better fit), I put a scratch preventing foam pad in place over the screen, zip up the case, and I'm on to wherever I have to be next. It's not quite as easy as unfolding a laptop, but it's pretty close -- and way better than schlepping separate pieces around.
You may be wondering about what the area behind the monitor looks like. That's where I'm doing all my "power distribution." Here's a look:
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At the top, you'll see a surge-suppressor/power strip that gives me six power outlets. It's cord is connected to an adapter with a computer-style power connector that allows me to use a retractable power chord (which you see, next to the power adapter at the bottom). The cords and cables fill up a lot of space around the back of the monitor, but no so much that it can't vent. Everything except the retractable power cord stays in the case during use and one plug will power the whole set up.
What's Next
While this solution works well enough, it isn't perfect. For one thing, this set up requres AC power. It would be easy to find a number of power options that would supply DC power to my handtop while in the car or on an airplane, but supplying the monitor is more difficult. There are DC-powered monitors that would work in those situations, but they don't provide anywhere near the resolution of the monitor I'm using. (The best I could find currently was 1024x768.) I hope that DC-powered higher-resolution monitors will become available sometime in the not too distant future.
In addition to working in the car or on a plane, it might be nice to be able to work without any external power for at least a little while. In addition to needing a monitor that works off of DC power, I'd also need one that draws a lot less power. (The monitor I'm using draws about 40 Watts and some draw up to 60+ Watts. Most of the DC powered monitors draw 5 Watts or less.) Obviously, the less power the monitor draws, the longer the entire system would run off of a battery.
For the next generation of "My Portable 'Desk'", click here.
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