Review of the Just Mobile CB-200 Cooling Bar for MacBooks

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One of the challenges with any MacBook or notebook PC is cooling. While these devices are made to be a bit more heat tolerant than their desktop tower counterparts, they still can overheat which can cause damage or diminish performance. Getting air flowing through the cooling fans and vents on your MacBook or notebook is they key to avoiding potential disaster and the team at Just Mobile have come up with a sleek, stylish and amazingly simple solution for MacBook users. The CB-200 Cooling Bar is an solid, all aluminum bar that you rest the back of your MacBook onto. This lifts it about an inch from your desk surface, providing plenty of space for the cooling fans and vent to work properly. Although designed with the MacBook in mind, the CB-200 works well with any notebook PC as well and it has a hidden benefit that Mac and PC users alike can benefit from while using it.

Figure 1 - The Just Mobile Cooling Bar CB-200

The CB-200 measures 15″ in length and weighs in at a hefty 2.4lbs. The weight comes from the fact that it is made from solid aluminum which in turn gives you assurance that this is not a flimsy little accessory. The bar is rounded with the exception of the base where it is flat and is lined with a soft rubber strip. This strip is soft enough to grip any surface to prevent slipping while you have your MacBook on it. Having tested it on smooth granite, a smooth wood desk and grained wood dining table, I no issues with it slipping on surface.

Figure 2 - The non-slip rubber rings on the CB-200

Figure 3 - The flat but rubber covered base of the CB-200

At each end of the CB-200 are three rubber rings. These rings, like the rubber base, are designed to grip and hold the base of the MacBook to prevent it from slipping while resting on the bar. The rings are space apart enough to support a 13″, 15″ or 17″ MacBook. In my testing, I also used a Dell Latitude D630 Notebook PC on the CB-200 and found that the rings line up well for PCs also.

Figure 4 - My MacBook Pro resting on the CB-200. Note the clearance to allow plenty of airflow under it

On the left side of the bar there is a small notch cut from into it. This is to allow for your MacBook’s power cable to be guided behind and out of the way. This also prevents the cable from getting in the way of the cooling systems of your MacBook and assures smooth, clean airflow in and out of it. For PC users of the CB-200, this feature won’t come into play as much given that most notebook PCs have their power connection at the rear of the chassis.

Figure 5 - The power cord of my MacBook Pro secured in the slot of the CB-200

A final hidden benefit of the Cooling Bar is the tilt it provides to your MacBook. The tilt forces your hands and wrists into a more ergonomically and healthy position while typing. Normally on a notebook or MacBook your hands are parallel to the keyboard which can cause pressure and stress on your wrists and the delicate nerves within them. The CB-200 forces your hands slightly up in angle which will relieve the pressure. I found during my testing that my hands were far more comfortable with the Cooling Bar in place than without.

Figure 6 - Typing is much more comfortable with the CB-200 under my MacBook Pro

The Just Mobile CB-200 sells for approximately $41.99 and is available at a variety of online retailers. It may seem a bit pricey given its simple design, but consider that the CB-200 will likely never break given its solid construction, and forty-two bucks is a heck-of-a-lot less than what the price of a repair to an overheated MacBook would cost you.

What I Liked
Solid construction
non-slip rubber rings to hold your MacBook and the rubber base to prevent slippage on any surface
Elegant design and style

What I Didn’t Like
A little pricy but worth it

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About the Author

Clinton Fitch
Clinton is the owner of ClintonFitch.com and has been writing about mobile tech since 1998. You can follow Clinton on Twitter @clintonfitch. When not writing about tech, Clinton is an avid baseball and F1 fan and is a ski bum in the winter.

5 Comments on "Review of the Just Mobile CB-200 Cooling Bar for MacBooks"

  1. VetPsychWars | June 25, 2009 at 7:54 am |

    You have got to be kidding me. There are no vents on the bottom, they’re on the sides. $42 for a stick?

    No way this is “worth it.” If you had any credibility before, it’s shot now.

  2. VetPsychWars,

    As I stated in the review, you can use this with a PC notebook which most have vents/cooling/fans on the bottom of them. Even with a MBP however you get air circulating around the base of the unit and it will help cool it.

  3. I always find it interesting when someone takes the time to bother registering just to leave a comment such as this, but I guess it must have struck a nerve with you.

    I am not sure about your particular laptop, but MacBook Pros have vents on their bottom rear, and they can blow very HOT. Being able to raise the back of the laptop will indeed help with its ventilation. The added ergonomics is a bonus.

    Whether you choose to accomplish this combination of cooling and better ergonomics by purchasing a $42 solid aluminum stick that beautifully matches your MBP, or you choose to do it with a $10 piece of black plastic is a personal choice. I guess we know which one you would choose.

  4. VetPsychWars | June 25, 2009 at 7:12 pm |

    Yes, Judie, it was so ridiculous that it prompted me to register just to say, dude, wait, what? $42 for a stick, no matter how pretty, is $42 for a STICK!

    I have a 17″ MacBook Pro, for the record, on an Airdesk. Now there is something worth reviewing.

    $42… for a stick.

  5. She didn’t say it was ‘ridiculous’ but ‘interesting’ … as in it is always interesting to see what will prompt folks to register. I don’t disagree … but for me it was just a ‘meh, so my lap gets a bit hot, I just put soemthing between the MBP and my skin’.

Comments are closed.