I’m still a major fan of my Librem laptop, but here’s a stark lesson in why bevels matter in case design. If possible, let’s make sure that future revisions don’t feature any right angles. (There’s one particular edge that can mechanically sanitize your fingertips just at the base of the hinge, above the keyboard, for example.) Instead, they should all be rounded like the bullnose tiles around the perimeter of a swimming pool. The same applies to all the metal cutouts, but I’m cognizant of how difficult it might be to bevel those, as opposed to merely replacing right-angle box edges with tightly curved ones. Somehow, the Mac Book seems to have gotten this right. To be fair, they probably have a whole team of people working on case design. Nevertheless, their tight-fitting bevelled metalwork constitutes the state of the art.
Anyway, I was typing away at an email when the doorbell rang. I got up, whipped off my reading glasses, and set them on the table in order to see who it was. In my haste, I accidentally dragged them across the right-angle metal rim of the screen. Doing so literally shaved a few microns of lens material sheer off. I’m now looking forward to several hundred bucks in replacement cost.
Is Purism to blame? No. I was being an idiot. But to the extent that it doesn’t harm security or performance, good case design, just like good software design, should endeavor to prevent idiots from doing what they do best. Bevelling wherever possible would be one way to do this.
Meanwhile, the edge of your laptop makes for a great exfoliant device, just in case the winter weather is leaving you with any flakey skin!
