While I appreciate the room for the mouse. Is this not essentially a $69 board? I think a trip to the home depot could yield similar results for less than $10.00. Perhaps it's the inner cheapskate in me.

I completely agree.
Just bought a suitable BRÄDA lap desk from ikea for about $18 last weekend. If I'm feeling ambitious, I may carve out a real wood top for it.

I had this problem with one of my laptops. I went to the building salvage place and got myself a thick floor tile. It was marble I think, and 12 x 12 inches. I kept it in the fridge when I wasn't using it. Then I would sit in bed, all toasty in the covers, and the laptop would sit on top the covers, on top the cold tile. Worked beautifully. It was $5.

real cheapskate here -- i use a big art book with the dust jacket taken off

Anyone who seriously considers paying $69 for a piece of plywood and some scraps of silicone deserves to be ripped off.

I feel like, sometimes, the AT people just post things like this to get us riled up.

while i like the idea, there are plenty of other options with something more for less cost. $69 for a piece of cut/stained wood is hardly worth it.
i simply use a pillow.

A pillow actually accomplishes the exact opposite of this purpose. Pillows are soft, and so conform to the shape of the bottom of the laptop, covering up the vents.

A pillow would actually make it overheat faster.

What about a nice glass or wood cutting board? Even one of those plastic ones might do the job.

I use a broken snowboard that I sanded