Filing the corners off my MacBooks

Nice initiative but I would personally prefer adding some kind of padding, which is an easier solution to the problem, not as drastic, reversible, and less controversial. Unless doing something controversial is one of the goals here, which is also fair.

I've done this to my MacBook around the sharp and unpleasant corners near the touchpad. I had the laptop a few weeks before I couldn't take how unpleasant it was to touch any more.

Cool, but why is the most rounded-off part in the center? My wrists cover the edge at 5-25% and 75-95% when typing. When mousing, my right hand fleshy pad covers the edge at 65-80%.

What was wrong with a $20 palm rest/cover? It would also protect it for resale value.

Mac users since 2010. Never noticed the sharp edges. I am just keen on not having that little red ball in the middle of the keyboard á la Elitebook.

Yea, that's ugly. I'm sure it could've been done more gracefully with 15 minutes more effort. But judging from the general wear and tear on this poor Mac I guess they don't even consider the resale value.

It’s not only more comfortable to file off those sharp edges but also makes the laptop less dangerous to carry around. Those sharp edges not only cause discomfort but can chip paint, damage furniture, and inflict damage in general. If you had to you could use it as a weapon I suppose.

This reminds me of a problem we hit at work. Ended up going a different direction but same root issue.

Probably don't do this if you have a magnesium-aluminum alloy laptop.

Depending on exactly how much magnesium is in the alloy, metal shavings can be highly flammable and otherwise hazardous.

I think it's fine to mess with stuff like this, just make sure you know what you can do safely to the materials.

maybe a better approach to start with computers that already have ergonomic chassis (they exist) and then spend energy for modifying tools on what happens inside of them?

I go through at least one dimestore nail file on every Macbook. The edge near the front touchpad always gets treated.

Yeah, a very admirable project indeed.

I salute your can-do spirit and your will to customise your tools to your preferences.

I also think you're an animal and need to be stopped before you do more damage to perfectly well designed machines.

I use a case on my MacBooks to protect them from damage. These cases are made of softer materials that are easier to chamfer. I make a similar modification when necessary. Sometimes it's worse with the plastic cases because the injection mold seam is that sharp edge.

Sitting in a reclined position on the train, I’ve had a MacBook fly into my face when the car lurched and slice my nose open. Bled all over.

Depending on how I'm using the computer, I may definitely have deep marks after working laying down, but if I sit in a wood chair for a while it's the same thing- and my forearm is much tougher than behind my knee.

I suppose I would prefer it nice and rounded and soft on my wrist - but I don't feel like it's quite as extreme as this thread would have you believe lol

Love that he took it so far. I filed mine a while back - it’s so much more comfortable to use. When I drop it and a corner get mashed, I file that back flat. It reminds me of kintsugi where it shines from the fine filing.

I filed my work dell laptop too. Very different feel, but it is nice not living in feel of your own stuff.

The sharp and high edges leave a mark in my skin. The older MacBook Air design was lower, so resting your palms wouldn’t give me this

Ah man, I hate how sharp the edges are. Good solution

There’s something lovely about this.

To my eye, it is like the patina that your favorite tools get.

I’m looking at you, 40 year old tape measure.

If most laptop sales were still made in person, in a physical store, maybe laptops would still have rounded edges and maybe even flowing shapes

A very even 45 degree cut, like the cut to lift the screen but much shallower would look pretty cool. Maybe 2mm wide

Everyone should be personalizing their belongings to suit their needs and desires. Living with belongings that make you feel anything less than happy and satisfied is NOT necessary.

This is a particularly hilarious customization both for its combined utility and shock value and also for doing it on a work computer.

I did this at my last job, it's nice.

I do this too, although only the corners. It's one of the only design failures of the MacBook.

Nice. Maybe a touch of 600 and 1200 wet/dry sandpaper (with some dish soap lubricant)?

Definitely didn't expect this to be about literally filing the corners off. Bravo! I think it looks pretty great, not sure I'd do it to one of mine

I would love to see a Unibody polished to a mirror finish. Would be a perfect match for Queen Amidala’s shuttle.

I wonder if it would be possible to sand down a MacBook surface to the grade where it was all shiny mirror like the Apple logo, e.g. with car polish :-) The "untouchable" MacBook mirror :-)

The author has the same problem as myself; there’s a permanent imprint on the screen that sits right where the screen makes contact with the topside of the touchpad.

It’s quite an annoying flaw, and i’ve only had this problem with the machines since the M1 redesign

Maybe it's just me, but I think it looks kind of cool. I like how it tapers from the ultra-smooth front to the jagged back edges. Only suggestion would be to use better tools to do the filing, since it looks a bit uneven/rough.

At one point due to the way I was using my just above my wrist my skin basically calloused from the edge of the macbook. Now at least the lid is not that sharp but it used to be I recall and I always worried about kids getting hit by it in case of an accident.

When I was actively using my Macbook 2014, I did the same, though to lesser extent and in a uniform way. The edge was way too sharp.

Maybe it's because I type like one would play the piano (with hands curved, fingers well below the palms), but I've never ran into an issue like this with a laptop before, wrists always clear the edges by a couple inches.

All the same, hell yeah.

Truly the most horrifying post on HN I've seen in quite a while

I'm very tempted to try this although I worry that the rubber "seal" around the edges of the screen will no longer have anything to butt up against, meaning there's glass-on-metal contact when it's closed?

There are plenty of laptops out there that have square edges on the user-facing edge. However, most are tapered and/or have hinge designs that tilt the laptop surface towards the user, dropping that square edge away from the user's wrists.

Most Apple laptops, such as the latest Pro's, are level, rather than tapered, and sit flat so that the user-facing edge cuts into your wrists. It's bad ergonomics, plain and simple. If you value function over form enough to modify your tools in this way, choose better tools.

One of the ATPers was going on and on a bit ago about how the Neo is very "rounded" and "not sharp" compared to the Pro. I wonder if it would need this.

I'd like to see some side-by-side before and after photos

I dropped my MBA on concrete and the edges got dinged up and sharp.

A bit of 220 grit sandpaper and all the sharp edges are smooth and it actually looks pretty cool. I was grimacing at first but now I like the feel.

Not just sides, the vents are much sharper.

Few years back, I tried to look on reddit for complaints regarding this - barely anything.

That's some really poor filing job :D but yeah custom tools is the way to go

Too bad my Mac is company owned, maybe I'd use it in a "laptop mode" more if it didn't slit wrists.

Factory distressed Fender Stratocasters coming up...

I did this on the macs at an old job, but not as drastic. It really doesn’t need much to ..ahem… take the edge off.

Would be cool if somebody would make a round over or chamfer plane that would allow you to remove the corner with a higher finished look.

I too find the sharp corners incredibly uncomfortable for my weak sensitive baby wrists but I chose to overcome this by wearing a wrist band. Two very different approaches