Just Mobile has a fascinating collection of accessories for portable devices that they view as "design objects." These include stands and chargers and styluses.
The Just Mobile Slide is a beautiful example of this approach -- simple, elegant, and functional.
The Slide is a stand for your iPad, striped to basics. It's made from a single piece of high-grade aluminum, with a cylindrical support at one end, which flows into a flat surface, with a lip at the other end to hold your tablet.
The magic comes from a rubber cylinder stowed in the tubular support, which you pull out and roll down the surface to position your iPad at the desired viewing angle.
The base is only around 5 x 3 1/2 inches, but with the solid metal construction and friction from the rubber cylinder it can hold the iPad firmly, and in both portrait and landscape positions.
The Slide is indeed a crafted design object, and is available for around $34.
See my Portable Accessories 2012 article for more on portable storage, audio, power, cases, imaging, and other accessories.
Find the Just Mobile Slide on Amazon.com