The other day I was looking for a way to prop up my iPhone to watch some video podcasts, and came across a whole bunch of interesting Instructables to make some simple stands and after trying a few of them, came across this hilariously simple way of creating a great looking stand for your iPhone or iPod touch.

All you need is a small spindle of CDs or DVDs (the 25 pack works best) and optionally some old CDs or some patterned paper and a pair of scissors...

Step 1: Take Apart the DVD Spindle

This is about as hard as it gets ;-D Take apart the spindle and use the clear cover to store the CDs/DVDs. Set aside the clear plastic disc that usually is placed at the bottom of the pile of discs.

Step 2: You're Done

Place your iPhone / iPod Touch in the spindle tray and you're done! The lip around the bottom of the tray will capture the edge of the iPhone without obscuring the screen at all. The great thing about this idea is that 1) there's no adjusting needed to get it to sit squarely on the desk 2) there's no "wrong" way to put the iPhone on the stand and 3) it works in either orientation (of course if you stand it up vertically you can't plug it in at the same time)

So that's the basic idea, but if you want to fancy it up a little here are a few ways to do that...

Step 3: Fancy It Up #1

So far this solution is quick and simple, but it maybe looks a little boring, here's a couple of ways to dress it up a little. First one uses a CD I had previously ripped to iTunes which I thought had some interesting graphics on it. Simply put it on the spindle and then set your iPhone back in the stand.

Step 4: Fancy It Up #2

Here's another quick and easy way to customize the stand. Find some patterned paper or even a cool graphic from a magazine or poster, and use the clear plastic disc from the package as a template to trace out the shape of the disc. Cut out the paper and put it onto the spindle, and then add the clear disc and place it on top to protect the paper.