Comments on: Notebooks run much cooler today than in times past

By: vm-01

vm-01 — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 13:55:39 +0000

i don’t know jk. Those new macbooks can get pretty got when they’re plugged in.

By: James Kendrick

James Kendrick — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 00:35:57 +0000

The 2133 does run warmer than most notebooks/ netbooks. It uses the older Via processor which is not energy efficient. My evaluation of the 2133 didn’t see it getting really hot, just fairly warm.

By: CSMR

CSMR — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 22:06:17 +0000

Intel has moved quickly since pentium 4, with process shrinks and architecture changes including power saving technologies that were very lacking before. Dual core also helps since you can cut down frequency and VCore. Only its chipsets are still hot and that will improve when graphics are incorporated into the CPU. Arrandale later in 2009 should be a big step forwards.

By: Jacob

Jacob — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 16:57:18 +0000

Lenovos seem to be the best in terms of running cool. They have spent much time engineering better fan and cooling systems. Unfortunately Lenovos still aren’t much to look at, and I think the workmanship quality has gone down recently.

By: everbrave

everbrave — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 12:07:06 +0000

The best evidence for the -still- low efficiency of current CPU families is that most laptops -still- need forced cooling by means of at least one fan! So, how long will it take when most laptops are fanless?

By: Luscious

Luscious — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 11:53:07 +0000

Tell me about it James. My HP zd7000 has been a great space heater, but any notebook that uses desktop processors is like that – darn hot.

Intel have gone a long way with their mobile C2D lineup to deal with the heat problem. The next big step is getting that same heat under control from mobile GPU cards, which if you’ve ever used an SLI notebook, will know what I mean.

As for design, notebooks still can be found built thick. The Toshiba Qosmio X305 series sit 2.5 inches high off the table, but that a testament to the excellent thermal design which keeps everything not only cool but does that quietly.

I’ve gone through a lot of notebooks these past six months, and if you keep up with my reviews on my blog, you’ll see that I also examine heat on every notebook I get my hands on.

By: Joseph Kim, MD, MPH

Joseph Kim, MD, MPH — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 03:36:03 +0000

My Lenovo Thinkpad X200 tablet runs so cool that I can use it directly on my lap and I don’t notice any heat from it. It’s amazing, considering that it has a 7200 RPM hard drive and that it’s so thin.

By: Oliver

Oliver — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 22:58:53 +0000

My HP 2133 gets nice and toasty hot. And it’s not *that* old :)

By: gmazin

gmazin — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 21:57:53 +0000

Yeah at the moment AMD processors seem to be hotter and less energy efficient than their Intel counterparts.

Personally I don’t think the heat issue is at a good level yet, but it’s better than before.

By: James Kendrick

James Kendrick — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 21:38:54 +0000

It’s been my experience that AMD processors run much hotter than Intel’s. Most notebooks I have used with AMD inside get much warmer than similar Intel-equipped notebooks.

By: chuba

chuba — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 21:05:41 +0000

You haven’t used the hp tx2-1099eg tablet. When under normal load (e.g. Vista’s Search Indexer running), it gets easily to 85°C (185°F). And in addition to the heat, you get the noise-level of a hair-dryer.

By: Sam

Sam — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 17:54:10 +0000

I am constantly surprised by just how cool my Toshiba Portege M700 runs; it is the main reason I ditched my Fujitsu Lifebook which was melting my furniture not to mention my lap.

By: HG

HG — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 17:14:51 +0000

I have the MSI Wind and the Kohjinsha SC3 and have to say that they don’t get very hot to where you might say this is to hot. I even use the MSI Wind as desktop connected to my 22″ LCD BT Keyboard, and BT mouse and keep the lid closed on it and the MSI Wind only gets warm and not very hot. I do hear the fan go on when I have the lid closed, but I feel it just in case gets to hot I would open the lid. This newer CPU’s use less wattage which is good and is helping keeping the heat down. I remember having the Fujitsu Tablet and that was one very hot tablet. I would even think it wasn’t normal but it was. The only reason you didn’t feel the heat as much was because Fujistu puts these pads under neath in the areas where the heat is so you won’t feel the heat as bad.

By: raghav

raghav — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 17:01:02 +0000

possible answers(in no particular order):
1. James you have used so many laptops that u have just become used to the heat they give. ie u have built up tolerance for them. same for people who have to use them all the time ie road warriors. i have seen people who use desktops unable to tolerate the laptop heat even on the coolest latops

2. new generation cpu produce much less heat as direct result of the amount of energy they use. hence the more energy u use the more u have to dissipate in the form of heat. also they are now they are designed to keep in mind their

By: Jake

Jake — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 16:52:52 +0000

My 2730p gets really hot when it’s plugged in, sometimes to the point where it worries me or I can’t hold it in slate mode. It’s nice and cool on battery though.

By: AndyT

AndyT — Sat, 07 Mar 2009 16:47:25 +0000

My MSI Wind U100 can run pretty warm at times. Its fan automatically increases speed incrementally after core temp hits 120F. Fan speed kicks up a notch at 130, 140 and 150F. The hottest core temp recorded by SpeedFan utility has been 156F. So the blower fan in this netbook is the primary cooling mechanism. BTW, using a infrared temp gauge the highest outside surface temp I found was 103F near the trackpad, but most surface areas remain in the low 90s. Also, I have notices most of the bigger notebooks (Macbook 17″ etc.) have 2 fans to keep’em cool. I wonder what all those monster gaming notebooks use? (maybe heatpipes coupled w/fan or two or more)