Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Best way to cool 15" MBP

S

shawnzie101

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Oct 13, 2010
1
0
I have spent the past two hours looking for a good review on a laptop cooling pad and haven't found much. I'm aware of where the MBP's vents are located and how that renders most options inefficient. However, I plan on doing some gaming on my 15" MBP and although not very effective I assume a cooling pad would have some effect if only in the 5-10 less degree category.

Any input on a device that is both ergonomically comfortable while lessening the temperature even moderately would be appreciated.

I plan on using 3rd party software to adjust my fan speeds before I begin gaming rather than waiting on the machine to notice the increased temps. SMC seems like the best option any input on this software or general manual adjustment of fan speeds would be appreciated.

Thank you.

I should note i'm not interested in the cooling crystal pads as it seems they only prodive cooling for 2-3 hours.
 
Are you making sure your on a hard surface? That will allow the air to flow best, and I have a targus cooling pad with 2 fans I think and its horrible...does nothing for the temperature at all. As far as smcfancontrol, it works great and I recommend it.
 
I like my iLap personally. No fans, it's just a piece of aluminum that keeps the laptop elevated and free for air flow, and keeps it up off your lap. I don't use the included palm rest thing, I think that makes it uncomfortable. But this keeps my Macbook Pro plenty cool in all situations for me.

http://www.raindesigninc.com/ilap.html
 
Keep the MacBook Pro open even when connected to a external display. There is some air flow around The keyboard, the speaker grill, and the back vent. It's not a sealed system. Remember that the whole case is basically a heatsink so some heat is removed via convection.
 
Coolermaster Aluminum Notepal

I use the aluminum Notepal from Coolermaster. It works great and and is very durable. Unfortunately they no longer sell it, but maybe you could find one on eBay. Here is a link on Amazon to see a pic of it.

http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-NotePal-Laptop-R9-NBC-ADAS/dp/B0009WPSEC

Being that it is aluminum and so is the MBP, I added some felt strips on the front and back of the Notepal and the lip where it holds the MBP from slipping off. That way there is no static electricity or shorts between the aluminum rubbing. I had experienced a little of that before the felt was added. The USB ports would short out temporarily until I would move the MBP around a little on it.

But it does a great job of keeping it cool, because it sure can get hot.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
Cooling Pads don't work for MacBook's as you probably noticed your MacBook has no holes and is completely flat like a Frying Pan on the back, it only has some holes at the hinge, a pad will only throw air at that hot surface but not into the actual components, I used two and they didn't work, don't waste your money, Laptops get hot, MacBooks don't breath very well, Even If they're pro, that choice is rather to make it look pretty, maybe just use some two little feet on the back, I used some standard Platic bottle caps and they did the job
 
On warmer days (I have no A/C here in Socal) I will swap out gel/ice packs (that have been in the freezer) that will sit under where the cpu/gpu are. Drops temps significantly but they only absorb so much heat, hence the swapping. The only things I have used that help cool it down act like a secondary heat sink by actually touching the bottom to move heat away. Those pads that have fans in them do *****.
 
I haven't had any luck with the cooling pads either. I was paranoid that my MBP 15" was getting too hot so I took to the Apple Store in Chicago, and the Apple Genius ran a stress test, and said it was not overheating, and, "that unless it starts shutting down not to worry because they are designed to shut down if they reach 50% of their maximum safe temp." I thought he might be giving me a line of B.S. so I called Apple support and was told the same thing. So I just use my ilap and don't worry about anymore.
 
I would be quite cautious about using freezer packs, especially if it's true that it will take your CPU down to 40 C as I have read on another thread.

I would be worried about condensation inside your Mac. If the freezer pack can really take your CPU down to 40 C at full load, then inside of your Mac will be much, much colder, perhaps as low as 0 C (particularly the inside of the bottom cover). This could cause condensation leading to long term reliability problems. It also might trigger the moisture sensors inside your Mac - which would invalidate your warranty.

Apple gives an operating temperature limit of 10 C. If you attach a freezer pack to the bottom it will be at freezer temperatures - about -15 C. Way below Apple's recommendation.
 
The best you can do is to keep air circulating under the laptop. I've got a Zalman cooler with a perforated aluminium surface, this lowers temps by about 5 C and switching the fans in the cooler doesn't help at all.
 
the most common response from long time MBP owners would be ... you should not need anything to keep it cool.

I say buy it a cold beer ... even better go for the six pack
 
Extra memory cools Macbook Pro

I have found that bumping up the RAM on my Macbook Pro 15inch (running Lion) from 4gb. to 8gb. significantly cools the machine - presumably because the hard drive and processor are less employed in swapping memory. My fans often used to go into overdrive and the underside became blistering hot, but not any more.
 
I keep mine on the rain mstand at home and when i'm on the go it is rarely on for more than half an hour or so on a desk. I have yet to actually need to rest it on my lap...
 
Apple OC said:
the most common response from long time MBP owners would be ... you should not need anything to keep it cool.

I say buy it a cold beer ... even better go for the six pack
Click to expand...

This. It's designed to be able to run just fine without any extra cooling. Just make sure you don't block the hinge side of the laptop.

I ran my mid-2009 13" MBP in clamshell mode for about a year 8+h every day without any problems or any extra cooling.
 
shawnzie101 said:
I have spent the past two hours looking for a good review on a laptop cooling pad and haven't found much. I'm aware of where the MBP's vents are located and how that renders most options inefficient. However, I plan on doing some gaming on my 15" MBP and although not very effective I assume a cooling pad would have some effect if only in the 5-10 less degree category.

Any input on a device that is both ergonomically comfortable while lessening the temperature even moderately would be appreciated.

I plan on using 3rd party software to adjust my fan speeds before I begin gaming rather than waiting on the machine to notice the increased temps. SMC seems like the best option any input on this software or general manual adjustment of fan speeds would be appreciated.

Thank you.

I should note i'm not interested in the cooling crystal pads as it seems they only prodive cooling for 2-3 hours.
Click to expand...
Simple, don't monitor iStat and don't worry about your computer getting hot. That's the best, most efficient cooling method. I've had mine running upwards of 100C for hours on end and it's nearing 4 years old, and guess what, it still works like new.

Should the heat be too much for the computer, it will shut itself down preventing damage.

People obsess too much over temperatures on these forums.
 
Snaky is right just stop worrying.
Unless you overclock the GPU a lot it won't overheat. Okay if the roomtemp is 40 C it might but just sit in a room that is not so hot that it makes your hands sweat so much you drown the notebook.
Seriously turning on the AC or opening a Windows is the most efficient way of lowering temps a couple degrees.
Another is reapplying thermal paste. Everything else is a waste of money and effort.
 
dusk007 said:
Snaky is right just stop worrying.
Unless you overclock the GPU a lot it won't overheat. Okay if the roomtemp is 40 C it might but just sit in a room that is not so hot that it makes your hands sweat so much you drown the notebook.
Seriously turning on the AC or opening a Windows is the most efficient way of lowering temps a couple degrees.
Another is reapplying thermal paste. Everything else is a waste of money and effort.
Click to expand...

So turning on the AC to cool your laptop isn't a waste of money? I find it easier having a cooling pad when there isn't a window or an AC that can be easily turned on.

Unless you aren't gaming on a flat surface then I wouldn't worry about it. I bought the targus chill mat so when I use my laptop and play a game, it isn't going to burn my legs and essentially pulls in fresh air from the sides.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back