Cooling Pads

efirmage · Nov 1, 2010, 02:27 PM

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Wondering if people have had any good/bad experiences with cooling pads. I plan to use this for some moderate gaming, and I feel like it would be a worthy investment to get one of these, both for noise and for longevity. Any thoughts?

ssb333 · Nov 1, 2010, 02:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by efirmage

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Wondering if people have had any good/bad experiences with cooling pads. I plan to use this for some moderate gaming, and I feel like it would be a worthy investment to get one of these, both for noise and for longevity. Any thoughts?

Should this really be in the mac book air thread? I think you ought to move conversations like this to the accessories/peripherals thread or something else that is more relevant.

gwsat · Nov 1, 2010, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by efirmage

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Wondering if people have had any good/bad experiences with cooling pads. I plan to use this for some moderate gaming, and I feel like it would be a worthy investment to get one of these, both for noise and for longevity. Any thoughts?

So far, at least, I have had no need for any auxiliary cooling for my MBA. Before I got the MBA I always had to place a coffee table book between my 17 inch MBP and my lap to avoid discomfort but the MBA runs much cooler.

jw6961 · Nov 1, 2010, 03:38 PM

I've been using one of these for quite awhile with my Powerbook 12" G4:

http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-NC1000-...8643770&sr=1-2

Even with intensive use, the fan hardly ever kicks in on the Powerbook.

efirmage · Nov 1, 2010, 10:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jw6961

I've been using one of these for quite awhile with my Powerbook 12" G4:

http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-NC1000-...8643770&sr=1-2

Even with intensive use, the fan hardly ever kicks in on the Powerbook.

Thanks this looks great. I found a bunch that were recommended, but all far too large for a 13".

wirelessmacuser · Nov 1, 2010, 11:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by efirmage

Thanks this looks great. I found a bunch that were recommended, but all far too large for a 13".

I use one of these. 1/2" thick 13" wide, super light yet strong. Makes it a real joy to use on your lap. It keeps it stable even on one knee. One of those simple & effective products at a great price.

http://www.xpad4laptop.com

Wrathwitch · Nov 2, 2010, 01:27 AM

I am a HUGE proponent of cooling pads for laptops. Especially if you are doing any sort of graphics intensive play/work.

Opinions are fine, but the logic of the situation is that computers work best when cool.

Cooling pads ensure that the temperature is drawn away from the machine and dispersed much more quickly.

It just simply can't be a bad thing.

WW

maerz001 · Nov 2, 2010, 02:36 AM

you just don't need it on the new air. they are cooler than grannies six feet under

koobcamuk · Nov 2, 2010, 06:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by maerz001

you just don't need it on the new air. they are cooler than grannies six feet under

My 2008 MBP runs quite hot, so I will be interested to see how hot the MBA runs.

davidavaya · Nov 2, 2010, 07:18 AM

I use a Targus cooling "mat" that doesn't have a fan. The material is a crystal like substance that turns to gel when hot and dissipates the heat. Very portable, doesn't need a USB port and very discrete. Also, great when traveling because it sits on lap easier then fan.

BTW, new to Mac, just ordered my first MBA and can't wait to convert.

Love it!

macAssimilated · Nov 2, 2010, 08:20 AM

haven't felt a need for one yet, the revC seemed to push out more hot air than this one, 11.6"

gwsat · Nov 2, 2010, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by davidavaya

I use a Targus cooling "mat" that doesn't have a fan. The material is a crystal like substance that turns to gel when hot and dissipates the heat. Very portable, doesn't need a USB port and very discrete. Also, great when traveling because it sits on lap easier then fan.

BTW, new to Mac, just ordered my first MBA and can't wait to convert.

Love it!

The Targus cooling mat sounds pretty sweet. As noted earlier, my MBA has not got hot enough so far for me to be concerned about holding it in my lap. My old MBP, though, got so hot under any kind of a load that I had to put a coffee table book between it and my lap. It appears now that the MBA does everything the old MBP did, so I probably will stick with the coffee table book as a faux cooling pad for the, hopefully rare, occasions when I use it. If I were still going to use the MBP heavily, though, I would certainly look into the Targus cooling mat.

efirmage · Nov 2, 2010, 11:43 AM

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Yeah the only reason I'm considering one is for laddering sessions in Starcraft 2. I'm sure in normal use it doesn't need one - even q rev c that I had on loan for a couple months only got hot after quite prolonged use. But, deepening on performance, this might be my main gaming machine. Sounds absurd, but my desktop has an nVidia 7 series, which may be the least functional graphics card ever made.

Anyways thanks for the impressions, they are quite helpful.

potentpotable · Nov 2, 2010, 01:29 PM

I game for hours on end, and it doesn't get much worse than fairly warm - it's not even hot.

I assume no one games with the notebook on their lap?

efirmage · Nov 2, 2010, 02:03 PM

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Quote:

Originally Posted by potentpotable

I game for hours on end, and it doesn't get much worse than fairly warm - it's not even hot.

I assume no one games with the notebook on their lap?

I'm more worried about fan noise and longevity than heat. It definitely won't be on my lap unless im playing something like Machinarium, or Osmos etc.
But I havent gotten mine yet, so maybe it wont be necessary.

RanEnRui · Nov 2, 2010, 02:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by potentpotable

I game for hours on end, and it doesn't get much worse than fairly warm - it's not even hot.

I assume no one games with the notebook on their lap?

That's pretty sweet. Mind sharing which games? Wondering on the CPU/GPU load.

I remember on my Rev B, WoW would create a ton of heat on the top left side of the MBA. I think that's where the HD was? It was a spinning HD so that might have been part of the heat.

HoosierInFL · Nov 2, 2010, 05:23 PM

My 11.6" Air gets very warm on the bottom when playing a game. I'm very disappointed with this. I was hoping it would be comfortable to use while on my lap.

Nov 2, 2010, 01:27 AM	#7
Wrathwitch macrumors 65816 Join Date: Dec 2009	I am a HUGE proponent of cooling pads for laptops. Especially if you are doing any sort of graphics intensive play/work. Opinions are fine, but the logic of the situation is that computers work best when cool. Cooling pads ensure that the temperature is drawn away from the machine and dispersed much more quickly. It just simply can't be a bad thing. WW __________________ Life is too short to dance with ugly men!
	0

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Nov 1, 2010, 02:27 PM	#1
efirmage macrumors member Join Date: Apr 2010	Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8B117 Safari/6531.22.7) Wondering if people have had any good/bad experiences with cooling pads. I plan to use this for some moderate gaming, and I feel like it would be a worthy investment to get one of these, both for noise and for longevity. Any thoughts?
	0

Nov 1, 2010, 03:38 PM	#4
jw6961 macrumors regular Join Date: Aug 2010	I've been using one of these for quite awhile with my Powerbook 12" G4: http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-NC1000-...8643770&sr=1-2 Even with intensive use, the fan hardly ever kicks in on the Powerbook.
	0

Nov 2, 2010, 02:36 AM	#8
maerz001 macrumors newbie Join Date: Nov 2010	you just don't need it on the new air. they are cooler than grannies six feet under
	0

Nov 2, 2010, 07:18 AM	#10
davidavaya macrumors newbie Join Date: Nov 2010	I use a Targus cooling "mat" that doesn't have a fan. The material is a crystal like substance that turns to gel when hot and dissipates the heat. Very portable, doesn't need a USB port and very discrete. Also, great when traveling because it sits on lap easier then fan. BTW, new to Mac, just ordered my first MBA and can't wait to convert. Love it!
	0

Nov 2, 2010, 08:20 AM	#11
macAssimilated macrumors newbie Join Date: Oct 2010	haven't felt a need for one yet, the revC seemed to push out more hot air than this one, 11.6"
	0

Nov 2, 2010, 11:43 AM	#13
efirmage Thread Starter macrumors member Join Date: Apr 2010	Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8B117 Safari/6531.22.7) Yeah the only reason I'm considering one is for laddering sessions in Starcraft 2. I'm sure in normal use it doesn't need one - even q rev c that I had on loan for a couple months only got hot after quite prolonged use. But, deepening on performance, this might be my main gaming machine. Sounds absurd, but my desktop has an nVidia 7 series, which may be the least functional graphics card ever made. Anyways thanks for the impressions, they are quite helpful.
	0

Nov 2, 2010, 01:29 PM	#14
potentpotable macrumors regular Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Toronto	I game for hours on end, and it doesn't get much worse than fairly warm - it's not even hot. I assume no one games with the notebook on their lap?
	0

Nov 2, 2010, 05:23 PM	#17
HoosierInFL macrumors regular Join Date: Jun 2007	My 11.6" Air gets very warm on the bottom when playing a game. I'm very disappointed with this. I was hoping it would be comfortable to use while on my lap.
	0