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2020 Air with i5 runs HOT!

W

wirewick

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 19, 2014
20
4
Hey guys, I was really excited about this new MacBook Air I got but Im learning that it runs really, really, hot. The most intensive thing I have done is have a few applications open while watching a 1080p60 YouTube video and it sounded like a jet engine. So I installed Macs Fan Control and saw that it was holding steady at 100C! Is this typical for this hardware or did is there something faulty with mine? I can only imagine how much more of an issue this will be down the line while doing actual work.
Im still within the return period so returning and replacing with a different model Macbook is still definitely a possibility.
 
I have the same model. So far mine is cool, but I don't watch much YouTube, only Netflix, which has been fine.

I just tried a 1080p / 60 video on YouTube. I can feel a little more heat, certainly more than Netflix, nothing crazy, but fans aren't audible, unless I put the Air next to my head. Got five other pieces of software open, tabs etc, working on them, while YT plays full screen.

My son tells me it's something to do with the YouTube codecs and safari -- don't know anything about this myself.
 
I had several programs open as well. And there was probably stuff going on with iCloud syncs in the background, and other CPU intensive background activity.

100C still seems excessive on a brand new machine.

Can someone chime in if this is normal or not? Trying to decide whether or not I will upgrade to the pro for the improved cooling. I really don't need that Touch Bar though...
 
It's normal. As you said, the new machine was probably working hard to index your data, sync with iCloud, and other housekeeping activity.
 
Mine does the same if I have too much going on in the background. It's especially bad using zoom or other video conferencing software. I really have to be selective in what I keep running in the background to avoid the airplane effect. Good thing is that closing a few apps usually resolves it.

Speaking of which, why is the camera so bad?
 
wirewick said:
Is that backed by temperature data or just feeling?
Click to expand...

100C is in spec and thus "normal".

The processor will adjust CPU clock if it gets "too hot". If there is work for the processor to do, it will boost as hard (and thus, as hot) as possible to get it done.

As above YouTube used codecs that are not supported in hardware by macOS, so the processor works hard to play YouTube on the Mac. All Macs.

The MBA cooling solution isn't great, but the Core Y series CPUs are intended by intel to be able to work in entirely fan-less machines, so it is what it is. The CPU is full capable of handling these temps.

Some people are expecting the Retina MBA to be a mini MacBook Pro, but it's more of a retina 12" replacement.
 
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My 2013 MacBook Pro runs much cooler; never hear the fans. If 100C is normal, and this processor is happy operating at this temp, then Apple would not have designed the fan programs to turn on full blast at that temp.
And by the way, 100C is boiling point. That’s way too hot for any computer and is not normal. The fact that the fan can run at max rpm and not sufficiently cool the machine is clearly a sign of inefficient cooling.
 
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wirewick said:
My 2013 MacBook Pro runs much cooler; never hear the fans. If 100C is normal, and this processor is happy operating at this temp, then Apple would not have designed the fan programs to turn on full blast at that temp.
And by the way, 100C is boiling point. That’s way too hot for any computer and is not normal. The fact that the fan can run at max rpm and not sufficiently cool the machine is clearly a sign of inefficient cooling.
Click to expand...
check out the 2020 air mod thread, alot of folks reporting great results after applying aftermarket paste and other methods.
 
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I have the same model, same problem. The keyboard gets uncomfortable because the thing gets so hot just browsing the web...and god forbid I do a zoom call. It stays at 100 degrees celsius with the fans blasting the whole time. I have already sent it back to apple under warranty and they said there was nothing wrong with it, and sent it back to me. I have had this computer a month, and hate it. I'm not hardware-savvy enough to do any mods, but I'm heading into my local mac repair place today to see if they can do some for me (there are some ideas in this thread https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/2020-air-heatsink-modification-thread.2227066/page-55).
 
The suggestion to crack open a brand new MacBook to make it perform at normal operating temps is absolutely ridiculous. I sold my gaming PC because I was tired of tinkering with components. A brand new MacBook should work out of the box. I'll update the software and keep an eye on temps otherwise it's going back to the store.
 
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I'm happy with my 2020 MBA i5. I watch YouTube every day and my MBA has behaved. I'm on 10.15.5
Actually I'm off to run a couple of 4k vids off YouTube to see if they do anything interesting.

I played 3 videos in 60 FPS, Peru in 4k, Disney's Animal Kingdom Everest ride in 4k and a Japan 8k.
No fan (sound off for a few seconds) , rear mildly warm, bottom not warm.
 
Last edited:
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sundialsoft said:
I'm happy with my 2020 MBA i5. I watch YouTube every day and my MBA has behaved. I'm on 10.15.5
Actually I'm off to run a couple of 4k vids off YouTube to see if they do anything interesting.

I played 3 videos in 60 FPS, Peru in 4k, Disney's Animal Kingdom Everest ride in 4k and a Japan 8k.
No fan (sound off for a few seconds) , rear mildly warm, bottom not warm.
Click to expand...
And you never hear the fans spin to max? It might be helpful to download a fan and temp monitor. Mac Fan Control can run without writing privileges if you want to just keep an eye on system temps and fan speeds.
 
wirewick said:
Hey guys, I was really excited about this new MacBook Air I got but Im learning that it runs really, really, hot. The most intensive thing I have done is have a few applications open while watching a 1080p60 YouTube video and it sounded like a jet engine. So I installed Macs Fan Control and saw that it was holding steady at 100C! Is this typical for this hardware or did is there something faulty with mine? I can only imagine how much more of an issue this will be down the line while doing actual work.
Im still within the return period so returning and replacing with a different model Macbook is still definitely a possibility.
Click to expand...
Which browser are you using when watching YouTube? It would definitely be a strange behaviour if the fans are running on Safari since it uses H.264 video codec that is hardware accelerated. However, if you are using Chrome, Youtube is probably using VP9 video codec which is not hardware accelerated by macOS even though underlying Intel chips have hardware decode support since 2016-2017. So you would be better off using Safari instead of Chrome for watching YouTube if you want better efficiency and cooler Macbook in general.
 
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wirewick said:
The suggestion to crack open a brand new MacBook to make it perform at normal operating temps is absolutely ridiculous. I sold my gaming PC because I was tired of tinkering with components. A brand new MacBook should work out of the box. I'll update the software and keep an eye on temps otherwise it's going back to the store.
Click to expand...

No need to “crack it open” at all. I use Safari exclusively on my Mac and it works fine, but if you insist on using other browsers, see if you can find a setting somewhere about HW acceleration in about:flags for Chrome. Haven’t used Firefox in ages so no help there.
 
Birkan said:
Which browser are you using when watching YouTube? It would definitely be a strange behaviour if the fans are running on Safari since it uses H.264 video codec that is hardware accelerated. However, if you are using Chrome, Youtube is probably using VP9 video codec which is not hardware accelerated by macOS even though underlying Intel chips have hardware decode support since 2016-2017. So you would be better off using Safari instead of Chrome for watching YouTube if you want better efficiency and cooler Macbook in general.
Click to expand...
Thank's for that info. I can't remember which I was using at the time. I do switch between Safari and Chrome depending on the task Im doing. I like Safari's password manager and integration with iCloud Keychain and iOS app logins. But there are things that Google/Chrome does better such as bookmarks, contact management, etc.
 
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wirewick said:
Thank's for that info. I can't remember which I was using at the time. I do switch between Safari and Chrome depending on the task Im doing. I like Safari's password manager and integration with iCloud Keychain and iOS app logins. But there are things that Google/Chrome does better such as bookmarks, contact management, etc.
Click to expand...
I also alternate between Safari and Chrome sometimes but I personally prefer to use Safari due to better privacy (I actually miss uBlock Origin on Safari) and efficiency in general. If you still would like to use Chrome for watching YouTube, try installing h264ify extension from Chrome Web Store. It will block any VP9 video (including most of the 1440p and 4K videos since they are using mostly VP9) and default to H.264 so you'll get a cooler and less noisy watching experience. I wish Apple just added VP9 codec support to macOS so that devices with HW decode support can use that functionality.
 
Birkan said:
I also alternate between Safari and Chrome sometimes but I personally prefer to use Safari due to better privacy (I actually miss uBlock Origin on Safari) and efficiency in general. If you still would like to use Chrome for watching YouTube, try installing h264ify extension from Chrome Web Store. It will block any VP9 video (including most of the 1440p and 4K videos since they are using mostly VP9) and default to H.264 so you'll get a cooler and less noisy watching experience. I wish Apple just added VP9 codec support to macOS so that devices with HW decode support can use that functionality.
Click to expand...
Thanks. How do you have safari setup for privacy? Im trying to find the best configuration with the native cross site tracker blocking, with extensions like DuckDuckGo privacy, and ad blockers extensions. I use uBlock Origin on chrome and it's great. But I'm definitely trying to anonymize my internet browsing and move away from the grip of the big G.
 
I have a 2020 i5, and was having MAJOR heat issues. A peek at Activity Monitor found that photoanalysisd and CalendarAgent were running like crazy. A few calls to AppleCare found that these are known issues that should be fixed in an upcoming update. BUT - I was able to tweak my calendar settings and this seemed to solve both problems.

Now, my 2020 is running much cooler and I couldn't be happier with it. Last night, I played a 3 hour poker game via Zoom and Safari, and I barely heard the fan at all.

I suggest looking at Activity Monitor and see what's using up your CPU. Could be something strange like mine.

But remember, to keep it cool, make sure to download the .5 update and use Safari as your browser whenever possible.
 
I think how the 2020 i5 MacBook Air deals with 1080p60 video depends on whether the video plays in full-screen and how long the video plays.

After about five minutes of full-screen playback, the CPU temperature can get up to 100 C (The linked video is in Japanese, but the Intel Power Gadget is in English).

This is going to sound insane, especially with a new computer, but you can probably lower the temperatures by playing 1080p60 video in windowed mode.
 
sundialsoft said:
I'm happy with my 2020 MBA i5. I watch YouTube every day and my MBA has behaved. I'm on 10.15.5
Actually I'm off to run a couple of 4k vids off YouTube to see if they do anything interesting.

I played 3 videos in 60 FPS, Peru in 4k, Disney's Animal Kingdom Everest ride in 4k and a Japan 8k.
No fan (sound off for a few seconds) , rear mildly warm, bottom not warm.
Click to expand...
Were you using Safari or Chrome? Safari doesn’t play youtube 4K videos in true 4K.
 
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