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Just got my first MacBook Air...

A

aapl fan

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 7, 2009
16
0
Just got a used Rev C. 2.13 model on eBay. It is my first ever Apple computer, and my first laptop.

Installed smcfancontrol and unit seems to settle in the 55-61 C range with fans cranked up to 6k rpm. The unit is uncomfortably hot without me doing anything more than browsing webpages (no flash).

There are 2 areas of very noticeable backlight bleed right next to the hinges.

How now normal is any of this?
 
aapl fan said:
Just got a used Rev C. 2.13 model on eBay. It is my first ever Apple computer, and my first laptop.

Installed smcfancontrol and unit seems to settle in the 55-61 C range with fans cranked up to 6k rpm. The unit is uncomfortably hot without me doing anything more than browsing webpages (no flash).

There are 2 areas of very noticeable backlight bleed right next to the hinges.

How now normal is any of this?
Click to expand...

All normal-ish, all junk.
 
My MBP with a tv show playing in Mplayer, also with a speck case, is at 60c fans are at 3k. It's just barely warm for me.

Your temps seem a little high for the fan speed, install iStat and check the temp sensors to help pinpoint the problem a little.

Also look into undervolting the processor, you can make some good gains there.
 
Kingcodez said:
My MBP with a tv show playing in Mplayer, also with a speck case, is at 60c fans are at 3k. It's just barely warm for me.

Your temps seem a little high for the fan speed, install iStat and check the temp sensors to help pinpoint the problem a little.

Also look into undervolting the processor, you can make some good gains there.
Click to expand...

Thanks, will try iStat. Right now I'm using the Air on a desk (and not on my lap) and seeing temps as high as 70.

Kind of thinking about selling this off and getting a MBP or a ThinkPad Edge.
 
Something wrong there, is it indexing your drive? Open Activity Monitor and see whats running.

My Macbook Air is currently running: firefox, entourage, itunes, ical, word, skype and filemaker - fan is at 2500rpm, temp 54c
 
Don't sell it. You have an amazing computer. Make an appointment with an Apple "Genius" to have it looked at. There is a problem with some of the MBAs with insane amount of thermal compound thrown on the CPU which can cause this issue. What is iStat showing that is using so much of your CPU? What's the total CPU percentage under normal conditions? How many months are left on applecare?
If you want to sell it as is, I will work something out with you. My wife is graduating with her master's in may and I want to get her a MBA.
Good luck getting it fixed. Don't do something irrational like selling it just because you cannot figure out what is causing it to run at high temperatures. Try uninstalling coolbook and see what istat says at normal conditions.
 
aapl fan said:
JInstalled smcfancontrol and unit seems to settle in the 55-61 C range with fans cranked up to 6k rpm. The unit is uncomfortably hot without me doing anything more than browsing webpages (no flash).

There are 2 areas of very noticeable backlight bleed right next to the hinges.
Click to expand...

Didn't have any bleed on my Rev C MBA. I think that was my favorite screen I've ever had. I know everyone loves this IPS stuff but I liked the screen on the Air even better than my 27" IPS screen on iMac.

Regarding heat, are you blocking the vents?
 
Thanks for everyone's replies.

Just to clarify, I've only had this thing for a day. I set the fans to max using smcfancontrol because it was getting too hot. It sits around 60-70 no matter if I'm resting it on a desk, on my lap, or on the bed.

Since this is Rev C. that means that there is *some* Apple care on it, right? I can ask the seller. What would Apple be able to do for me as a second hand owner?

I just installed iStat and my CPU is at ~160 and the load seems to be at around 30%.
 
aapl fan said:
Ah, thanks. I have Apple Care until Sept 13th.
Click to expand...

I may have missed it elsewhere, but if this is used and has APplecare, they are going to have it registered to the original owner. You'll want to coordinate a transfer of ownership from them to you or Applecare shipping wont' work right. Happened to me in the past so a heads up for you.
 
BadgerMac said:
I may have missed it elsewhere, but if this is used and has APplecare, they are going to have it registered to the original owner. You'll want to coordinate a transfer of ownership from them to you or Applecare shipping wont' work right. Happened to me in the past so a heads up for you.
Click to expand...

Are you talking about the original AppleCare that comes with the computer or the extended AppleCare? Because if you are speaking of the extended AppleCare (of which this probably is not since it is a Rev C and warranty is only until Sept 2010) then you are correct. But with the original warranty, usually (in my experience) it is not really registered to a single person. But to be safe you could always try having the seller call AppleCare and attempt to transfer over this registration.
 
duky said:
Are you talking about the original AppleCare that comes with the computer or the extended AppleCare? Because if you are speaking of the extended AppleCare (of which this probably is not since it is a Rev C and warranty is only until Sept 2010) then you are correct. But with the original warranty, usually (in my experience) it is not really registered to a single person. But to be safe you could always try having the seller call AppleCare and attempt to transfer over this registration.
Click to expand...

Absolutely right Duky - I (most likely incorrectly) assumed it was extended "applecare" vs. the std. 1 year warranty (which is called Applecare). I'm always assume "Applecare" is the extended piece. My bad!
 
aapl fan said:
Thanks for everyone's replies.

Just to clarify, I've only had this thing for a day. I set the fans to max using smcfancontrol because it was getting too hot. It sits around 60-70 no matter if I'm resting it on a desk, on my lap, or on the bed.

Since this is Rev C. that means that there is *some* Apple care on it, right? I can ask the seller. What would Apple be able to do for me as a second hand owner?

I just installed iStat and my CPU is at ~160 and the load seems to be at around 30%.
Click to expand...

a not-so-quick solution to your definitely not normal situation.

* backup your home folder.
* erase your HDD and do a fresh install of 10.6.3 (minimal install under the 'customise' button) and then run Software Update.
* reinstall any other applications - such as iLife, iWork, Movist, specific printer drivers, HandBrake, etc.
* run Disk Utility/Repair Permissions
* drag over the relevant contents from your backed up Home Folder.

(if you have an external optical drive this should only take 2 hours max from start to finish)

watch your Air fly now and without excessive heat or fan noise.

as for screen bleed - some have it some don't, but it should be no worse than noticing it on the grey screen at startup yet not really seeing it in normal usage.
if it's really bothering you, head to an Apple Store (not a reseller) and claim warranty - which is valid on the machine irrespective of how many owners it's had.

a thing of beauty is a joy forever.
 
aapl fan said:
Thanks for everyone's replies.

Just to clarify, I've only had this thing for a day. I set the fans to max using smcfancontrol because it was getting too hot. It sits around 60-70 no matter if I'm resting it on a desk, on my lap, or on the bed.

Since this is Rev C. that means that there is *some* Apple care on it, right? I can ask the seller. What would Apple be able to do for me as a second hand owner?

I just installed iStat and my CPU is at ~160 and the load seems to be at around 30%.
Click to expand...

Well there's your problem, load should not be 30%! should be 0.30-0.60 (idle).

Which programs have you installed?

Cant believe some of you have suggested re-installing OSX, start with the basics first!!
 
myuserid08 said:
Well there's your problem, load should not be 30%! should be 0.30-0.60 (idle).

Which programs have you installed?

Cant believe some of you have suggested re-installing OSX, start with the basics first!!
Click to expand...

huh? obviously one would start with the basics first - sheesh.
to follow the erase+install path is a sure-fire remedy, albeit a more lengthy procedure, when one is getting nowhere.

'smcfancontrol' and similar utilities are not required IMHO
 
halledise said:
huh? obviously one would start with the basics first - sheesh.
to follow the erase+install path is a sure-fire remedy, albeit a more lengthy procedure, when one is getting nowhere.

'smcfancontrol' and similar utilities are not required IMHO
Click to expand...

Wow, thanks for everyone's suggestions. Right now I'm running around 80% idle, so that means 20% CPU usage? Temp is at 63C according to smc.

I'm running Chrome as my main browser - 15 tabs. 10 or so tabs in Firefox. Adium.

As far as the backlight bleed, it's noticeable during most usage scenarios, not just at startup. It seems like the whole display might not be very evenly illuminated overall. When running my finger over the bottom part of the screen bezel (where the backlight bleed occurs) I can feel a subtle amount of bend in the aluminum.

I might stop by the apple store tomorrow, and I'll consider getting in touch with the seller to see if he knew about the issues.

GarageSale_1271261599_268.jpg
 
aapl fan said:
Wow, thanks for everyone's suggestions. Right now I'm running around 80% idle, so that means 20% CPU usage? Temp is at 63C according to smc.

I'm running Chrome as my main browser - 15 tabs. 10 or so tabs in Firefox. Adium.

As far as the backlight bleed, it's noticeable during most usage scenarios, not just at startup. It seems like the whole display might not be very evenly illuminated overall. When running my finger over the bottom part of the screen bezel (where the backlight bleed occurs) I can feel a subtle amount of bend in the aluminum.

I might stop by the apple store tomorrow, and I'll consider getting in touch with the seller to see if he knew about the issues.

GarageSale_1271261599_268.jpg
Click to expand...

now that you've posted a pic I'd have to say 'sheet! that doesn't look too flash' - good call to check with your friendly Apple Store as the Air's under warranty still, and definitely talk with the person who sold it to you with some serious questions.

lot to be said for genuine refurbs … … hay :cool:
 
scubasteve03 said:
Don't sell it. You have an amazing computer. Make an appointment with an Apple "Genius" to have it looked at. There is a problem with some of the MBAs with insane amount of thermal compound thrown on the CPU which can cause this issue. What is iStat showing that is using so much of your CPU? What's the total CPU percentage under normal conditions? How many months are left on applecare?
If you want to sell it as is, I will work something out with you. My wife is graduating with her master's in may and I want to get her a MBA.
Good luck getting it fixed. Don't do something irrational like selling it just because you cannot figure out what is causing it to run at high temperatures. Try uninstalling coolbook and see what istat says at normal conditions.
Click to expand...

SOLID advice and help!:cool:
 
Ugh, mine does the same thing. I absolutely LOVE the Air for it's design and aesthetics but even when it's on a desk the fans do indeed run constantly when all I have is a PDF file open to read. The laptop does become uncomfortably hot and when you're using it in bed - forget it. I've been too lazy to install CoolBook or whatnot. If a Mac "just works" I shouldn't have to install 3rd party utility to fix it, right? ;)
 
I also bought a 2.13 Air on eBay. I've been using it since this Monday, and so far it's been perfect. My CPU temp stays <50 degrees with about a dozen Safari tabs, a MS Word doc, and a 200MB PDF open in Preview. My battery health shows 98% at 17 cycles, and I regularly get 4-5 hours per charge. The SSD makes it perform faster than my desktop for these tasks. The only "problem" I've come across is the limited RAM. If I open up my Windows XP VM in Fusion, I get constant beachballs, with page-ins at over a million and page-outs nearing a half million after a few hours. This is the greatest notebook I have ever used.
 
theLimit said:
The only "problem" I've come across is the limited RAM. If I open up my Windows XP VM in Fusion, I get constant beachballs, with page-ins at over a million and page-outs nearing a half million after a few hours.
Click to expand...

Yeah there's no point in my opinion of trying to run Fusion on that computer. If you need Windows badly, just do it in Boot Camp. With the SSD it is pretty fast to boot out of OS X and back into Windows so just do it. You'll save yourself time dealing with beachballs and slowdowns/crashes caused by RAM outages. Especially considering that Fusion doesn't even run perfectly on my i7 iMac with 5GB RAM (though it's my best experience with virtualization just yet)
 
halledise said:
now that you've posted a pic I'd have to say 'sheet! that doesn't look too flash' - good call to check with your friendly Apple Store as the Air's under warranty still, and definitely talk with the person who sold it to you with some serious questions.

lot to be said for genuine refurbs … … hay :cool:
Click to expand...

I would say that the backlight bleed is worse in person than in this picture.
 
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