MacBook Pro 15’’ 2017 overheats when heater comes on ??

[TBoneMac]

Hello Macrumors

My MacBook Pro always seems to drop in FPS when I am playing a game say, World of Warcraft, Diablo III, etc... whenever my gas heater is running. Now, I am not next to the heater or anything like that it’s just running – disclosure — I play in the garage and the heater is in the same room blowing but it’s about 25 feet away —

Is this a normal problem Or is my macbook in need of cleaning??

 

[TBoneMac]

Hello anyone?

 

[VermontsFinest]

Heat in room from heater -> heats up mac -> mac produces heat while playing intensive game -> intel chips are inefficient = mac overheats.

 

[TBoneMac]

So will this problem go away if I were to purchase an M1 Mac?

 

[VermontsFinest]

So will this problem go away if I were to purchase an M1 Mac?

It would be way less likely to occur, but you certainly can still push an M1 to the point where the fans ramp up with a gaming-intensive task plus ambient heat to speed things along.

My M1 MBA runs virtually heat-free though compared to my 2020 intel MBP. But if you push them, they can still heat up it just takes a lot more to do it.

 

[VermontsFinest]

So will this problem go away if I were to purchase an M1 Mac?

I'd suggest getting an M1 and at least testing it out, you can always return it in the 14 day return window if it doesn't meet your needs. I think you'll be impressed though.

 

[ght56]

You're using the system in a way where both the CPU and GPU are producing a lot of heat, so a subsequent loss in performance when being fed hotter air is not all that surprising. Additionally, if that heater is resulting in a rapid flatline in humidity, that may also impact the efficiency of the cooling system. The fans may have accumulated some dust on them and could stand to be cleaned, especially if this has never been done before--it might not hurt to take a peek.

Beyond just consideration of a M1 Mac, you may want to consider purchasing a used gaming laptop or desktop. Used Windows systems don't hold their value very well, so you can often find relatively young systems for not much money. If nothing else, it may be worth pricing this up.