Passive Cooling Vs. Active Cooling

[u49aa2]

I know there are many threads talking about laptop cooler, however i was not able to find one which discuss particularly the issue of passive against active cooling.

So the question is:

which one is better from personal experience or scientific point of view to increase the laptop life?

Note (1): if possible, elaborate why do you think specific way is better.

Thanks

 

[miles01110]

Active cooling is always going to be more effective, and therefore will increase the "life" of the machine. but the effect is not going to manifest itself before you replace the machine anyways, so I don't know why this is really an issue.

 

[u49aa2]

Active cooling is always going to be more effective, and therefore will increase the "life" of the machine. but the effect is not going to manifest itself before you replace the machine anyways, so I don't know why this is really an issue.

when you say replacing the machine, you mean how many years? i.e how many years before the effect shows?

Also what about the performance of the machine let's say in 2 years? So would a laptop with active cooler perform better in 2 years than a one with passive cooler?

 

[sammich]

If the components operated within their operating limits all the time, their lifetime will last as long as they are designed for. It's only when they operate outside of their designed operating limits that they will lose a significant portion of their designed life. Not to mention losing any warranty.

That said, yes, a component kept in an ideal operating environment all the time will last longer than one operating closer to the limit. But the difference is not appreciable unless on a long time scale.

My question is: if you wanted to cool yourself off, would you stand in front of a fan or just sit in the shade?

 

[sammich]

when you say replacing the machine, you mean how many years? i.e how many years before the effect shows?

Unless you have been tampering with your machine, or there is manufacturer fault, you should never notice the reduced lifetime of your machine. REfer to what I said above.

Also what about the performance of the machine let's say in 2 years? So would a laptop with active cooler perform better in 2 years than a one with passive cooler?

The same.
But, in certain circumstances the computer will reduce the clock speed (ie: MBA) to reduce heat production. I don't think this is found in other Mac's. But this is only an immediate side-effect.

 

[u49aa2]

If the components operated within their operating limits all the time, their lifetime will last as long as they are designed for. It's only when they operate outside of their designed operating limits that they will lose a significant portion of their designed life. Not to mention losing any warranty.

That said, yes, a component kept in an ideal operating environment all the time will last longer than one operating closer to the limit. But the difference is not appreciable unless on a long time scale.

My question is: if you wanted to cool yourself off, would you stand in front of a fan or just sit in the shade?

mmm..I see what you mean.

 

[Sun Baked]

Passive cooling has fewer parts to break and is quieter, however there are limitations to what it can dissipate.

Active cooling increased the heat dissipation, but can increase noise, and add in another layer of complexity that can be prone to failure.

If you are running a device with an active watch for thermal overloads, you can afford the complexity of active cooling since its failure will stuff it into limp mode -- if your device self destructs if it gets too hot, throttling back might be in order.

 

[Consultant]

Active cooling is always going to be more effective, and therefore will increase the "life" of the machine. but the effect is not going to manifest itself before you replace the machine anyways, so I don't know why this is really an issue.

The problem is that all those laptop "coolers" with fans have fans so small that they don't do anything but to make noise.

 

[Fizzoid]

The problem is that all those laptop "coolers" with fans have fans so small that they don't do anything but to make noise.

Apart form this one possibly:
http://www.enermaxusa.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=28_57&products_id=154&osCsid=6eec6142cd5fd96c2a6b0c573e83537f

 

[jtgotsjets]

This stuff is all marketing. Nobody has ever worried about their laptops overheating to the point of failure undernormal conditions before.
Then some manufacturers start offering cooling solutions and all of a sudden people are worrying about their laptops melting in two years because they browsed the internet too hard.

 

[u49aa2]

This stuff is all marketing. Nobody has ever worried about their laptops overheating to the point of failure undernormal conditions before.
Then some manufacturers start offering cooling solutions and all of a sudden people are worrying about their laptops melting in two years because they browsed the internet too hard.

It is not the case with me. I use Photoshop, SPSS, pages, firefox, calender, mail, another stat program called revman +/- virtual machine (all that beside hourly backup to time capsule).

However i agree with u about the marketing conspiracy. The reasons i asked is because i have seen many threads about different coolers and many people saying they are necessary, which made me paranoid. As i am planning not to change the machine for at least 3-4 years.