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212rikanmofo

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Jan 31, 2003
1,906
729
I'm concerned about heating issues and the longetivity of my mac. I am getting a new 14" MBP soon. I currently have a 12" Macbook Retina and it's on it's last legs. Battery can't hold a charge, the charging cable broke so I had to tape it up, and the "E" and "I" keys fell off. Some of the keys have the black part chipping off so i can't even see the letters on them anymore. I had never had such bad experience with Apple products as I had with this one. So I'm kind of skeptical and cautious about the new MBP. I certainly hope it won't give me the same issues. I will be using it mostly in bed to surf and watch videos. Is it okay for it to be on a bed surface or should it be placed on a hard flat surface? I'm worried about the heat. Because I'm assuming that's how my keys fell off in the first place.

I'm afraid to even shut the lid to put it to sleep. I've had instances when I would close the lid to automatically put my computer to sleep and then wake up only to find out that the machine was running the entire time. It was extremely hot. Would it be better just to either sleep with the lid open or just shut it down completely. I don't want to take any more chances when the new macbook arrives.
 
your socks have more dangerous static than any enclosed electronic device.
and
please try not to sell your MacBook on eBay for $700 with shipping and without power supply.
ask for $300
 
Just do not block the air vents and it will be fine. Mine has been used this way and I never had a problem.
 
This might depend a bit on what 14" MBP you get. I have the base 14", and overheating due to using on a bed is not a concern. The main vents at the back are impossible to block (they are between the screen and keyboard), and in any case for web surfing and videos the fans will likely not even come on.
On the other hand, if you get the M1 Max and run processor-intensive graphical rendering or such, I would be sensible and let it breathe if you hear the fans spin up loudly.
One other thing - I suggest avoid using on a bed surface that has a lot of lint, loose fibers, etc. that could get sucked into the machine. Clogging the cooling channels would not be a good thing.
 
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My chihuahua sheds a lot and usually sleeps in my bed. So perhaps not a good idea to use it in bed then.
 
It should be fine to place the Mac on the bed and use it for light work. So far I don’t find the 14” getting warm when it is sleeping. The i9 16” is very different; once I stacked the 14” on top of the 16” i9 overnight, and the 14” got warm from the 16” heat!
 
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