Are those notebook coolers really neccesary?

Yes many laptops can get pretty hot over time. I know cause after few hours of usage I can feel the heat under the table where the laptop sits. And certainly laptops nowadays are ot very good laptops literally due to their heat.

But I've always found the cooling solutions to be kind of gimmicky. Are they really neccesary. It just seems to be waste of electricity. Do people do it cause its 'better' for their laptop?

I think designers have taken into account that laptops will get to fairly high operating temperatures so I don't think the reasoning that it is good for the computer is a very valid one.

Although it might be easier on the typing experience if it can get the heat away from the keyboard.

 

It varies.

On high quality notebooks with decent cooling that only get hot when you really stress them, no.

On a laptop that get's hot in normal usage - yes.

If your laptop is continously very hot it'll increase wear on the components - in that case a cooer would be a good idea.
Also, the gamers who use laptops with rather high powerde GPUs will also benefit from extra cooling.

 

Not all notebook engineers are of the same brilliance. They have to take into account several factors for the cooling to balance mass, size, battery life, and noise with a level of heat.

Some companies release machines with decent cooling and some companies release portable suns like Averatec. DetlevCM has mentioned a good point. Laptops that raise red flags under light use would need a cooler, as well as routine maintenance, and laptops that only get hot when owning 12 year olds half way across the country would not need one.

 

That should sum things up

 

I will put it to you this way lol, myne stock would survive without it, myne with a T9600 (G50 models come with upwards of T9550's that put out the same heat) even with AS5 and undervolting the CPU, the GPU might fry gaming without the cooler.

Normal use it would be okay but that said i had a business class laptop that ran hot under normal use, HP Compaq even released an update to increase the fan speeds as alot where burning up.

On my stock setup I was getting 5C cooler at max load on all the measurable hardware. Some would say this isnt worth the money, my notebook is an exception as its cooling design doesnt work well with a cooler. Bypassing my cooling design by taking the bottom panel off which takes it from a force draw to a direct draw and placing it on the cooler gets it 15C cooler.

My laptop was also designed to be comfortable under gaming, if yours isnt a thin cooler can make lap gaming alot more enjoyable. My HP's fan was in a bad spot and having it on a cooler or a board would have allowed it to cool better then with my leg covering the only vent to the fan.

 

Owning and using so many notebooks from different manufacturers over the years, yet I have not seen the need of a notebook cooler.

I tried different ones from fan to gel pad based coolers, and the best current one is something to elevate the notebook under-casing. If one calls such thing a cooler.

cheers ...

 

Do you use your notebook on a table or on a relatively flat surface(not your lap)?

Then some of the best, most basic cooling technology you could get would be:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/DSCN3153.JPG (or any other normal rectangular eraser).
Just get 2, put one on each side in the rear to prop your notebook up, and enjoy.

Though of course this is just for basic use. If you're gonna be doing any heavy gaming or stressing your system then you'll want to definitely check the link for the coolers and try to find the one that's right for you and your needs.

 

For some reason, this struck me as funny

 

Im laughing my butt of on that one.

 

If I needed a notebook cooler for my rig I'd send it back immediately!

 

Needed and might should have are two different stories.

I drove a 2003 Chevy Cavalier 50,000 miles only having changed the oil once and never changing the filter. Surely it didnt NEED an oil change lol. Would last longer though.

 

50K on one oil and no filter? OUCH. You are a mean one, Mr. Grinch.

 

I didn`t find any laptop that he`s not getting hot,even a cell phone is gettin` hot if you let him a couple few hours for charging :|

 

For the most part No. Having a laptop on a flat surface with the intake and exhaust vents clear and free to move air you should be fine as long as you are within spec and havent clogged or blocked fans or overclocked/adjusted hardware. In all honesty propping the back of a laptop up an inch or 2 will greatly imprve the cooling, as well as allow for a better typing angles.

Why do I use a $70 cooler then? Well I like my rig to run as cool as possible all whiel expanding my USB ports in the process. I like the peace of mind knowing that short of modding a water or phase cooling system to my dell it is running cool and quite whiel gaming. So Im left with no fan noise to worry about or the chance my 8600mGT will become another failed GPU. Does this mean I only game on a cooler? No, I game without it from time to time when on the go.

So morale of the story, coolers are really only for peace of mind and/or for those who like to cool thier rigs more then the standard cooling system does.

 

Cooler is needed. But for me, nothing better than my homemade cooler, because I know exactly where my vents are located. It help cooling my laptop a lot. My laptop has never been overheating, just the air coming out is really hot. With my cooler, it is now a little warm.

 

hey guys I own a compal JHL90... what do you think a good cooler for that would be?

 

A proper working and designed notebook should not need a cooler, but its never going to hurt to have more, esp if your overclocking.

The main reason I used mine was to prop the notebook up more than anything, the ergonomics are way better having that tilt. Now that I have this huge 18.4" W90 I do not have a cooler for it and use 2 hotel registry books to prop it up and have no plans to buy a cooler for it as it keeps itself well within good operating temps even under load.

I also did replace all the stock TIM with some Innovative Cooling Diamond (ICD) to help out just a bit more. The CPU/GPU core came with AS5 on it already so not much gain, but the thermal pads were replaced also and I do think that was a good gain.

 

I use a cooler for my rig, why?:

1) I like the slightly elevated/angled feel when typing rather than a flat keyboard.
2) It keeps my GPUs slightly cooler (the hottest part of my notebook).
3) I can't always use it on a flat surface, this alleviates that problem.
4) After spending $3,000+ on a notebook, spending an extra $50 to make sure it doesn't overheat was an easy decision on my part. It will also make the notebook last longer in the long run.
5) I like to overclock, causing more heat than average. The cooler helps counter this extra heat generation.

After getting my cooler (Master cooler infinite) I haven't seen temps over 70C, and I'd like to keep it that way.