Cooler Suggestions For Acer Aspire 18.4" 8943G

Hi

First time laptop owner (Getting Rid of 9 year old DeskTop) well it's in the mail and on it's way. I'm excited

I want to get a cooler and willing to spend up to $100.

Won't be gaming but will be watching alot BD movies (Connected to my Panny AE4000 Projector) and will be using Adobe /Dreamweaver and surfing the net for hours at certain times.

When not watching movies this laptop will be on my Lap for most of the time
so the cooler has to be able to lay on my lap and be comfortable.

So it's a larger laptop at 18.4 " so I need a big cooler..eh ?

How about these 2..any good or is there something better out there ?


Cooling | by Targus

Targus HD3 Gaming Chill Mat™AWE57US $59.

Targus Lap Chill Mat™AWE5504US $39.99

Thanks so much for your time

 

Could you post a pic of the bottom of the notebook please?

 

Picture of underside of laptop

 

When the covers are on are there vents in all those spots or?

 

Laptop is on it's way (Mail) so I'm not sure but here's a pic of underside with cover on that I found.

Thanks so much for your time

 

Here's another picture of the top in case you need it to decide what will work best. Isn't
this Laptop Beautiful !

 

It is a pretty slick looking notebook but may I ask what your budget is?

One thing to note is that the notebook will hang over the edges of the cooler due to its size. (also avoid targus)

I would say something with a single large fan put to the left side and using something to hold of the hang over on the right would be your best bet due to the size and to ensure that it aligns with the vents.

 

This is a good,common sense article.Very helpful to one who is just finding the resouces about this part.It will certainly help educate me.

 

if u'r willing to dish out some money then definitely go with the NZXT cryo LX, if u can find one. still the best cooler available after 2-3+ years and one of the very few effective coolers for such a big laptop. yur choices are very thin when it comes to a laptop of that size.

 

Though it would likely miss any vents in the front/mid section since his notebook is just too large

 

Thanks for all the feedback

Willing to spend up $100 US dollars.

That NZXT cryo LX is looking mighty good.

So is this one my best bet now that you know I'm willing to spend up to $100 US dollars or is there something else I could use that might be better.

This laptop will have to last at least 5 years so I want the best Kooler.

Thanks again for all the help

 

if that's what u want then that's what the cryo LX can offer u.

@ x2p: not sure this is true for every laptop, but the cryo LX does a great job cooling my hardware that's focused towards the front of the laptop as well. u know that the cryo LX has a HUGE cooling surface. if u place any notebook, 15" and smaller, correctly on the cryo LX, the cooling surface is big enough to reach the front vents.

 

I understand that as the fans are 120mm so you get roughly 4.5 inches from the back and his notebook is 11.5 inches or so in depth so it would not cover very much of it in regards to active cooler.

A single fan cooler as an 8 inch circle should cover more vents meaning more likelihood of successful cooling.

 

one big fan isn't a good solution, or at least they haven't made one yet, because that type of cooler usually has dead spots or only cools a certain area of the laptop. the cryo LX will definitely NOT directly hit his vents because that is a huge laptop. but like i said, around 15", maybe 16", the cryo LX will handle it without breakin a sweat. the cooling surface is huge man. just look at the pictures. i've already taken measurements for u and compared them to alot of different laptops, that had different vent set ups. the cryo LX has no problem hitting almost every vent, front to back, with notebooks 15.4" and under.

the thing was uniquely built for gaming/high-end/powerful laptops. on my m1530, i have so much extra air that u can feel coming up from the sides of my laptop. without my cooler, long uses usually get uncomfortable after a while cuz of how warm the palm rest gets. u know i've posted plenty of numbers before of my cooler dropping temps ALL ACROSS THE BOARD, that includes the HDD/palm rest area. the HDD/palm rest area is located towards the front of the laptop. i've test many other laptops of similar size, and had very consitent results.

if this thing didn't work, i would've sent it right back from day 1. it's one of the few "tech" accessories that i feel like i can keep for forever. i'm sure u know what i mean. u have much more experience with different products and sometimes u just find that gem that makes yur life so much better. that's how i feel about my cooler.

 

Honestly I have never seen you push another notebook cooler besides the one you have and that is not the solution to everything. I understand you like it but you must realize it is not the solution for every notebook

What you are basically saying is 36 square inches will cool better than 60.84 inches of active cooling space? that is simply not logical considering the nearly 19" screen the OPs post has is far bigger than the 15 inch or 16 where it will cover most of the vents it would cover under half, likely only the three vents in the back.

The only deadspace on the single fan coolers is the center (usually at most an inch or so) and the area outside of the circle. And in the case of the OPs notebook its likely that it would hit all the vents with the exception of missing a bit of the one in front. That would be far more effective in this case.

 

if there is a deadspot in the inner part of the fan AND the outer part of the fan...then how efficient could that cooler be? have u ever thought that maybe that huge fan is compensating for something. . . *light bulb* u also know that, when u get up to 16-17 inches and bigger, almost every laptop has all of the important vents located towards the rear of the laptop. like i said, this cooler is a well thought out product designed specifically for bigger gaming/powerful laptops. it's not some half @$$ product with a big, cheap LED fan slapped in it.

i didn't say i tested many different coolers. there's no denying u have more experience with different products because u review them. i said i tested my cooler with many different laptops, and there hasn't been one that the cooler has failed to work flawlessly with.

i guess our logics are just different from each others.

p.s. - just because i don't post up what different products i have had experience with doesn't mean i don't have any experience. i don't have perfect grammar, and i'm not a professional reviewer. that's why i leave all that kind of stuff to guys like u. i've had many, many different cooling solutions, both passive and active. i also have friends that are big time "techies" and we all have experience with each others' equipment. trust me, i make enough money to buy me plenty of toys and i am always, always looking for the next best thing to pamper my equipment with. don't u remember that i offered to help fund some of yur products u review? i really appreciate what guys like u do for us.

 

Each of the fans on your Cryo have a deadspot right in the middle (by 1 inch I meant the space where there is no fan blade there fore a dead spot in terms of air flow from that direct location) every fan has one and usually air will reach there from the surrounding area unless directly put against a surface.

Although that may be true for say Sager and Alienware models in this specific case the GPU and CPU appear to be located where there are no vents. By pumping air through other vents you have instant airflow though the GPU and CPU heatsinks. If you have tried a single fan cooler you would understand that it provides a higher amount of cfm and are ridiculously quiet.

Most coolers are pretty well thought out and I never said the Cryo was not. Quite a few "it's not some half @$$ product with a big, cheap LED fan slapped in it." have brought pretty good results such as the Enermax Aeolous (To OP dont choose that one due to the way the palm rest works on it, it would be too restricted for your notebook). What I have been reiterating is that you are not looking at notebooks case by case and neglecting that there are possibly better options.

Just because you have had your cooler for two years and it has worked well for you does not mean it is the solution for everyone or that it is the best cooler on the market. I have nothing about NZXT or you, I just have peoples interests in my mind.

Yes but you have to also factor in other factors such as vent placement and notebook size as well as location of components etc and it varies from case to case.

I understand that you have experience and I don't doubt that. Moreover that you don't have perfect grammar but then again who does? No one is perfect, for example my spelling can be abysmal. Yes I remember you have offered up some fund for review products before and I am grateful for that, I just want to try and help you by taking off your blinds (like horses) and try to introduce you to other ideas.

 

Now for the OP since I'm not used to notebooks that big I decided to do a couple quick sketches

1) This one is a Cooler Master Notepal U3 which was something I actually didn't consider but it is a possibility, probably not the best but still for the size it can work

You can put the fans anywhere so some adjustment would be needed to find best placement but ex:



2) this one the RED = NZXT CRYO LX fans while WHITE = 200 mm fan cooler ( as for white ) as you can see you would have to prop up the side of the cooler it wouldnt be prettiest.)

These are the possibilities that I have found so far

 

trust me, if i ran into a better cooler then i would be writing about that one instead of the cryo LX. there just simply hasn't been a cooler that can touch it, at least for my needs/tastes.

i'll just agree to disagree.

 

It's a fine modern design, but not very practical. I also hate the feel of chicklet keys. Are they backlit?

 

Thanks for the feedback..I love the chicklet key feel as I can slide my fingers much easier but then again that's a personal choice.

Not backlighted in the states but the overseas model is. Would have been nice but hey that's not a game changer for me .

As for practical I beg to differ. This laptop is /will be a desktop replacement
and will not be doing much traveling .

For what I'm getting for $1299 plus 90 day return policy at costco I'm feeling really good.

 

houstoned and X2P

Thanks for taking the time to help me out I really appreciate it

This is my first laptop and it will have to last several years (Hopefully 5)
and want to do everything to protect it so I can get some longevity out of it.

I will take everything into account what both of you have
suggested. X2P the pictures with the dots were very helpful..thanks.


Before I make my decision just one more question..

Which vents are the most critical when it comes to cooling ?

I don't know what the GPU CPU look like when looking at the underside without the cover.

I know where the harddrives are (LOL) so if someone can tell me where the vents are located on the laptop that need cooling more than the other vents it would help a lot..

Thanks again

PS: I would like to donate (Paypal) $10 each to both of you for any future testing you guys do as a gesture of goodwill for taking the time to help me.

This is a good thread as I'm sure it will help other's with large laptops

 

The more vents you hit the better is a good rule of thumb but here:

In order of importance: Pink -> Red -> Dark Blue -> Light Blue



Here is the problem with most 200mm fan notebook cooler. as you can see its in the wrong spot for your notebook so youd have to slide it over and prop up the side and wont look pretty

 

np, browski. my NP8850 will be the first laptop i've ever owned with a chiclet-style keyboard, so i'm really anxious to see how i like it. that's good to hear that u'r really enjoyin yours.

as for the debate, i'm just a regular enthusiast tryin to help out others, as much as i can. x2p is the cooling "expert/tester/review". he's a very knowledgeable guy that contributes a great deal to this forum, so any financial help should definitely go to him.

p.s. - the CPU and GPU are usually located on the opposite side of yur hard drives. also, the GPU vent is usually located near an exhaust vent, with a visible heatsink.

 

Thanks for the pic......I do see what you mean about the 200mm fan and I don't think I can live with having to prop up one side.

I sent you a PM.

 

Thanks for the heads up and I will send the money to XP .

I don't have my laptop yet..it will be delivered this Monday....Was hoping for this Friday

I do use a chicklet keyboard at work and enjoy it. It's not for everyone but I love the flat smooth surface and being able to just glide across the keyboard with my fingers.


Takecare and thanks for all your help