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Hi everyone! Recently bought a new gaming laptop and wanting to get a better cooling pad than I currently have. I realize there are other threads about this, but there is a ton to read through and thought starting a new thread would be more simple.
I have no price range, just want a powerful laptop cooler. Having LED and extra USB ports would be a plus, but not needed. I don't mind fan noise. The laptop has vents across the entire bottom so I don't think fan placement would be an issue. Any recommendations? Thanks!
Not all laptops will even benefit from a cooling pad. It depends on what the problem with the laptop is. A properly designed machine will not need a cooling pad.
Thanks. Most gaming laptops get warm and need airflow, at least from my experience. I've always used cooling pads in the past. My ordered machine is based off MSI GE 60 barebones which has a single side vent/1 fan with the option of turbo-fan mode. Will run the GTX 860m, intel i5, and SSD, so nothing too intense. It doesn't have the dual exhaust, so I figured a good cooling pad could help compensate.
At first, I would suggest simply using a bottle cap or something else to elevate the rear of the laptop, and see if that gives you lower temps. If so, then a cooling pad might help.
Thing is, some machines simply don't benefit from cooling pads, as all a cooling pad does is allow airflow beneath, and maybe increase it a bit too with the use of fans.
If your laptops heating issues aren't cause by poor airflow beneath the laptop, then a cooling pad will do nothing.
All the gaming laptops I've used recently (Alienware 17 R1/R2, ASUS G751, Clevo P650SE) have not benefited at all from a cooling pad, because they were well-designed and the extra airflow provided by the cooling pad was not needed.
My view on this is: if a laptop benefits/needs a cooling pad, it is poorly designed. Or it is being used for something it wasn't designed to do. A properly designed gaming laptop will have a properly designed cooling system.
I have not yet received the laptop so it has no inherent heating issues, but all gaming laptops from my experience run a bit hot. I've benefited greatly in the past from cooling pads, more so than only elevating the rear. With that being said, the machine I am receiving actually has a kickstand in the back to improve airflow which will help and goes along with your point.
My personal opinion: I realize people do not often see a drop in the CPU or GPU temps, but I believe increasing the airflow with the fans helps keep the temp more stable. From my past personal experience with my old Lenovo Y550 (Nvidia 130 m), elevation/ cleaning out the fans wouldn't help (I never tried re-applying thermal paste). The laptop would reach critical temps during a short play of Tera Rising and shut down. However with use of a cooling pad, the laptop would not shut down. Therefore, I figure it was helping in some way.
Long story short...what I am asking for are suggestions for a good cooling pad for the new laptop that I have yet to receive. Any experience, suggestions, or input?
Anyone else? Thanks!
Oh, and I didn't order the Force, but I thought long and hard about it. I am actually taking a chance on the cyberpower Fangbook III hx6... it was a split decision. When I said its based off MSI GE60, that is really just an educated guess. Ordering from cyberpower is a whole different topic in itself. I believe their Fangbook III Evo was based off of the GE60, and now the design is different, but I still haven't confirmed the base of it.
All the gaming notebooks you have used recently besides the Clevo (which might just have good cooling) are bulky so they have good cooling. The MSI GE60 while not the slimmest machine is still quite thin so it might as well benefit from a cooling pad.
Potentially. But even the Clevo didn't need a cooling pad, and it was pretty thin.
My point is - run some free tests before spending money on a cooling pad. Even thin laptops might not need a pad, if their cooling system is well-designed. Simply being thin doesn't necessarily mean a laptop needs a cooling pad.
But hey, if somebody wants to spend money on something, regardless of whether or not it is needed, far be it for me to interfere.
He came asking for advice. Mine is to see if you need a cooling pad before buying one. For some reason, he seems intent on buying one before determining if it is even needed. I get the feeling he's so convinced a cooling pad is necessary, any advice that doesn't agree with this view will be rejected.
Well thank you, I appreciate your advice. You are right it probably won't need one while its new. If it does it must be a poor cooling design, obviously. I wasn't arguing against your advice or anything. However, I do want one as extra insurance and maybe to shave a few degrees. Also plan on using it on my current 6 year old Lenovo laptop to replace the old Targus pad I currently use (which sounds like a squeaky shopping cart). If it wasn't for a cooler, this machine would have died long ago. It is especially a problem in the summer because my apartment is a heat trap.
As far as if I need it for my new laptop: I figure it won't hurt. A $20-80 investment to help cool a laptop that costs over 1 k isn't bad. If it has ports it could even increase functionality.
With that being said, Does anyone have suggestions for which cooling pad to buy? Thanks!
While it may be a little bit too large I personally prefer the Notepal U3 over the U2 as it has adjustable fan speeds. Even at lowest speeds they provide a little bit of airflow while your laptop is at idle preventing the laptop from ramping up its own fans...
The coolermaster slim is cheap (maybe overlooked), and blows air at 70 CFMs which is among the highest airflow levels is the same as the CM-Storm SF-17
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.
