Laptop Cooling Pad Suggestions?

Here's the kinda long-ish story:

Last time I tried to play Battlefield 2 (BF2), I decided I'd just play a quick single player round. I know the game version is up to date and that BF2 is working properly. Game loads, select 16 single-player map, and after loading I'm in game. A few minutes into gameplay, it goes downhill in a matter of seconds. The ground disappears, you can see everything. The skin for the weapons disappear, everyone's holding gray guns now. Then the guns disappear. Then BF2 crashes, QUICKLY. Then the Blue screen of death flashes for like 1-2 seconds, then my computer is off. No shut-down period, just instantly off. I put my hand underneath - it's sweltering - I imagine my laptop overheated, which caused various parts to fail (first, notably the GPU). So I'm worried, dig around in my crap, and find the little pamphlet that is like discovering gold. It's my Office Depot 3-year warranty.

After some calls and shipping, my laptop is in Florida for repairs. I get a call from the repair company informing me that they couldn't find anything wrong with my laptop - it passed the air-flow test (meaning it was properly ventilating and dust-free), and all the components, according to them, are in working order. The only thing they did was reset the OS (which is Microsoft XP Pro). I'm hoping that reset will help, but I think I might need to be proactive in preventing my computer from overheating.

So, I'm looking to purchase a cooling pad to help keep my laptop from going Chernobyl again, as I so affectionately refer to the incident I described above.

My laptop is a ~2.5 year old Sony Vaio FS660P/W by the way, click link below for stats (1st one has more info):
http://computers.pricegrabber.com/laptop/m/13112049/details/st=product_tab
http://www.clearanceclub.com/products/4837-VGN-FS660P-W-VAIO

I'm totally open to your suggestions, but here are my requirements:
===If it's a really good cooling pad, I'm willing to pay around US $50, so that's about my spending limit.
===It'd be nice if the cooling pad could fit in a backpack sleeve, but it's not mandatory.
===The pad CANNOT have a lip on the front - I have jacks/switch I need to have access to on the front of the laptop, so any kind of lip jutting upwards would only get in the way instead of being helpful.
===My laptop blows the heat out the back right corner, but it gets warm all along the back edge, so that's probably where the majority of the cooling needs to be directed, aka a cooling pad without any ventilation on the back edge won't cut it.
===It needs to fit my laptop, which is a 15.4" Widescreen model, dimensions 14.33(width front/back) x 1-1.41(height) x 10.41(sides) inches

By the way, I'm not really picky about where I get it; it'd be nice to order it online, and I'm cool with newegg.com and amazon.com, especially amazon --> through a friend I have Amazon Prime = 2 day shipping for free!

Here's some I've just picked out that seem to have good reviews, but I'm unsure as to which I should buy. Again, I'm totally open to your comments, even saying that one of the ones below is good, or if it sucks, but PLEASE, make a recommendation to a better unit then if it sucks! Thanks so much!

Image:
Link: http://www.amazon.com/DataStor-UNBCPX-3-Fan-Notebook-Cooling/dp/B000FFIJRQ/ref=cm_cr_pr_pb_t

Image:
Link: http://www.amazon.com/Powered-Effic...2/ref=pd_sim_e?ie=UTF8&qid=1203024434&sr=1-13

(this next one, image is from top, link to amazon shows pic from bottom)
Image:
Link: http://www.amazon.com/Zalman-NC1000...5?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1203024434&sr=1-5

 

I had one that looked like the middle one in the list above. It was LOUD but cooled OK, lots of air circulation. It's wasn't very portable and it's a bit bulky. Lasted me about a year and then the switch broke off while I was moving around with it in a bag.

 

Truthfully, the Zalman laptop coolers are really getting my interest, trying to figure out which model would be big enough for my Vaio.... :/

Edit: My laptop dimensions:
Width (front/back): 14.3 to 14.33 inches = 363 to 364 mm
Length (sides): 10.4 to 10.41 inces = 264 to 264.5 mm

Zalman ZM-NC1000:
308(L) x 330(W) x 40(H) mm

Zalman ZM-NC2000:
318(L) x 400(W) x 42.5(H) mm

hmmmmm

 

What I'm confused by is the reviews on random sites that say a 15.4" laptop will fit on the smaller 1000 unit ??? Maybe it's not widescreen? Maybe it's a smaller laptop? What do you guys think?

Edit: don't everyone shout at once

Ahh, I'll just play it safe, screw overhang, and just get the Zalman 2000.

I'm not going to buy it just yet, in case anyone wants to show me there's a better one out there.

 

I have the zalman 1000 with a 15.4" widescreen, and it just fits, what I mean is that the rubber feet on the bottom just fit but the laptop hangs over each side about 1.5 cm or so, measure the distance between the rubber feet to see if it will fit, cause this one seems to be the biggest I would be willing to carry around, the bigger one probably wouldn't even fit in my backpack...

 

I'm gonna get the NC2000 at ZipZoomFly when it comes back in stock. Best pricing I've seen.

 

Guess my laptop's pads are:

Width (front/back length) 12.89 inches = 327.4 mm
Length (sides length) 9 inches = 228.6 mm

Hmm, guess it would technically fit, but it would overhang....

 

.... and seeing how widely unavailable the 2000 model is, I might just go with the 1000 model.

 

cooling pad is a cooling pad. they will all blow air underneath your notebook.

 

Your best bet is to see which coolers fans match up best with the ventilation areas on the bottom of your laptop.
You talk about wanting cooling on the back edge, doesn't look like the Zalman is going to deliver in that department considering there are no ventilation holes at the top.

 

About the ventilation holes, the intake for the CPU/GPU is in the center of the fan, so really, any ventilation would probably help in my case.

Well, anyways, I've officially purchased the Zalman ZM-NC1000, and it should be here on Wednesday. Here's hoping it fits just right!

 

just bought the zalman zm-nc1000 and i'm very pleased. good angle, sleek design, keeps notebook cool especially the GPU, and you can't even tell it's on when you blast it on high settings. must buy for anyone looking. sure to increase the life of your notebook.

 

anyone using the nc1000 on their lap?

 

do you really want to use a notebook cooler on your lap? as long as you're not blocking the fan intake i don't why you couldn't.

 

tried it, but it's not that comfortable. keep in mind since your laptop is not plugged in, the notebook & cooler are both eating away your battery life. i would recommend using the cooler if you're putting your system to work such as gaming. anyway, i would rather game on my desk or table because it's a more stable surface.

 

Well, I got my Zalman ZM-NC1000 in the mail yesterday, and the feet of my laptop perfectly fit width wise - there's no room to spare, but that's okay - it fits! And it made a great difference in the temp of my laptop - it barely got anywhere near "warm" at all!

 

How is the noise? I believe someone posted earlier that it is really quiet, even on the highest setting. I wanted to know what your experience has been.

 

yes i do, the bottom of my laptop gets pretty warm and makes it very uncomfortable - laptop cooler helps out immensely here.

my laptop is plugged in while its on my lap, the only time i ever use my laptop at a - desk/table/something that isnt my lap - is if i am out somewhere with it.

If I was going to confine myself to a desk, I would get a desktop.

 

I have had the Zalman NC2000 for about a week now. My 17'' Sager 5793 fits perfectly on it. The Zalman is quiet....even on highest speed. Even with Crysis running on 1400x900 res. all settings on high, my Sager only gets slightly warm...I have not had the chance to check exact temps yet...I would highly recommend the Zalman 2000 for anyone with a 17'' notebook.

 

i just ordered this one... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834997340 to go with my toshiba x205-s9800. ill let you know about the performance when i get it.

 

I got this one a few months ago...I'm quite pleased with it..