Are macs usually quiet?

Hi

I just picked up a dellE6500 and it is a noisier than my old thinkpad.

I might just switch to the new macbook pro.

macbook pros are usually quieter than PCs aren't they?

I am overly sensitive to whiney things and people of course.

Thanks spiral

 

If you are surfing the web etc its should be relatively quiet. Fan should be around 2600-4000 rpm. But if you're gaming or encoding dvd's then it will be loud. Both fans at 6200 rpm. I don't think there is much difference in quietness between a mac and a pc.

 

Macs have to cool the exact same hardware that PCs do, so there isn't much of a difference between noise levels. MBPs rely quite a bit on their aluminum chassis to dissipate heat passively, but other than that there is nothing special about Apples in this regard.

 

I will say my MacBook is quieter than the Thinkpad T60 my dad has. Its more because the fans are clocked lower and instead Apple uses the notebook's design to help dissipate heat rather than just using physical fans. So it will be quieter, I guess .

 

yes, mac's due to a metal design don't have to spin the fan quite as much. but if you push a macbook pro it will be about as loud as a normal consumer PC. Remember high end business notebooks are not designed for 'cool and quiet'. They are designed for brute power. lets put it this way... W700 with a Q9300 will have any macbook pro for lunch on raw processing power.

 

the macbook is a normal laptop. the macbook pro dissipates a lot of heat through the aluminum case.

basically, it is quieter at the cost of having to experience the heat it produces. it can be very cool and quiet if it is not under load. If you are working the thing (gaming, movie editing, processor intensive activities), then it will be very hot and very loud. the noise range is literally from silent (browsing the web) to jet engine like in a quiet room (gaming)

 

New macbook pro's are coming,and they might be cooler=quieter

 

thanks my daughter has a plain macbook and it seems to be quieter.

i am new to trackpads and i like the macbook one more than the new dell one.

i am more concerned with noise at light loads.

Thanks for the comments

 

The nVidia graphics chips run hot. CPU temps are usually 20 degrees cooler than the GPU on my system. My 15 inch models can get very, very loud. My 17 inch Penryn system is quiet but I only do office-type stuff on it.

 

From what i have read, mac books are quieter when you are doing nothing, but when they are compared to a normal computer when both are under load the mac is a lot nosier. That said, macs tend to idle hotter than a normal laptop which tries to always keep it cool.

 

From my own experience, its about the same as other notebooks under stress, but definitely not louder. The only time I think my MacBook would be louder is when something's in the optical drive (sounds like a jet engine ).

 

my first generation CD macbook is whiney at idle, although still very quite i found it to be slightly annoying; it seems they fix it with the new C2D units.

now, my 17" Santa Rosa Macbook Pro however is very quite!!! there is a wooshing sound at idle, and at max tilt, the fan is still can be described as quite!! only wooshing sound is generated, no fan bearing sound is heard, they really put a high quality fan in here! this is tested in a silent room.