Cooling Pad for MBP...

Does anyone know of an effective cooling pad for the MBP? Doing a search of this forum turned up some interesting results, namely, that most of the coolers that work for PC laptops don't work well for the MBP because it has a different cooling system (no vents on the bottom, etc). I can attest to this first hand with the Targus Chill Matt and the Vantec LapCool 5 (neither of which did much good). Can anyone recommend a cooling pad that significantly lowers the temps on a MBP? Comparative temperature data with/without the cooler would be welcome.

Thanks for your help!

 

Yeah, when I bought my Macbook Pro I got the generic-usb-plugged-with-fans cooling pad, and didn't quite work for me.

But the I found the iLap. It's aluminum, no fans, it just dissipates the heat from the bottom of the MBP.

So now, the pad gets hot, and the MBP not so hot.

As an approximate value (I'm going to give this more thought, and report later) when gaming in Vista through bootcam (Mass Effect):

Without the iLap: overclocked GPU = 80 degrees Celsius max
With the iLap: overclocked GPU = 70 degrees Celsius max

So I can overclock better now!

 

Cdnalis, iLap looks great. I will have to go for it as working with MBP on lap can be a bit uncomfortable. On the other hand, as I don't do any gaming I really appreciate that MBP is so quiet.

 

It's great for both on your lap and on the desk.

Check out this crappy photo of mine with it on the desk:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=19152&d=1212277324

 

Interesting to see that the aluminum really does cool down the mbp.

I'm looking into getting an mStand. I've seen them before, and they always look so nice. And its aluminum so it should help with the cooling as well. Though the mStand seems to be really good if you use a second monitor.

 

Would probably be good if you have an external keyboard and mouse too, as it raises the screen up.
Personally, I have a VERY cheap way of cooling my macbook. All I did was cut a very large hole in the cover of a standard 3 ring binder. It is good for a few reasons. 1, it allows for a little better airflow under the macbook, though I don't know how effective it is. 2, it raises the screen and tilts the keyboard so it's more comfortable to use. 3, I can store a few small things in it. The sides are both open so it's very easy to slide things (ipod wire hides under there along with my usb port) in and out from there.

 

Yea right now, and since ive had my mbp, i've just been using boxes, and thick catalogs to raise my mbp. Though never really did find the right height.

Though I did get a box recently which is working out pretty well, though it would be nice if it could cool the mbp as well, maybe ill look into a piece of metal or something (baking sheet maybe).

Either that, or I just get lazy and get an mstand.

 

The iLap goes for something like 89.99 here in Toronto, which is way more than I would want to spend for passive cooling. Someone recommend the Belkin cooling pad. I've ordered it and will post my findings when it arrives.

 

Yeah, I didn't go with the iLap either for the same reason. I use the Thermaltake iXoft pad. Seems to work OK. The material inside melts as it should when the pad heats up, so it must be doing something.

 

I received the Belkin cooling pad today and first impressions are very positive. My "normal" temperature (email, MSN, websurfing) is now down 8-9 C. I'll do some more rigorous testing later in Vista while gaming. An added bonus is that it raises my MBP to a much more comfortable level on my desk. It's also quite comfortable on my lap, but it's wavy bottom sometimes makes it rock a bit. This is my third cooling pad, and the only one that actually does what it's meant to do!

 

Any info about the pad? Model number, or name?

 

It's called the Belkin Laptop Cooling Pad. There are reviews posted on other parts of this forum, but all of the ones I've seen are from PC notebook users, which have been mixed. I think it's particularly well-suited for cooling the MBP since it blows air UP onto the bottom of the notebook, really helping to conduct heat away from the MBP through the aluminum case (sucking hot air down, like most notebook cooling pads, just doesn't work as well, especially since the MBP has no vents on the bottom).

Belkin's page: http://catalog.belkin.com/IWCatProductPage.process?Product_Id=355998

If you shop around, you can probably get it for a lot less than 29.99...I got it for cheaper, even in Canada.

 

we just got this in at best buy
http://www.targus.com/us/product_details.asp?sku=AWE45US
good for if you want it on your lap. and it uses no energy. an interesting concept. it melts the crystals inside as you heat up to gel. and then when you shut down, it cools back into crystal form.

 

Looks just like the iXoft that saturnotaku has.
Though its an interesting concept.