Do gaming laptops NEED cooling?

Ive always wondered what was the point of a laptop cooler. I leave my laptop on for about 4 hours a day and play lots of games, should I be getting one? I dont mind heat at all but if there is a need for cooling I will get a cooler. Does not having a cooler on a laptop meant for heavy gaming bad? My temps NEVER exceeded 78C during heavy gaming. Does cooling increase the laptops life? If so, by how much?

 

Cooling for a laptop increases stability and lowers the heat which in turn:

Increases the life of the components such as the fans, or just the CPU or GPU....the life could be increased by months or longer
Increases room for overclocking
Lowers the heat of the room

 

Lowers the heat of the room? I agree with your other statements, but I think that actively cooling would either have no effect on the ambient room temp, or may actually serve to increase it. The heat output by the CPU using a given amount of energy should be constant, and all the cooler is doing is moving heat away from point A (the computer) to point B (the room). If the computer was borderline overheating then the cooler would actually allow the computer to use more energy thereby increasing the heat output and thus increasing the ambient room temp when compared to the computer being used without the cooler.

 

If you're overclocking or monkeying around with unofficial video drivers then a cooler would be beneficial. Otherwise simply keeping the notebook elevated off of the surface (tabletop, bed, etc.) would be adequate.

 

Approximately how long does a gaming laptop last if it is well taken care of?

 

My XPS M1710 is overclocked to the point of melting and it's over two years old with NO problems at all ever. Not even a blue screen. I love that lappy. *sniffle* I just wish I could update the GPU and all would be fine. Oh yeah, it's pretty much been "ON" 24-7 since I bought it. Either running SETI or Rosetta and or Gaming at the LANs.

 

It will last pretty long.

My high-end notebook (was previously the world's fastest notebook) is about to reach 3 years.

As healthy as when I built it back in March 2006.

"If you take care of your notebook, it will take care of you" ..... usually (exceptions are usually defects or faulty parts from manufacturer)

read the bottom section of the Clevo Guide to see how to take care of your gaming notebook.

 

Having a cooling pad is always a good idea if you use use your laptop for extended periods of time, plus they are relatively cheap (~$20). The laptop will last longer, and it will more than likely never get so hot that is uncomfortable to touch.