Notebook Overheating! Solution?

My notebook that I've had a for a few months is overheating.

It's always been like this. (My bad for buying the cheapest brand in China.)

I can leave it on for DAYS at a time (was on for almost 2 weeks once downloading a torrent - did not overheat.)

However, when I play certain games (eg: CoH / FEAR) for a a length of time it overheats. Either the game shutdown, the graphics drastically change and I have to restart the comp, or (only happened once) the comp will shut itself down.

I think I can fix this by having all fans set to maximum - Any idea how I can do this?

I've looked at notebook coolers but they don't at all seem compatible with my laptop.

Thanks for any help!

 

Additonal coolers are always good investment when you have problems with overheating, but you should know that gaming is one of the most requirement stuffs you can do on computer (gaming, video rendering and so on), especially playing hard core games. You should take a pause after one session of gaming, and let your laptop to cool. It is important not just for this, but also because overheating can do a damage to battery and other components inside. So, even you'll buy a new cooler, keep in mind that you should do a shorther periods of gaming, and put your notebook away for a while. New games such Crysis, UT3, Bioshock take almost every component inside to run on its maximum speed, which produces more energy, and as consequence, the overheating apperas.

 

Honestly I don't see how a laptop cooler can be "incompatible". Most laptop coolers are just elevated platforms with some fatty fans embedded to help the air move through and around your laptop. The only really "compatibility" is whether or not your laptop fits on top of one. So unless you have a 20" behemoth, I can't imagine a compatibility issue...

 

Some coolers blow air upward, some blow air downward. Depending on how your laptop moves air, it can make a difference.

 

best is to blow air away from the laptop. all coolers are usb powered and fit most laptops

 

My cpu was just 61 degrees / gpu 84.. eesh!

The only coolers I've seen tend to have 2 large fans. To blow air into the laptop from the base.... problem is, my base has no real holes forfans. Only very small ones. I don't see how it can make a difference...

 

1) the main problem about overheating gaming notebook is 99% because of dust clogs.
- you must get a open up the panels to get to the fans and vents
- use a flashlight to look through the other side, if you cannot see anything, then its definitely clogged
- then you must use a lot of compressed air cans (or compressor) and Q-tips to thoroughly clean it out.
- (optional) might want to re-apply thermal compound (like Arctic Silver) to the CPU and/or GPU

2) the best notebook coolers are the ones that blow up and give large areas of airflow (instead of having static fans)... which only comes down to the following highly rated coolers:
- Zalman ZM-NC1000 (and upcoming NC2000)
- Cooler Master Infinite (which looks a bit gimmicky)

 

Check out the cooling guide. I also highly recommend undervolting your CPU and buying a laptop cooler.
Tim

 

thanks for the highly helpful posts!

I am going out in a few minutes to a buy a cooler.

Anyways, I've been listenining my computers fans I've noticed that they are not always working on max when they should be.

Is there a way I can access all the fans within my notebook and set to max? This would help a lot I think.

Edit: Just got back from shops. I brought my laptop and tested 3 coolers. Results: No change.

Reason being the fans were blowing air into solid plastic. There are really no (or very small) areas on the base of my laptop that allow heat to escape.

I did however see an "Icepad" but I have no idea if this is worth buying. Does anyone know about Icepads for notebooks?

 

*bump* Forgive me the second post. Forget about the icepad questio - can someone help me access all my fans and set them to max? I've tried google already.

 

you need ACPI Controls for your your laptop and a controler NHC can be a controler but finding a control set for your laptop maybe hard if you dont make one yourself.

BTW what laptop is it ? brand wise and model

 

I like the cleaning your laptop point, its probably the main cause to your overheating. You could also try "underclocking" your graphics card a little. It might be running too high for your case and airflow. You could probably underclock it to some degree with only a small difference in performance.