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    T61: Do you have an aluminium or copper heatsink?

    Discussion in 'Lenovo' started by betty, Aug 3, 2007.

  1. betty

    betty Notebook Enthusiast

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    I just received my T61 14.1" widescreen. The fan runs a fair bit - and I'm wondering if it has to do with the aluminium heatsinks I have (they're the color of the steel hinges). They look sparse compared to all the pictures I've seen online and in reviews - where you can clearly see the reddish-brown copper color on the T61.

    Does anyone else have steel/aluminium heatsinks?
     
  2. chouseworth

    chouseworth Newbie

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    Mine are the reddish-brown color on the T61 15.4" widescreen with the 2.0Mhz 7300 processor. It was built and shipped out of China around 7/15. I notice the fan coming and off, but frankly is it so quiet, I don't pay much attention to it.
     
  3. panteedropper

    panteedropper Notebook Deity

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    i remember seeing copper when i installed my ram but now you got me curious, will take this thing apart when i get home later
     
  4. s4iscool

    s4iscool Notebook Deity

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    copper color here on 1 T61 and 2 R61's
     
  5. stevensol

    stevensol Notebook Consultant

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    copper color here on a T61
     
  6. KnightUnit

    KnightUnit Notebook Evangelist

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    copper on my t61
     
  7. Vahram

    Vahram Newbie

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    Copper on my T61 here also.
     
  8. jcvjcvjcvjcv

    jcvjcvjcvjcv Notebook Evangelist

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    Copper here too (7664 16U)
     
  9. The Oatman

    The Oatman Notebook Consultant

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    Aluminum on the T61 I ordered...

    7658CTO CTO THINKPAD T61
    42V8191 INTEL CORE 2 DUO PRCESST7500
    46P4166 VBB MICROSOFT WINXP PROFESSION
    42V9437 SBB MSWIN XP PROF US ENGLISH
    42X1671 SBB 14.2"WXGA+TFT,W/ CAMERA
    42X0905 SBB INTELGMA960W/1394,
    41W2063 VBB 2GB PC2-5300 667MHZ 2DIMM
    42V8195 SBB KEYBOARD US ENGLISH
    42V9330 SBB UN(TRACKPOINT+TCHPD)+
    42V9126 SBB 160GB HDD,5400RPM W FDE
    42V8715 SBB DVDREC8XMAXDUALLAY,UBAYSLM
    42X0805 SBB PC CARDSLOT EX CARDSLOT
    42R9191 SBB THINKPAD 11N #1
    62P6054 VBB INTEGR.BLUETOOTH PAN
    39T4822 VBB WWAN
    42V9334 SBB WAN
    42V9339 SBB 7 CELL LI-ION BATERRY
    41W1787 SBB CPK NORTH AMERICA
    27R1769 SBB PSTN CABLE
    42V9354 SBB LANG. PACK US ENGLISH
    42V9428 SBB PACKAGING US
    39T6440 SBB 56K V.92 DESIGNED MODEM
    42V9685 SBB CINGULAR OPTION
    42V8648 SBB CL.PLATE T61WL BT WWAN
    42V9665 SBB FCC, LABEL
    42W7002 SBB FCC-ID/LABEL FOR WWAN
    42V9667 SBB GEO LABEL US, WLAN,BT
    41W2300 SBB LOGO PLATE
    42V9630 SBB NOINT WWANANTN14.1"SIM W/
    42X0920 SBB INTELGMA 960 W/1394,W/AMT
    42V8229 SBB MS LABEL (XP)
    42V9651 SBB MT 7658 SYSTEM LABEL
    42X0929 SBB MECH MISC PARTS
    42T7135 SBB INTEL LABEL CORE-2
    42V8239 SBB ODD SW DVD REC
    42X1352 SBB PC CARDSLOT EXPRESCARDSLOT
    42X0913 SBB SIM CARD SLOT
    42V8251 SBB SIM CARD VOD
    42V9634 SBB STAND LCD C/B
    42X0915 SBB WLAN MISC PARTS
    42X0912 SBB WWAN MISC PARTS
    42W7001 SBB WWAN OPTION #3
    42X1482 SBB BLUETOOTH W/ ANTENNA
    42X1702 SBB BLUETOOTH SCREW
     
  10. betty

    betty Notebook Enthusiast

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    You don't need to take it apart, just look at the side where the exhaust is.

    Hmm, most people have copper. It make me feel better that one other has aluminium, but somehow I feel like we've been victims of cost cutting measures.
     
  11. t1mmer

    t1mmer Notebook Evangelist

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    Copper is a better conductor, but also weighs significantly more. So yeah, it may not cool as well (talking a few degrees difference) but the tradeoff is yours is lighter.
     
  12. JaeZTT

    JaeZTT Notebook Consultant

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    Copper here
     
  13. panteedropper

    panteedropper Notebook Deity

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    thanks for the tip. just took a quick peek and it is copper for sure.
     
  14. raysmd

    raysmd Notebook Geek

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    copper here. 14.1 WXGA+
     
  15. Tailic

    Tailic Notebook Deity

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    Copper here also.
     
  16. eyecon82

    eyecon82 Notebook Deity

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    hmm..im gonna be pissed if i get aluminum...just ordered a t61...looks like 1 guy got the aluminum..and he has the t7500
     
  17. KnightUnit

    KnightUnit Notebook Evangelist

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    I have the T7500 and copper
     
  18. UltraCow

    UltraCow Notebook Consultant

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    I would assume that they use aluminum on only T61's with the X3100, as it outputs significantly less heat than a dedicated GPU. Plus, if I remember correctly, copper absorbs heat more quickly than aluminum but aluminum dissipates it a tad bit faster, so it can be a bit of a tradeoff. If you check the actual heat transfer surface touching the CPU, that is definitely copper, as is the heat pipe that carries the heat to the heat sink.

    What I would wonder about more than the material used is if the fin density differs at all. That can make a bigger difference than which material they used as more fins = more surface area to let heat off of. :)
     
  19. Tailic

    Tailic Notebook Deity

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    Well I have a X3100 and I have copper, so I assume all machines made recently will have it (I've had mine for for about 22 days, give or take).

    Unless they pulled a fast one and mixed copper and aluminum inside, I haven't pulled off the keyboard so I don't know.
     
  20. Charles Wood

    Charles Wood Notebook Enthusiast

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    The cost of copper has gone up dramatically over the last year or so. And aluminum is very efficient as a heatsink and has been pretty much the standard metal for heatsinks in consumer and professional products. I think there is some evidence that black anodized heatsinks radiate heat more efficiently, however.
     
  21. panteedropper

    panteedropper Notebook Deity

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    Upon further inspection in the daylight(i checked last night in the dark using a cell phone as my source of light), I see that my heat sink seems to have copper surfaces with aluminum fins. I have integrated graphics and a T7300 processor.

    I don't mind because I have owned some serious heat sinks on my desktops back in the day(I was an avid amd overclocker....ahhh the good ol FOP38 days) and they all had a copper contact surface along with aluminum fins/spreaders.

    I don't think this was a cost cutting procedure, I think that this type of heatsink is much more efficient, as mentioned before copper to quickly absorb the heat, and aluminum to quickly dissipate it.
     
  22. panteedropper

    panteedropper Notebook Deity

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    here are some visual aids...taken with a camera phone, so I apologize in advance, but I think these with suffice.
     

    Attached Files:

  23. betty

    betty Notebook Enthusiast

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    Panteedropper: Your pictures looks like mine. It looks like it is a mix of copper and AL. Well, I guess it's nothing to worry about after all. I'm not sure that it is "much" more efficient, I'm still surprised at how much the fan runs.
     
  24. ezlynx

    ezlynx Notebook Consultant

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    Your pics are great. Mine looks like that. Copper at edge, aluminum fins.
     
  25. somedude

    somedude Notebook Consultant

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  26. apoddar

    apoddar Notebook Consultant

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    mine is aluminium. but hey i have a question does it make a difference.
     
  27. panteedropper

    panteedropper Notebook Deity

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    the copper heatsink does a slightly better job than aluminum in terms of moving the heat away from the processor.
     
  28. sp00n

    sp00n Notebook Deity

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    Copper is always the better conductor when compared to aluminum. However, it's more expensive and weighs more.
     
  29. allen_singer

    allen_singer Notebook Enthusiast

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    so i found this article on heatsinks:
    http://episteme.arstechnica.com/6/ub...85&m=106091502

    and although a Copper heatsink is heavier than a heatsink,
    "...a pure copper heatsink will always outperform a heatsink of the exact same geometry of a pure aluminum heatsink assuming that both have the same contact with the heat source and the same rate of airflow over the surface."

    unfortunately, although "all tests I have seen show that copper heatsinks do outperform aluminum, [they don't do so] by much"

    BOTTOM LINE: copper heatsinks have a slight edge over aluminum ones in terms of cooling currently, but similar heatsinks made of either material are pretty much the same
     
  30. eyecon82

    eyecon82 Notebook Deity

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    I have the aluminum one...but i dont' mind..since i have the intel gpu...i guess copper is better for those who have a dedicated gpu