yrbium I'm trying to decide if that style if better, with lots of holes, or if its better to get the type that has like 1 or 2 fans and put it directly under the harddrive area.
hmmm the temperature software stopped working....it's set to check temps every 20 sec but according to the log hasn't checked in hours....there's a thermometer icon in my taskbar but no temperature number next to it what gives?
I like this cooler too, I own 4 of them just picked up the last one from buy.com a week or two ago ($29 - $20 rebate + free shipping) but I mostly use them for my AV equipment For Dell laptops I recommend the following (free) software: I8kfanGUI http://www.diefer.de/i8kfan/index.html
what temperature read-out do you get when using those laptop coolers? my computer runs in the low 40s (Celsius) using a household fan with the laptop propped up on a couple books
is it bad for your computer if the temperature changes too fast? my computer may drop 30 degree Fahrenheit if I put it to sleep and then rise 30 degrees Fahrenheit when I start running it again, all within a half hour...
As with all electrical devices, circuits, conductors, etc. (including cpu's & gpu's) it's thermal cycling that causes wear/ degradation. Once you get past X qty of wear, failure is the next event. Notice how incandescent light bulbs only last a short period of time relative to flourescent or led light bulbs. That's because the incandescent bulb consumes 90% of its energy in heat whereas the flourescent and led lights give off 90%+ of their energy in light. It's the thermal cycling that wears out the incandescent bulb. Regarding longevity of your parts/ system, you're best off with a more constant temperature, even if slightly elevated. To cycle something up and down 30 degrees F dozens of times per day would logically shorten the lifespan of the system compared to just leaving it on.
Last time I researched this, I was intrigued by this product: http://www.legitreviews.com/article/567/1/ ... but have yet to see the production version
mgookin thanks for the detailed reply, I appreciate it Also, to increase the life of the battery I have been told to take it out while the computer is plugged in (unless you need to charge it of course). Heat lessens the lifespan of laptop batteries.
the HDD temperature software works well, except when I reboot my machine it stops working. I see the little thermometer icon in the taskbar but no temp readout. I then have to uninstall it and reinstall it to get it working again. Any ideas as to why? I hope it is not a symptom of deeper problems
Laptop coolers work, I use one for mine. However, the reason computers generally run hot is the dust particles. Your best bet is to keep you computer (laptop or desktop) free of dust. Keep your computer clean foremost, and then use the cooler to ensure overheating doesn't occur.