Which laptops don't overheat over time?

[wand3r3r]

It seems like a reoccurring theme amongst people close to me where the basic laptops simply degrade over time and even flash videos cause laptops to overheat and the fans spin fast.

What's the cause and which ones are prone or less prone to heat issues with eg flash video.

I had at least 3 die due to bump gate but even the basic mid range laptops seem to get too hot after a couple years at the latest.

Is integrated graphics better/worse in low end to mid range?
What kind of laptops have you guys had and have you had this problem?
I think it's generally flash or that type of strain which stresses them.

 

[paperwastage]

probably because of dust in fan, thermal compound on heatsink was cheap and goes bad after a year or so, fast spinning fan eventually degrades and doesn't work as well

my new shiny Bay Trail tablet/laptop-hybrid doesn't have a fan, doesn't have a heatsink... won't have those problems, runs cool even under stress.... hopefully the lack of heatsink won't be a big problem

 

[corkyg]

I have had two Lenovos (T60 and T510) over the past 8 years and they have never overheated. Before that I had a HP DV1000, and two Winbooks. None of them ever overheated. This goes back to 1994. As paperwastage says, a lot of overheating can be caused by dust and dirt, and I would add, and how the notebook is used.

I always run mine on a hard surface, and never on a lap or a pillow or blanket. Cooling comes from three areas - the bottom, the side vent, and, in some brands, the keyboard. For the last reason, I never run mine with the lid closed for any extended time period.

 

[alkemyst]

My 11 year old inherited my T60. He has been able to overheat it on the couch. That said that was blocking the fan.

Any modern laptop I have had doesn't overheat and I use them 12+ hours straight at times on various surfaces. I have mostly locked myself in with MacBooks and running Parallels with Windows 7 though.

 

[wand3r3r]

From what I understand of the complaints I've seen and heard, generally the usage has been for entertainment i.e. videos etc.

They mightbe using them on the couch, or with soft materials such as blankets etc. and it could be part of the cause, as well as dust/TIM degradation.

 

[Zodiark1593]

Keep the thing clean, and change the thermal paste once in awhile and even Prime95 shouldn't overheat it.

 

[JEDIYoda]

My wifes current laptop is going on 22 years and never once over heated!!

 

[ninaholic37]

Not sure about in Windows, but in Linux you can use "CPU Frequency Tools" to change the maximum frequency your CPU will run at on many laptops after 2001 (because of Speedstep/PowerNow). I changed my Pentium M so that it's max is 1200mhz instead of 1600mhz, and the CPU never gets over 58C and the fan never gets noisy any more.

 

[arandomguy]

You can use a program like RMclock in Windows to adjust that via software. You can also use it undervolt as well.

But if the laptop is suddenly overheating due to age this suggests a mechanical fault/failure related to heatsink/cooling solution. Try cleaning it first, just remove the covers to access to the fan/heatsink and use compressed air while holding the fan in place would be the easiest method. Failing that try a repasting as well.

One possibility could actually be a software related issue that has cropped up over time as well, something a fresh install could address.

 

[TheStu]

My wifes current laptop is going on 22 years and never once over heated!!

22 years??

 

[dave_the_nerd]

22 years??

If that's a joke about his wife's lap, and she's 22, it makes sense. I wouldn't brag about my inability to heat up my spouses lap though.

Alternatively, she's using an L40SX

 

[Sheep221]

My wifes current laptop is going on 22 years and never once over heated!!

cool did it came with built-in wifi?

 

[corkyg]

If the laptop must be used on a couch, then it should be on a hard tray.

 

[kyrax12]

Isn't it optimal for a laptop to clean out the vents, fans, heatsink throughly, and reapply thermal paste after every 1-2 years?

If it overheats after a couple years, then definitely do the above.

 

[The Day Dreamer]

ASUS ones are pretty good at internal ventilation. Owning Two of their brand laptops and one is 2 years old.

So my vote goes for Asus.

 

[Matt1970]

Like suggested keep it clean. If you must have it on your lap, make sure you are not choking off the airflow, and never, ever lay it on your bed.

 

[alkemyst]

I like the Apple laptops because they can be used on beds and the like.

 

[holden j caufield]

lenovos have been good for us. My old boss used to make us order only HPs, I can't count how many of those overheated. For me the business line lenovo and toshiba as just designed to last, except when there was that nvidia fiasco, every make had problems then.

 

[Torn Mind]

If something is running toasty from the beginning, it is bad design. Could be poor thermal material, undersized heatsink, bad airflow design, CPU that draws too much power, or something else I can't think of due to my ignorance.

If something starts running toasty a couple years or more into the future, then it is probably dust clogging the heatsink. I have a Dell D810. For a period, it couldn't keep temps under control and I had to cap the max clockspeed with Notebook Hardware Control to keep it from burning up. Eventually, I disassembled it to clean it up and lo and behold, a "dust pad" formed on the heatsink fins. Needless to say, after removing that, it keep temps in its regular cycle again: Run fan a 67 degrees Celsius or something and cool until it hits 40 degrees Celsius

 

[Bateluer]

I've taken apart more than 1 laptop to clean the fans out and re-apply the thermal compound. Something that goes with basic laptop maintenance.

Could be a thing of the past with Microsoft and Apple driving notebooks towards throwaway appliance-type devices. Use it for a year, throw it away and buy a new one.

 

[Torn Mind]

I've taken apart more than 1 laptop to clean the fans out and re-apply the thermal compound. Something that goes with basic laptop maintenance.

Could be a thing of the past with Microsoft and Apple driving notebooks towards throwaway appliance-type devices. Use it for a year, throw it away and buy a new one.

Apple might lock down their products, but I don't think they want that disposable label, since it is contrary to the "quality" image that company has fostered. Never mind that the only folks that would fathomably deem a $1000-$2000 product "disposable" are the extremely wealthy, and even not all of them would just spend $2000 just for the sake of losing it one year later.

Microsoft just produces the OS, ultimately, there are consumers who just want cheap and will buy those things; those are the products they get in return. In addition, technological progress in mobile is still extremely rapid, making the new obsolete fast. But that latter point applies to all tech, not just the bottom end.

 

[TheGoat Eater]

I think you missed the point - essentially throw away since there are newer version and features that EOL what you just got. Like M$ with the Win8's touch screen focus making it a pain to use it as a desktop ( ease of use for those people who like mouse and KB). It is essential to their model to EOL products quickly and move people to new items over and over - more revenue as opposed to something that lasts for years.

 

[paul878]

With laptops you have to clean the heatsink and fan every few months, this is best done with an air compress. It is best to select laptop that does not have fan air intake on the bottom so that it will not over heat if you place it on a bed or your laps. As for the thermal grease you don't need to replace them unless you break the contact of the heatsink from the cpu.

 

[Kerio_Orisa]

Among the many laptops that I have owned over the years, the only one that does not get overheating problems is HP Probook 4330s. Despite an i3 rocessor with intel hd3000 gpu, the laptop base stayes very cold. I never needed to put anything under it. I even many tried several tabs/chromebooks, but they all heat up a lot, so none of them are comfortable for watching netflix in bed . It is an old model (I upgrded to 8gb RAM, and an SSD), and I have yet to find a newer model that stays as cold as this laptop. iF you have a suggestion for newer model that statys cold, than please share.
P.S I o not use my laptop for playing games, but it is heavily used (sometime for days) for intensive processing softwares like Stata, SAS, MPlus, etc.

 

[holden j caufield]

Thinkpad, always a Thinkpad or Dell business line laptop. The thinkpad fans are underneath the keyboard (only takes about 2 screws to release the keyboard in the older models). Super easy to clean, replace thermal compound etc. This is for the workstation models 14,15, and 17". Once you get into the ultrathin lineup it's hard to release the heat, or they use an ULV cpu which sucks and the thinness of the laptops can't release the heat.