Hot Macbook

Rhisiart

Rhisiart

Registered
I did nearly six hours intense work on my MacBook Pro yesterday (Photoshop, Indesign, updating software and numerous other tasks).

I don't have a temperature gauge in my menu bar, so I don't know how hot the MacBook became, except it was quite hot to touch at the back.

Can this happen?
 
Yes the metal can become very warm to the touch, it may be time to service your CPU with some thermal compound. (clean your fans too)
 
The entire case on the MacBook Pro is an effective heat sink, so would be fairly warm to the touch after heavy processor usage.
The bottom level 15-inch (2.53GHz) has only one fan. Do you hear the fan running when the MBPro is hot?
You could use a utility that will show temps, and fan speed. If you monitor that utility occasionally, you will have an idea what is normal for you, and what temps are way too hot, along with knowing that the fan speed responds to high temps.
 
Mine can get very hot, especially if I am using the faster graphics and charging. It stays pretty cool if I enable only the small graphics card (but it's slower..).
 
yes. I got the same going on for a long time. The Macbooks are too slim so the one little fan can't control much of the heat.

Use iStat menu to watch your temp and smcFanControl to tell the fan at what temp it should start spinning crazy and how much.

also: The Mac will do a cool-shutdown at around 93-104 degrees celcius. Try to avoid that.
 
I am a bit bemused that you pay over £1200 for a MacBook Pro and it only comes with one fan (I know the upper models have more).
 
I generally use smcFanControl and raise the fan speeds a little bit above the default setting to keep my MacBook running cooler. Plus I can't really even tell a difference in noise.
 
Rhisiart said:
Can you give me an example of one?
Click to expand...

Sure: http://www.xpcgear.com/notebookcooler.html

I don't know how much good the heat pipes really do but just lifting the machine with the perforated platform allows air to circulate under it.

I like it because there's no power needed and no noise.

edit: I added some legs fabricated out of flat steel to tip the back even higher (looks like it was made that way now) and later on even put those up on blocks to really tilt the machine. I do that because I mostly use the notebook as a secondary display to a 20" Cinema display and I have an Apple aluminum keyboard. That way the height of the machine's screen comes near the height of the Cinema display.

Sometimes I do use the laptop keyboard and it's surprisingly pleasant for quick tasks.
 
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Yep, this is why they don't call them "laptops" anymore. The processor chips are so fast now they generate a lot of heat, and the computer case is used as a heat sink to dissipate heat.

You could get the widget "iStat Pro" to monitor the temperature of your computer if you're concerned. You'll see temps, normally, in the 30-65C range depending on the component (there are several the app tracks).
 
Natobasso said:
Yep, this is why they don't call them "laptops" anymore. The processor chips are so fast now they generate a lot of heat, and the computer case is used as a heat sink to dissipate heat.
Click to expand...
I now have iStatsmenu and smcFanControl installed.

Although I have only had one significant 'hot' incident and that was after particularly heavy use, the Macbook case does get a tad warm with even modest use. Having said this, I suspect that I am now just a little 'sensitised' so notice it more.

There is another thread that talks about overheating when using Bootcamp. I wonder whether this is a red herring, in that any heavy processor use will result in significant increases in temperature.

I'd also be interested to know how significant overheating actually is. In other words, how likely is it to fry something under the hood?
 
Rhisiart said:
I'd also be interested to know how significant overheating actually is. In other words, how likely is it to fry something under the hood?
Click to expand...
There's an overtemp sensor in the machine which should shut it down if it reaches a dangerous temperature.

But I'd prefer to stress the machine as little as necessary in the interest of making it last a long time without any problems, hence my cooler.

I did have an Powerbook G3 which used to overheat because I carelessly stuffed papers for safekeeping under its edges. When I realized that it was overheating because of this it was a “doh!” moment for me and I've been careful ever since.
 
I took my (now defunct) iBook G4 laptop on a lecture tour of southern India in 2004. It averaged around 38C all day and every day with no aircon. Needless to say I overheated, but the laptop which was on from 9.00 to 5.00 pm, functioned admirably.

My daughter dropping it two years later was of course a different story.
 
I second smcFanControl. I know others have mentioned it. I too run my fans a little faster to keep the machine a little cooler. And I don't notice any increased noise. It's very subtle. I'm hoping by running the fan a little faster the machine will last longer. Or the fan will die sooner. :O

On my 13" MBP that runs at a default low speed of 2000 rpm, I run at about 2700. It's somewhat cooler to the touch in normal operation. On my original style MacBook Pro 15" that ran at 1000 rpm, I ran at about 2500 because it would get very hot easily.
 
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