Hot Hot Heat Sinks!!

OtistheGuard

So I'm trying to figure out why my laptop slows down while playing EQ, and I noticed my Core's temperature goes up to 80C. I opened up my laptop as much as I could without feeling like I'd break something. I saw the heat sink but I could not tell if the thermal compound had deteriorated like some websites suggested I check. So what should I be looking for?

I have an Acer Extensa 4420. The fan did not look too clogged, and as soon as I can pick some air in a can it will be cleaned.

Any tips on cleaning out a laptop to help with heat problems would be great. Also, how useful are those laptop pads I see advertised?

Thanks

General_Win

You could always Google what your processor's temperature range should be. On some chips that might even be reasonable.

Is the fan constantly on?
Do you live in a desert?
When you play are you playing on a surface that allows adequate ventilation? Like are you playing sneakily in your bed under your sheets shouting orders to your minions?

What program did you use to check the temperature? 80 degrees sounds more like a graphics card temp.

autono-wally, erotibot300

I clean my laptops heat sinks from the outside with canned air.
I also had crashes with my m1530, but since I got a sharkoon coolbook (a cheap cooling stand), it works like a charm.

OtistheGuard

The fan constantly runs, I don't live in the desert, and my play surface varies. Today I played on my bed with my legs crossed so I balanced it between them where there was 2-3 inches of space for the air to move.

I know for sure its the CPU temperature, because it says CPU core temperature. I'm guessing as of now my plan is to buy a cooling pad and some canned air and try that.

travathian

OtistheGuard wrote: »

The fan constantly runs,

Boot into CMOS, let the computer sit there, are the fans at full speed the whole time? At the Windows desktop with nothing running?

Today I played on my bed with my legs crossed so I balanced it between them where there was 2-3 inches of space for the air to move.

You mistakenly assume the fan and vents are in the middle. Turn your laptop over and look at where the fan sits. A quick google shows it to be in one of the back corners, right where your knee would be. That's not good. Get a lapboard or something else to put it on instead.

I know for sure its the CPU temperature, because it says CPU core temperature. I'm guessing as of now my plan is to buy a cooling pad and some canned air and try that.

It? What is "it"? This is why you were asked what program. "It" means nothing to us. How precisely are you determining the temperature, and secondly, what is the ambient temperature in the room?

user

I'll second the use of a cooling pad, this is pretty essential if you're planning to game with a laptop. I run a Dell 1330m, which shipped with a manufacturing defect that caused my gpu heatsink fan to die. Once it (along with my mother board and cpu) was replaced under warranty, I made a point to acquire a cooling pad. And it made my system run 12°c cooler overall.

I'd go with an aluminium build with a couple of fans. Also you probably shouldn't run it on your lap, maybe get a lap board or better yet hook it up to a monitor when you're gaming.

OtistheGuard

I was using this utility to gauge the temperature: http://cpu.rightmark.org/products/rmclock.shtml. I don't know for sure what the ambient temperature was, but the AC system in my house said the low 70's F. The room itself felt cool.

I googled CMOS and it appears to be a battery system. I'm not familar with CMOS but some research makes me think it's part of the motherboard, and therefore, in the BIOS. I've already looked into the BIOS and there weren't many settings to change besides which OS to boot and some settings that I was not familar with.

As for the back fan, I am aware of where the fan is. I basically pinned the computer between my legs, so that I'm holding it from the sides and not from behind or from underneath. A very awkard way to play, but I had to scratch the MMO itch.

After re-reading my message I noticed I was too ambiguous. When I said the fan is running constantly, I mean it is running constantly while I'm playing.

I'm not sure if this matters in the slightest, but I noticed something. When I'm running EQ in windowed mode my temperature will climb while EQ is active, but when I switch to the utility linked above, my temperature will fall even though I can still see EQ running.

Thanks for the help guys!