My new macbook griddle

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bigddybn

Supreme [H]ardness
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Picked up my first legit macbook today. 2012 13" pro. Pretty happy with the machine except for one thing. It's a freakin' oven. Pretty much impossible to use in my lap. Even simple web browsing is causing the bottom to become so hot that it's uncomfortable to say the least.

Is this normal? I've had full blown gamer machines with hot dedicated GPUs that didn't get this hot.

Is the Air this hot?
 
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That's the recipe for some major swamp ass/sack.

Have you thought about making your own notebook cooling pad? It's extremely easy with 2 120mm Desktop fans, a switch and a 12V AC adapter.
 
My mbp retina gets hot only when I launch windows 7 and not really in OSX. Still I believe that's normal in your case.
 
My air doesn't seem particularly hot, my old vaio (vgn-z) definitely ran hotter.
 
Getting a SSD really alleviated some of it for me in my 2011, but they do in fact get hot when used for periods of time. Nothing you're experiencing is abnormal.
 
you might want to get click2plugin and youtube5 for safari. flash video will really push a macbook
 
Melon said:
That's the recipe for some major swamp ass/sack.

Have you thought about making your own notebook cooling pad? It's extremely easy with 2 120mm Desktop fans, a switch and a 12V AC adapter.
Click to expand...

Would kinda defeat the purpose...
 
Search for an app that let's you change the fan speed. Apple puts the default value way too low so they can claim the machine is quiet.
 
Wish there were a PC notebook with a touchpad this good. It's literally the main reason I'm even considering this thing.
 
Yes, the MBP line does get hot. The aluminum case acts as a heatsink, and it's fully intended.

Apple markets these as notebooks, not laptops, for that reason.
 
Terpfen said:
Yes, the MBP line does get hot. The aluminum case acts as a heatsink, and it's fully intended.

Apple markets these as notebooks, not laptops, for that reason.
Click to expand...

Oh it's apparently my fault. It's a feature, not a fault. :rolleyes:
 
bigddybn said:
Picked up my first legit macbook today. 2012 13" pro. Pretty happy with the machine except for one thing. It's a freakin' oven. Pretty much impossible to use in my lap. Even simple web browsing is causing the bottom to become so hot that it's uncomfortable to say the least.

Is this normal? I've had full blown gamer machines with hot dedicated GPUs that didn't get this hot.

Is the Air this hot?
Click to expand...

A few minutes with google would've come up with this: http://www.macupdate.com/app/mac/23137/fan-control

It fully integrates itself into the system preferences menu and any changes you make are permanent.
 
bigddybn said:
Oh it's apparently my fault. It's a feature, not a fault. :rolleyes:
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You entirely and intentionally missed the point just to make a sarcastic reply? Okay, whatever makes you happy.

The point remains, regardless of whether or not you like the explanation.
 
bigddybn said:
Oh it's apparently my fault. It's a feature, not a fault. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

They're thin, which means decreased airflow, which results in higher temps. It's not a feature, it's the result of the design. The heat has to go somewhere, and given the choice between a loud fan and a warm bottom, Apple chose the later.

smcFancontrol is what I use. On my mid-09 macbook the default fan speed was 2000rpm. With SMC I could bump the default to 3200rpm with ZERO audible difference. This brought temps down without making the thing loud.

Flash and Skype will make the thing a frying pan. I recommend installing flash block into chrome to help keep random flash apps from raising temps.
 
ryken said:
They're thin, which means decreased airflow, which results in higher temps. It's not a feature, it's the result of the design. The heat has to go somewhere, and given the choice between a loud fan and a warm bottom, Apple chose the later.

smcFancontrol is what I use. On my mid-09 macbook the default fan speed was 2000rpm. With SMC I could bump the default to 3200rpm with ZERO audible difference. This brought temps down without making the thing loud.

Flash and Skype will make the thing a frying pan. I recommend installing flash block into chrome to help keep random flash apps from raising temps.
Click to expand...

This.

mope54 said:
don't use smcFancontrol with the new i5's.
Click to expand...

And this.
 
bigddybn said:
Picked up my first legit macbook today. 2012 13" pro. Pretty happy with the machine except for one thing. It's a freakin' oven. Pretty much impossible to use in my lap. Even simple web browsing is causing the bottom to become so hot that it's uncomfortable to say the least.

Is this normal? I've had full blown gamer machines with hot dedicated GPUs that didn't get this hot.

Is the Air this hot?
Click to expand...

Use a fan control program to raise the default fan speed. It's too low. On Windows you will probably be SOL. No GPU switching means your MBP starts warm and only gets worse.
 
bigddybn said:
Was I a supposed to take your reply seriously?



You are expecting me to believe that the maker of the what is likely the single most popular notebook line has intentionally designed said product to heat up to the point of nearly burning skin? I'm also supposed to believe that they market it this way or that there is any practical difference between the word "notebook" and "laptop?"

Kool aid much be cheap where you live.
Click to expand...

Yes, you are supposed to believe all of this, because it's not new.

You can go all over the Internet and find people complaining since the introduction of the aluminum unibody style that their MacBook Pros (and early MacBook Airs) are hot to the touch on the underside. This is an intentional design decision: the chassis itself acts as a heat sink, which is somewhat necessary given how hot Intel's mobile CPUs run (relative to ARM-based CPUs, at least) and how thin the notebooks are.

This has nothing to do with Kool-Aid. Just because you don't understand or like something doesn't make it false. Your MacBook Pro is going to get hot on the underside, and it is going to make your lap very toasty, particularly if you don't use Flash blockers as previously suggested. Apple doesn't apply the "Pro" label for the hell of it: these notebooks are meant for specific purposes which do not involve resting on your lap.

Lastly, to turn your premise back on you, yes, I expect you to believe that the makers of the world's leading notebook line have not overlooked unintended heating on the underside of their products for four years. The aluminum unibody is not new. You are not experiencing the results of an oversight or an accident. You simply bought the wrong product. If you want something that can rest on your lap without burning you in your short shorts, get a MacBook Air.
 
You don't seem to understand the difference between intentional (your first post) and typical (your last post) and "laptop" and "notebook" are for all practical purposes the same thing. But whatever. Sorry if I misunderstood. Text is a bitch sometimes.

Does anyone have a suggestion for a fan control program I can use with this thing? The Air really doesn't fit my needs without a bunch of add-on accessories and the 13" pro is hardly what anyone would call large or heavy.
 
bigddybn said:
You don't seem to understand the difference between intentional (your first post) and typical (your last post) and "laptop" and "notebook" are for all practical purposes the same thing.
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It is intentional. Like I said in my post above, the heat has to go somewhere, and Apple INTENDED it to go to the bottom of the case, because they don't like noisy laptops.

His laptop/notebook distinction was not a justification for the heat (as you seem to assert), but rather just an explanation of how Apple knows that they get hot and has chosen to change marketing terms instead of ramping up fan speed.

You can chose to love or hate Apple based on their products and choices, or you can just accept that manufacturers make decisions based on their market research. Apple has decided that quiet and hot laptops will sell better than loud and cool laptops. It doesn't make them idiots or evil, it just makes them another company. Gaming laptops stay cool because gamers don't give a shit about loud fans (see: the case modding sub-forum), and manufactures of gaming laptops make big cased machines that can push a lot of air. The average Apple owner, however, has most likely put more value into the aesthetics of the machine, including noise. As such, Apple went with hot and quiet.

The reason you are getting gruff in this thread is you are expecting the impossible (thin, cool, and quiet), and trying to say Apple is stupid for not achieving the same. Like most things in life, you get to pick 2 of the 3. If you had spent 5 minutes googling before buying (or just thought about the physics of the case design for a minute or two), you would have known that they are hot machines.

Finally, drop the Kool-Aid bit. This is [H]ard forum, not macforums. No one here bought a macbook because they "drank the koolaid." The vast majority of us here have full on gaming rigs too. We bought an Apple product because we did our research, looked at the pros/cons, and THEN decided that Apple provided a product that had enough value to justify its price, as compared to the competition. Just because our pros/cons are different than others, doesn't mean we've drunk any Kool-aid. You, on the other hand, didn't do your research and are making wild accusations about Apple's engineering teams. That's like, opposite Kool-aid ;)
 
ryken said:
It is intentional. Like I said in my post above, the heat has to go somewhere, and Apple INTENDED it to go to the bottom of the case, because they don't like noisy laptops.

His laptop/notebook distinction was not a justification for the heat (as you seem to assert), but rather just an explanation of how Apple knows that they get hot and has chosen to change marketing terms instead of ramping up fan speed.

You can chose to love or hate Apple based on their products and choices, or you can just accept that manufacturers make decisions based on their market research. Apple has decided that quiet and hot laptops will sell better than loud and cool laptops. It doesn't make them idiots or evil, it just makes them another company. Gaming laptops stay cool because gamers don't give a shit about loud fans (see: the case modding sub-forum), and manufactures of gaming laptops make big cased machines that can push a lot of air. The average Apple owner, however, has most likely put more value into the aesthetics of the machine, including noise. As such, Apple went with hot and quiet.

The reason you are getting gruff in this thread is you are expecting the impossible (thin, cool, and quiet), and trying to say Apple is stupid for not achieving the same. Like most things in life, you get to pick 2 of the 3. If you had spent 5 minutes googling before buying (or just thought about the physics of the case design for a minute or two), you would have known that they are hot machines.

Finally, drop the Kool-Aid bit. This is [H]ard forum, not macforums. No one here bought a macbook because they "drank the koolaid." The vast majority of us here have full on gaming rigs too. We bought an Apple product because we did our research, looked at the pros/cons, and THEN decided that Apple provided a product that had enough value to justify its price, as compared to the competition. Just because our pros/cons are different than others, doesn't mean we've drunk any Kool-aid. You, on the other hand, didn't do your research and are making wild accusations about Apple's engineering teams. That's like, opposite Kool-aid ;)
Click to expand...

Wow. Half assumptions and just half making things up as you go.

I've already acknowledged that I may have misunderstood him. Scroll up.

Nobody called Apple or anyone else dumb or stupid. Nobody made any "wild accusations about Apple's engineering teams." The physics of a notebook cooling system are well understood. The gaming laptop comparison was to determine what was different about the macbook. The difference is they run the fan intentionally slow. Simple answer. The fix is to speed it up. Also a very simple answer.

I understand that "Apple INTENDED it to go to the bottom of the case." What I actually said was "intentionally designed said product to heat up to the point of nearly burning skin" which is what I was told I was supposed to believe. This is not a difficult distinction.

The reason I'm getting so much "gruff" here is the same reason anyone on any apple related forum gets "gruff" for suggesting and apple product may not be perfect. Any "normal" forum and the answer would have been "yeah it sucks but you can fix it by ramping up the fan speed a little."

Chug-a-lug.
 
Just got a PM from Terpfen that helps to explain my douchbagedness. I apologize to those I've offended. Was not my attention.

It's an excellent machine that happens to get very hot. I'll work on that fan.
 
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