Overheating Laptop? It’s More Serious Than You Think

February 3, 2010 · Filed Under Laptops & Notebooks · Comment 

Heat is an enemy of all hardware. Desktops benefit from lots of open space for several fans. This makes the dissipation of heat easier. Unfortunately, it’s a great deal more difficult when you are dealing with a laptop computer. There are very few ways to reduce the temperature of your notebook.

For some reason, laptops are generally designed with ventilation on the bottom. Should these vents become blocked with comforters, cushions or even your legs, the fans will not be able to pull heat away from the interior and the laptop will begin to overheat. Effectively, this means that laptop fans will not work when resting in your lap. While a little extra heat on occasion won’t instantly permanently damage your computer, it will wreck the internal parts over time.

Some laptop cooling issues are not caused by obstructed vents, although it is an extremely common cause. Running your laptop in a very hot environment can result in internal heating problems. It’s smart not to use your laptop on a hot surface like a metal table in the sun or next to a hot stove. Keeping laptops off hot surfaces and away from sources of heat are two very easy ways to reduce overheating problems caused by environmental issues.

A few companies sell stands and cooling pads that you can purchase for your laptop. If the fans are functioning properly in such a device, you could safely sit your laptop in your lap with a cooling pad. A notebook stand safely raises your notebook in a way that allows for better air circulation. A cooling pad is a powered device that uses fans to cool your notebook. A cooling pad will generally connect to your laptop for power. They may also have their own power adapters that plug into a typical wall socket. These pads contain fans that will help cool the computer. The fans will either draw air to or from the laptop. You will want to choose a fan configuration that cooperates with the built-in fans on your machine. These notebook coolers are made with plastic or aluminum. Since it draws heat away from your laptop, aluminum is the preferred material.

If you are dealing with a serious overheating problem, you are probably going to need a more complicated solution. Like any part of your laptop, the internal fans can fail. If your laptop suddenly develops a heating problem that it didn’t in the past, a broken fan could be the cause. Don’t attempt to fix this yourself: opening up your laptop can void the warranty and you could damage the very delicate hardware. Another complex issue that can arise is that Sometimes the thermal paste inside of the laptop will stop functioning. In this case, new thermal paste should be applied. Again, this is not something that a novice user should attempt. This requires taking the laptop apart for serious work.

Heat is very dangerous for a laptop. Due to their compact design, it is challenging to achieve good airflow in these miniature systems. This means that a laptop’s operating temperatures should be checked on occasion. If you see extremely high temperatures, you should have it checked out immediately. This will greatly extend the life of your laptop. You can find the proper temperature of your laptop on the internet. Use a sensor monitoring program to check that your components are operating at a safe level.

If you are worried that your laptop is having overheating issues, you can always call the techs at Geek Choice. Geek Choice is a national computer repair company that offers on-site assistance for any problem. An overheating laptop {that doesn’t improve with simple fixes (like keeping it off of soft or hot surfaces)} needs immediate attention{ before any damage is done to the hardware}.

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Computer Repair, What are Your Options

September 27, 2008 · Filed Under Tech News · Comment 

When  it comes to computer repair you have many different options. The one most commonly chosen is going with a big box store like the geek Squad.  While at first this may seem like a good option here are a few things you may not know.

Places like the Geek Squad do not require certifications or pre-training.  You would think thye would require this for all of their computer repair tecks but that is not the case.  The field agents that come out to your home are suposed to be certified but having worked there myself I can tell you this is not true.  The other download side is the cost. While the in store service is reasonable in price having a tech come out to your house will costs you a few hundred bucks just to have them show up.  This cost is very outrageous.

A better way to go is going with a smaller local company.  Looking online or in your phone book you will find many smaller shops.  Their prices will be better and you have the advantage of being able to speak with the same person who repaired your computer in the first place.  This is by far a better way to go.

Your third option which is even better is one that most people do not even know about.  Hiring a US based company to repair your computer online.  Things like virus and spyware removal, networking and all those other blue screen errors can be resolved right online.  For instance this Computer Repair site can remote into your computer and reslove just about any issue.  Best part is they do it right away.  No waiting days for a personal tech or hauling your computer across town just to wait a week for the repair.  By going this route you will save some major green on your computer repair job.  These guys also feature a no fix no fee policy.  This means if they can not fix it for any reason you do not pay a cent.  It’s worth bookmarking because some day you will need to use them.

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