The Mystery of the Burnt Thighs

On Jul 4, 2006, at 9:54 AM, Grant Thompson wrote:

> Fantastic. I look forward to the movie!

And I look forward to the classical Greek version from which the
English was translated. ;-)

Well done, Adam.

   --John

--- begin forwarded text

From: William Sargent <billsargentearthlink.net> Date: Tue, 4 Jul 2006 15:42:14 -0700

Dear TidBITS,

I saw your recent article about hot laptops. When I was in my local Apple retailer, I saw Targus' Chill Mat with built in fans, powered by the USB port. The technician I had been talking with told me that several people in the store had purchased Chill Mats and swore by them. I have a 1.42 GHz G4 14" iBook as well as a 12" Dell Windows XP laptop from work. Both the iBook and the Dell got uncomfortably hot. However, since I bought the Chill Mat, I haven't noticed any discomfort. I suspect the new MacBook and especially the MacBook Pro probably run hotter than my iBook, but I suspect the Chill Mat would work with them too. You might want to evaluate one and then report on it in a future TidBITS issue. I wouldn't have known about the Chill Mat if I hadn't happened to go into my local Apple retailer that day. I suspect your other readers who have laptops might want to try one.

http://www.targus.com/us/product_details.asp?sku=PA248U

-- Bill Sargent

--- end forwarded text

>Indeed, the only instance of "laptop" in the Apple Knowledgebase referred
>to Windows laptops.

Most manufacturers are moving toward the "notebook" terminology, whether
for this reason or other. The notebook:laptop ratio on HP's web site is
about 5:1, and on Dell's web site about 8:1.

Edward
Art works by Melynda Reid: http://paleo.org

Has anyone tried the LapTopCooler?

http://www.climator.com/passivecooling.html

It's based on a chemical reaction that absorbs heat, and apparently works for 2-3 hours (then needs to be 'recharged' for 2-3 hours).

> I saw your recent article about hot laptops. When I was in my local
> Apple retailer, I saw Targus' Chill Mat with built in fans, powered
> by the USB port.

There is a much simpler product, the Traveller Coolpad, also sold by Targus, that performs the same function. See http://www.targus.com/us/accessories_workspace.asp for a list of such products sold by Targus. I got mine (before Targus began distributing it) and have used it for years under my portable computers. It consists of two trapezoidal plates with 2 small domes on the rear to incline the computer and allow a layer of air to circulate under it. Aside from effectively insulating the legs or other surface from the bottom of the laptop, it has a few other advantages. For those of us used to typing on inclined keyboard, it turns the laptop keyboard into one. Also, the two plates are attached via a center screw, allowing one to rotate the laptop, either to show the screen to other people or to gain access to the side or rear ports), without needing to lift the computer. My Coolpad travels with me in the laptop bag and is almost always under the computer when I use it whether on an organic or inorganic surface.

Alan Forkosh Oakland, CA
aforkoshmac.com

I second the Coolpad and have also used it for years. I would
underscore the fact that you can easily slip it into a laptop bag.

Craig Turner

On 06.07.2006, at 16:12, Miles Libbey wrote:

> Has anyone tried the LapTopCooler?
> http://www.climator.com/passivecooling.html

I had bought something similar in Japan, and was not convinced. And
this is not with an MBP, but a TiBook (which gets pretty warm when
put on a lap). At first it really cools down your Powerbook, but
what to do after 2-3 hours when the mat has warmed up and does not
cool anymore?

So at home I am using the Rain Design iLap which is great both for
'lap work' and desktop work (but on the expensive side, imho). On
the road, roadtools' traveler coolpad is the next best solution for me.
(which also is quite durable, using it since Lombard times).
<http://raindesigninc.com/ilap.html>
<http://roadtools.com/>

Kei.

On 7/8/06 1:35 AM, "Kei Ishii" <kei.ishiigmail.com> wrote:

> So at home I am using the Rain Design iLap which is great both for
> 'lap work' and desktop work (but on the expensive side, imho). On
> the road, roadtools' traveler coolpad is the next best solution for me.

I've used (and never liked) the iLap. I think the most "flexible" solution
is the LapGenie:
<http://lapgenie.com/>

The biggest issue is portability. It folds fairly flat but doesn't travel
via a backpack well. And they are expensive.
--
Shawn King
Host/Executive Producer
Your Mac Life
http://www.yourmaclife.com

I have tried many different solutions to the problem of hot laptops,
and they each have their advantages and disadvantages. Right now I
have an Antec Cooler under my Powerbook G4. It's like the Targus
ChillPad, a perforated metal holder with built-in fans that run off
the USB port. It helps a little with the heat, but isn't good for lap
use. I have owned the CoolPad for years and use it on the desktop,
but it also doesn't seem to balance well in my lap. I have a Griffin
iCurve stand that is a fantastic solution for long-term desktop use
of a laptop, because it elevates it to the level of a desktop
monitor. Connect an external keyboard and mouse, and you're good to
go. There is tons of airflow around and beneath the laptop, and if
you blow a cheap $6 desktop fan from Target or WalMart or somewhere
on it, the internal fans will never kick on.

For actual use on my lap, I did have a LapBottom for a while, but it
"walked off" with some other user in the family. I don't think these
are being made anymore. So I just purchased a Lapinator off eBay.
Here is the link to the Website.

http://www.lapinator.com/

I'll see how it works.

Nancy Butts

I have two of the climator devices, one each of the two models they
now make. It works well, but only lasts about 2-3 hours. The thing is
a solution that "melts" at roughly 80 F, so it melts from the heat of
the laptop, but then refreezes at room temperature. It's totally
silent, compact, fits in a laptop case, uses no power and cycles
indefinitely. The only downside is the 4-5 recharge time while it
refreezes. It's kind of expensive and there is no US distributor.

Chuck Bouldin

Visit http://www.acme.in/pcm.html to check on how use of Phase change material can overcome these kind of problems. Hope IBM, Apple, HP, LG... are all listening.

John