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lucamacis · 06-06-2008

Hey guys,

As you know i was using a Mac Mini for a long time and i was able to leave it running for weeks at a time whilst doing intensive tasks such as using Visual Hub. Even when doing that i would hardly hear the fan. ( i tend to do these tasks during the night when im not using the computer)

However, with my new Macbook the fan seems to go off a lot easier and louder then it did for the Mac Mini. Is that normal? Is it just because the Macbook is being more cautious being a laptop rather than a desktop machine? I just want to make sure that i am not damaging any of its components by letting the fan run continiously for what could be up to like 3-6 hours

Any feedback will be appreciated.

Luca

**Yuiichi** · 06-06-2008

Hey Luca,

I've noticed that the MacBook is generally quiet if you're not using any processor intensive apps (such as Visual Hub) or watching flash movies (such as YouTube). Other than that, general browsing and using apps doesn't set off the fan.

If that's the kind of stuff you're doing, then yes - completely normal for the fan to rev up to 6000 rpm (I don't think it goes much faster than that). And because it's a laptop with worse heat dissipation (due to the physical design of the machine), I'd expect that it would be a little more "cautious".

Perhaps Matt can say something about damaging the components, as I don't know.

houltmac · 06-07-2008

Yuiichi is completely right, the thermal envelope of the Mac mini is much better than the MacBook so the fans won't be as noticeable as often. That's the price we pay for demanding thinner an thinner notebooks I guess. Take his advice regards how and when the fan comes on though, it would be interesting if his assumptions are wrong.

In terms of components being damaged, no, a fan won't do any harm. Basically it's doing as it's intended to do and that's a good thing. When you can't hear the fans anymore you need to worry. Something like iStat would be good in that case. If the fans don't behave as they should (and are by the sound of it) then the CPU, GPU and so on can overheat, likely causing a kernel panic or shutdown and possibly damage to the components.

Right now I'd say you are good, the only thing it can hurt is the life of the fan, but fans are cheap and sturdy.

lucamacis · 06-07-2008

thanks a lot for your advice. Im currentyly using the iStat Pro widget so ill keep an eye on it that way.

06-06-2008	#1 (permalink)
lucamacis Inventory Control Specialist Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Essex Posts: 98	Hey guys, As you know i was using a Mac Mini for a long time and i was able to leave it running for weeks at a time whilst doing intensive tasks such as using Visual Hub. Even when doing that i would hardly hear the fan. ( i tend to do these tasks during the night when im not using the computer) However, with my new Macbook the fan seems to go off a lot easier and louder then it did for the Mac Mini. Is that normal? Is it just because the Macbook is being more cautious being a laptop rather than a desktop machine? I just want to make sure that i am not damaging any of its components by letting the fan run continiously for what could be up to like 3-6 hours Any feedback will be appreciated. Luca __________________ Black Macbook - 2.2 Core 2 Duo, 1GB, 160GB Visit my Blog

06-06-2008	#2 (permalink)
Yuiichi Assistant Store Manager Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Ontario, Canada Posts: 1,937	Hey Luca, I've noticed that the MacBook is generally quiet if you're not using any processor intensive apps (such as Visual Hub) or watching flash movies (such as YouTube). Other than that, general browsing and using apps doesn't set off the fan. If that's the kind of stuff you're doing, then yes - completely normal for the fan to rev up to 6000 rpm (I don't think it goes much faster than that). And because it's a laptop with worse heat dissipation (due to the physical design of the machine), I'd expect that it would be a little more "cautious". Perhaps Matt can say something about damaging the components, as I don't know. __________________ My Mac(s): MacBook, white - 2.0 GHz, 2 GB RAM, 80 GB HDD Cake for you? The Macversity - Mac + School = Love.

06-07-2008	#3 (permalink)
houltmac Mac Genius Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: United Kingdom Posts: 1,054	Yuiichi is completely right, the thermal envelope of the Mac mini is much better than the MacBook so the fans won't be as noticeable as often. That's the price we pay for demanding thinner an thinner notebooks I guess. Take his advice regards how and when the fan comes on though, it would be interesting if his assumptions are wrong. In terms of components being damaged, no, a fan won't do any harm. Basically it's doing as it's intended to do and that's a good thing. When you can't hear the fans anymore you need to worry. Something like iStat would be good in that case. If the fans don't behave as they should (and are by the sound of it) then the CPU, GPU and so on can overheat, likely causing a kernel panic or shutdown and possibly damage to the components. Right now I'd say you are good, the only thing it can hurt is the life of the fan, but fans are cheap and sturdy. __________________ MacBook Pro 15" Glossy, 2.6GHz, 4GB RAM, 320B HD \| iPhone 3G 16GB (Black)

06-07-2008	#4 (permalink)
lucamacis Inventory Control Specialist Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Essex Posts: 98	thanks a lot for your advice. Im currentyly using the iStat Pro widget so ill keep an eye on it that way. __________________ Black Macbook - 2.2 Core 2 Duo, 1GB, 160GB Visit my Blog

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