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December, 2024

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MacBook Pro getting way too hot

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Style+eeze
Posts: 6901 - Karma: 551
I just got a MacBook Pro for college, and I have noticed that it gets RIDICULOUSLY hot when plugged into its charger, especially while running multiple browsers/apps/programs, especially anything Flash. My brother is already super wary of his MBP (last generation) and refuses to leave it on a couch, bed, or other flammable object out of his sight.

Does anyone else have this same problem? I was just cruising NS, listening to music, and playing Gnarshmallow when I reached down and literally burned my hand on the very end of the charging cable (side that connects to the computer, right where the light is on the outside edge). I just did some google investigating, and this was one of the first things to pop up:

Sep 1 2011 9:59PM
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Departmentsaur
Posts: 277 - Karma: 28
High power cooling fan. all i have to say.
Sep 1 2011 10:00PM
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family_vacation
Posts: 6200 - Karma: 7,840
put it on ice.
Sep 1 2011 10:00PM
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En_Route
Posts: 740 - Karma: 45
take it to the store because that kinda sounds like a short...
Sep 1 2011 10:05PM
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ORDEAL
Posts: 6386 - Karma: 75
not mine...
Sep 1 2011 10:05PM
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jibjunkie
Posts: 3807 - Karma: 191
i was going to trash on macs but the sad fact is that metal is a bit of a conductor so why this would surprise someone is beyond me. it doesnt help either that in apples attempts to keep the laptop sleek and sexy they hid the inadequate fan under the screen hinge and i dont see how it cools the laptop worth shit
Sep 1 2011 10:10PM
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.RYAN66
Posts: 5381 - Karma: 237
that definitely helps, plus it shows the temp of three different areas, right now my mac is running 80 degrees celsius and the fans are spinning at 6200 rpm, mine generates a lot of heat because i run a shit ton of stuff on it, it sucks because it kills batery life though.
Sep 1 2011 10:10PM
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J.M
Posts: 2854 - Karma: 254
should have gotten a pc...
Sep 1 2011 10:11PM
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FBGM
Posts: 8184 - Karma: 2,677
That was funny. Also, nice to see you.
Sep 1 2011 10:17PM
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special_k10101
Posts: 1498 - Karma: 72
peterrrrr
keep the laptop off of soft surfaces so the fan will actually work and keep the power brick off of carpeted floors when it's plugged in.
Sep 1 2011 10:18PM
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B.Aussie
Posts: 5852 - Karma: 4,531
Mine does this too I've literally burnt my leg on it a few times when using it on my lap.
Sep 1 2011 10:20PM
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thelizards
Posts: 4042 - Karma: 43
DAMN YOU'RE SMART
Sep 1 2011 10:21PM
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esotericjive
Posts: 1889 - Karma: 1,445
ur welcome
Sep 1 2011 10:23PM
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Style+eeze
Posts: 6901 - Karma: 551
Oops I just posted a link to this thread on your facebook... And yeshum, I'll be careful not to burn our house down.
Sep 1 2011 10:25PM
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connory998
Posts: 1197 - Karma: 34
pc = personal computer

pc =/= windows
Sep 1 2011 10:26PM
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Steezy_P
Posts: 3069 - Karma: 2,350
i lol'd, but seriously. duct tape works charms
Sep 1 2011 10:28PM
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*monsterskier*
Posts: 2671 - Karma: 61
I was really looking forward to buying a Macbook Pro...but reading this is making me change my mind.

sorry I don't know enough to help you, but on the other hand, thank you for informing me (indirectly) of this
Sep 1 2011 10:32PM
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goodiepocket
Posts: 950 - Karma: 641
MacBook Pro's have a sensor that will turn it off once temperatures reach an unsafe/damaging limit. I wondered if the heat of my laptop was damaging to the internals after long exports etc so I did some research and that was the most common response: Your MBP will shut itself off if it reaches a temp that is too hot for it to safely operate at.
Sep 1 2011 10:36PM
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Yinzer
Posts: 1011 - Karma: 73
bought a lil pad ish from target that I put mine on when I'm just rockin it on my lap. has a mouse pad too so ittttssss nicccceee
Sep 1 2011 10:38PM
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J.M
Posts: 2854 - Karma: 254

yeah yeah yeah

you and every other person who read that knew what i meant

windows************

Sep 1 2011 10:40PM
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yourthemannowdog
Posts: 4541 - Karma: 314
With any laptop you need to be careful about that. My macbook does that when its in my lap or on my bed. I have a desk so it spends 90% of its time resting on a hard surface.

Make sure there is air flowing underneath the laptop, it really helps. Your story sounds a little extreme though. I would take it into an apple store and see if there were any recalls or if you could get something with your warranty
Sep 1 2011 10:46PM
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special_k10101
Posts: 1498 - Karma: 72
Maybe, but the threshold at which the computer actually turns off is pretty high. I've started to smell burning before I realized how hot my laptop and the ac adaptor were getting sitting on my bed. Apple specifically warns you not to put your laptop on soft surfaces in the instruction manual. A friend of a friend's house actually burned down due to him leaving MacBook Pro on his bed.

I love my MacBook Pro and I wouldn't consider not getting one because of overheating issues. It's just something to be wary about. My roommate has an HP laptop which runs very hot as well. It's a laptop problem in general.
Sep 1 2011 11:08PM
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Stankeyshecamel
Posts: 65 - Karma: 30
You could have gotten hacked:

http://gizmodo.com/5823997/macbook-batteries-are-totally-hackable-wait-what

"Miller thinks it might even be possible to remotely blow up a battery on command, though he also says that for a hacker to gain access, they would have to discover a second vulnerability to gain initial access to a computer."

Sep 1 2011 11:54PM
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a_pla5tic_bag
Posts: 9218 - Karma: 5,402
my dorm room is super cold and my computer is running at a lower temp than normal. but it does get hot sometimes while watching videos or editing or performing complex tasks. i have smc fan control which helps a bit but i suppose a better heat sinking system would do a better job.
Sep 2 2011 12:04AM
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Rachy
Posts: 4355 - Karma: 2,761
Mine spends 80% of it's time on my lap... I've got the newest one. My last one used to get really hot and then there was a battery update that fixed it.

Maybe search to see if there is something similar? reset your pram and all that jazz.
Sep 2 2011 12:12AM
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benk
Posts: 1342 - Karma: 988
If you're running it on a desk look into getting a stand for it..makes stacking hardrives underneath pretty convenient and and gives you an excuse to buy the Magic Mouse
Sep 2 2011 1:33AM
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special_k10101
Posts: 1498 - Karma: 72
lucky that you don't have testicles.

but yeah, the fan control thing seems to be working pretty well and the problem only really presents itself when running a lot of flash or gaming.
Sep 2 2011 2:27PM
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neutralzombie
Posts: 8629 - Karma: 606
apple care apple care apple care. kids never learn
Sep 2 2011 2:32PM
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16bit
Posts: 156 - Karma: 4
honestly what do you expect? every laptop gets really really hot when doing anything that uses a lot of power and resources to run.
Sep 2 2011 2:35PM
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special_k10101
Posts: 1498 - Karma: 72
well it'd be nice if the fan ran a little faster sometimes by default. and i'm aware of this, but flash is a resource hog on macs in particular.

i don't really know what you're getting agitated about because i'm pretty sure we're on the same page here...
Sep 2 2011 2:42PM
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Laurent.
Posts: 10056 - Karma: 25,313
Download gfxCardStatus here: http://codykrieger.com/gfxCardStatus

This will allow you to manually shift between graphic cards, the AMD Radeon gets quite hot.
The integrated Intel HD3000 will be able to do most tasks like: 1080p video etc...


Sep 2 2011 2:59PM
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doitbig
Posts: 4818 - Karma: 315
The charger actually sparked and melted on my powerbook g4. Fortunately the laptop has been running strong for almost 7 years. Replaced the battery and the charger and it was pretty much brand new again. It does however seem to get pretty hot.
Sep 2 2011 3:52PM
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Rachy
Posts: 4355 - Karma: 2,761
Strange... I'm running flash, tourweaver, photoshop, 2 browsers, a text editor and an ftp app and mine is on my lap doing swimmingly well. Been here for a while too.

But then again, its only like 65/70 degrees right now.
Sep 2 2011 4:05PM
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tomPietrowski
Posts: 7177 - Karma: 17,712
The thing most people do not know about laptops is they have to be on a hard surface for air to flow to the fan to cool the componets. If you have it on a soft surface such as a sofa, bed or you lap then air can not get in and simply no cooling will happen. Even if the thing does switch off before any real damage happens, damage will be ocuring. When componets such as the CPU run at high consistent temps the durability will be much reduced.

Try to find some kind of hard board to rest the laptop on. The best solution is a cooling dock for the desk, somewhat cuts down portability, but laptops are portable computers, not computers to be put anywhere, they still have some restictions. Try an Ipad if you want full portability of use.
Sep 2 2011 4:59PM
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yuck
Posts: 8384 - Karma: 2,090
my shitty old acer used to overheat when i watched youtube videos. it was fucking retarded.

my new asus produces virtually no heat. i have been playing starcraft while running itunes and a few browser windows were open and it didnt heat up at all. im in love.
Sep 2 2011 5:04PM
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a_pla5tic_bag
Posts: 9218 - Karma: 5,402
haha i don't get what people don't understand about that. People have them overheat and they're like "i was laying under a blanket using my computer" and I say lolwut.
Sep 2 2011 8:57PM
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