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How To Reduce Your Laptop Working Heat

There you have it – proof positive that using a Notebook Computer unprotected can burn your lap and other delicate parts. So what are we to do? Stop using our apple battery notebooks? I don't think so! There are ways to have safe computing, you know. But for the 65 million or so notebook users in america, the heat hazard poses an even greater threat to their computers. Over time, the heat source that burns our lap can have an equally devastating effect on the internal components of our notebook.

So how does one have safe computing without losing intimacy with our notebook, while also protecting it from overheating? The answer is obvious – use protection. What kind? Try a Google search with the keywords "Laptop Desk" or "Lap Desk" or "Lap Tray". There you will find all kinds of protection for both you and your notebook. We plowed through the many listings and narrowed the field to nine products that should help you practice safe computing.

But before we get to the product comparisons, let us be clear that groin burns aren't the only hazard that notebook users are susceptible to. There are other hazards—both to the user and theotebook itself—that originate from two common notebook uses: Mobile use (on your lap) and stationary use (on your desktop).

Hazards When Using a Laptop on Your Lap:

Based on research conducted by LapWorks, Inc. (www.lapworksinc.com), two-thirds of all notebook owners reported using their notebooks while mobile more often than stationary. Which means that notebookowners prefer 2 to 1 using their notebook in their easy chair watching TV, in airline terminals, in hotel lobbies or in bed surfing the Internet, as opposed to desktop use. as we rove around using our notebooks in different ways, lap (or groin) burns are possible unless we use some form of protection.

a pillow is not a good choice. Many mobile users will sandwich a pillow between themselves and the notebook to protect their laps from "Hot Leg." This comforts the user, but unfortunately does no favors for the Apple A1175 Battery computer. The pillow acts as an insulator and contains the heat within the notebook, accelerating overheating. The notebook's Cooling Fan then cycles on repeatedly ‘gasping for air' until it shuts your computer down to protect itself from serious heat damage.

Finally, you could permanently damage your notebook with a fatal drop. a white paper study conducted by IDC (International Data Corp., a Framingham, Mass. research firm) concluded that 68% of all damage notebooks comes from being dropped. This includes sliding off the user's lap and crashing to a hard and unforgiving floor. IDC further reported that in 2001, it cost businesses and industry over one billion dollars to repair broken notebooks, and replace them in some cases, totaling approximately $1,400 per incident.

Solutions to the Hazards of Lap Use:

Find a product with non-slip surfaces that spans your lap completely, can hold even the largest portable, and shields your lap from its blistering heat. Road warriors will also want something that's lightweight, thin, and folds so it can easily fit in the computer bag.

To protect the computer from its own heat, find something with built-in ventilation channels that can actually reduce heat. You can reduce heat in two ways: convection (exchanging warm air for cool air) and conduction (transferring heat by contact from a warm surface to a cool surface). Look for products that reduce heat through convection or conduction or both as

Hazards When Using a Laptop on your Desk:

Strange as it may sound, the greatest risk of injuring yourself personally will most likely come when you use your notebook on a desktop over long periods of time. It is here that we risk injuring our neck and shoulders from hazards such as:

Lower than recommended viewing height of the notebook screen

Flat typing angle, or lack of incline of the notebook's keyboard

Since most notebook computers are set flat on the desktop, theiscreen heights are all below the recommended, "ergonomically correct" viewing level. This means you must strain your neck to find information at the bottom of the screen, which can lead to more serious back problems over time. The recommended height for a computer screen is positioning the top of the screen at, or slightly below, eye level. This lets your eyes do the searching, instead of having to bend and strain your neck.

another hazard comes from the notebook's flat keyboard. In this position, we are forced to move our elbows away from our body to get our hands in the right position to type. Supporting our arms away from our body for long periods of time eventually strains the shoulders and back so that typing becomes tiring and more stressful.

The immediate effects of neck and back strain are discomfort and reduced productivity, but medical experts agree they can lead to more permanent health problems over time.

Solutions to the Hazards of Desk Use:

Ideally, the answer is to raise the back of tnotebook computer to such an angle that it will:

allow natural convection (and conduction if possible) to take place under the computer, reducing heat build-up and cooling your computer.

Raise the viewing screen height closer to eye level, reducing neck strain.

Put the keyboard in an incline allowing elbows to remain by your side in a more ergonomically comfortable typing angle.

Heat is Your Laptop's Worst Enemy:

aside from the catastrophic crash to the floor, the greatest damage to Dell Inspiron 6400 Battery notebooks comes from poor ventilation that causes overheating. Eventually, this overheating causes permanent damage, shortening your notebook's life.

Overheating is the result of the market's competitive demand for the thinnest form factor and greater processing power. The solution? Find a product that can actually reduce the heat by as much as 15% to 20%, which means your notebook's cooling fan won't cycle on as often, and your notebook computer can live a longer, healthier life!

Conclusion:

There are products that address these hazards, each to a greater or lesser degree. Keep in mind that the hazards listed above are real and documented, not just sales hype. If you are a committed notebook user, you'll want to create the safest computing environment whenever and wherever you choose to use your notebook.

Give serious consideration to the below list of nine products and select the one that best meets your specific needs. and be careful out there . . . now that groin burns have been documented, you'll want to use protection from now on so you can always practice safe computing.

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