Best Laptop Accessories: Cooling Pads
October 06, 2011, By Michael O. Varhola 4 comments
New devices of any sort are not something I rush to acquire, and I tend to be both sparing and frugal in the accessories I pick up for whatever laptop computer I happen to be using. There are certainly plenty of silly, extravagant, or (for me) valueless things available, and I try to avoid them. Over the past few years, however, a number of laptop accessories have proven very useful to me on a daily basis, and one of these is a cooling pad (also known variously as a laptop/notebook cooler, cooler pad or chill mat).
I recognized my need for a cooling pad long before I even knew it existed. I don’t recall that my first several laptops used to get unmanageably hot, but starting about five years ago with a big Toshiba Qosmio unit my wife bought for me, I have had to deal with this problem. The Qosmio would come out of hibernation mode even when closed, and if left unattended for several hours, it would get so hot I was afraid it would blow up and burn down the house while I wasn’t watching. Replacing it didn't solve the problem. Every computer since then has gotten so hot after several hours of use that they actually crashed, forcing me to periodically shut them down to cool off.
I came up with what I thought was a pretty elegant solution, which was to wrap a couple of freezable cooling elements in a kitchen towel and then place the laptop on it. This method worked so well, in fact, that I was about to go shopping for a bigger and better freezable tray when my wife asked me why I didn’t just pick up a cooling pad. Why not, indeed?
Stay Cool
Cooling pads typically are designed to allow airflow beneath a laptop, which both helps disperse heat and keeps the device from sitting directly on your lap. Most are “active models” that also have built into them a USB-powered fan that directs air up at the bottom of the computer or otherwise circulates it. There are also “passive models” that rely simply on their design and the materials they are made of to help keep laptops cool and which do not include fans at all.
Prices start at $14.99 for a Targus “Laptop Travel Chill Mat” and go all the way up to $87.99 for a Prestige “Laptop Stand with Integrated Keyboard and Touchpad” that also includes a keyboard and mouse. Most are in the $20 to $40 range. I chose a Belkin “Cooling Pad for Most Laptops” for $29.99. Be careful, though, as there are a number of models running for around $20 that don’t have fans, and I advise that you not even mess with them if you need it to cool your computer.
On the down side, cooling pads do produce a bit of noise. I don't want to overstate this issue and it might not bother you at all—just know that your pad won't be completely quiet. Most active models also use up one of your USB ports, which can be inconvenient and periodically require unplugging the device so as to accommodate a different one for, say, a flash drive.
Overall, however, cooling pads are a great accessory and something every laptop user should consider picking up if things start to get a little too hot for comfort.
Comments (4):