I thought I would return to the theme of hot laptops which we discussed in a recent post. Most modern laptops will run hot, and will become uncomfortably so if actually used on your lap! But why do laptops heat up and is there anything we can do to minimise this effect?

So why do laptops heat up?
All the major components of a computer will generate, to varying degrees, some heat during their operation. So the power supply, the battery, the motherboard circuits, the disk drive, the CPU and graphic cards chips all will, when running, generate some heat. Some components generate more heat than others though, with the worse offenders probably being the chips. So if these components are fully used, for instance if you’re playing a game or have a lot of different applications running, then things are going to get hot quickly. Also although the processors used in laptops are designed to run cooler that those designed for desktops, the fact that everything is packed in tightly close together means that there is little air space and flow to provide cooling. A fan or fans are provided inside the laptop to cool things down, and this will come on if things start getting hot. You will hear this going if your computer is working hard.

How to keep cool

On most laptops the internal fan exhaust output to expel the hot air is on the underside of the computer. If this is blocked in anyway the internal temperature will rise quickly. This is one potential issue for those using a laptop on their lap, where clothes etc. can easily block these vents. A flat board on which the laptop can rest will help significantly. If using on a desk then there are a number of useful cooling pads for laptops which often provide additional fans to help cool things down. A good example of this is the Belkin laptop cooling stand which gives plenty of room for air flow and provides an additional fan that runs from the USB port of the laptop, reducing wires and meaning that it is potentially portable to some degree.

How do you keep your laptop cool?

The big news from yesterday of course is the release by Apple of the next generation of the groundbreaking iPhone. So why should we be interested in the iPhone on a computing blog like Blogbytes? Well it is because of the growing importance of mobile computing and the convergence between the “normal” computing world and that of the mobile phone. The iPhone is a innovative computing platform that is leading this convergence and pulling all the established players with it. My feeling is that Apple do appear to have got it right this time around, answering the majority of criticisms of the initial version.

What’s new? 

So what is new? Well first off it is a 3G device which means that data download on mobile networks speeds will be significantly improved. The lack of 3G was probably the major criticism of the original model, after all how could you truly make use of all the innovative features of the platform if everything just crawled? Secondly there is built in GPS which will tie into the growing area of location services - providing information and services based on your actual location. Thirdly Apple is beginning to add features that will appeal to corporate users providing features that will provide syncing with Microsoft Exchange,  allowing it compete with the Blackberry.

The other major aspect which is new is the price. Apple announced that the new device will only cost $199 in the US and a similar price in all other countries. (UK prices are expected to be released tomorrow). This is a huge price drop compared to the original price and may leave early adopters feeling a little deflated. The new price appears to be a recognition by Apple that the price was the big blocker to a significant uptake by people who were interested in the device but didn’t actually go ahead and get one. There is likely also a recognition that the competition is only going to grow. All in all at this price the iPhone does seem to be a much more complete package with a price that is more sensible, moving it away from just being an expensive toy and broadening its appeal.

Now even with the new prices you still might find it a little out of reach. If you want access to the majority of the capabilities of the platform, but are perfectly happy with your six year old Nokia mobile phone then the iPod Touch is the way to go.

Do you think Apple have got things right this time?

There are a number of brands that have become synonymous with the type of product they are selling. Examples of this are Hoover for a vacuum cleaner, although I think that one is probably a little old these days. Coke for all cola drinks is another example and then closer to home there is Google for web search and the iPod brand has become pretty much synonymous with digital music players these days. My kids call my very old iRiver MP3 player “Dad’s iPod” for instance, despite it looking absolutely nothing like the real thing.

Are there examples of this ubiquitous branding in the computer software world? Microsoft Office perhaps? One good example I think is probably Corel’s WinZip compression software. People talk about Win Zipping or Zipping a file rather than compressing it. WinZip is probably the original compression utility for Microsoft Windows OS. It is a pretty powerful and easy-to-use tool that quickly zips and unzips your files to help conserve disk space and greatly reduce e-mail transmission time. Compression software is something that you really need and I always expect it to be there on a new computer, and surprised when it isn’t. There are plenty of freeware options for those who are cost conscious, but I will normally purchase a copy of WinZip to install whenever setting up a new Windows computer.

What do you use for file compression?

Laptops are …… well they are notebook computers that you can use on your lap, hence laptop, easy Huh! Of course, but there is a bit of trouble with this simple logic, have you ever tried using a modern notebook computer on your lap?(I’ll use notebook rather than laptop for the purpose of this post) They can get pretty hot along with just about everything around them! I can vaguely remember reading a news story a few years back about someone you had burnt a rather sensitive part of their anatomy by using a notebook computer on their lap for too long! I don’t know if that is true or not but I can quite believe that it might happen.

In fact I can’t believe anyone could work with a notebook on their laps for any length of time without some sort of protection, especially if there is a lot CPU activity. I am always looking for a magazine or something like that to use as protection and this evening I thought I would look around and see what is available in the market.

Well the answer is not a lot apparently, perhaps a small gap in the market for someone! I did manage to find the Belkin Notebook Cushtop which has a nice and simple design, with nothing to break and all at a reasonable cost.

What do you use to protect you lap from your fiery notebook computer?

I have talked a few times now about the popular sub notebook or mini notebook market which of course was initially started by the highly successful Asus Eee. More and more of the other hardware vendors are waking up to the fact that there is a whole new market out there. Even Microsoft has had to respond by extending the life of Windows XP as Vista is not usually considered capable of running on these machines and it needed to provide some sort of response to the increasing use of Linux in this domain.

However just to buck the trend one notebook does provide a (more expensive) version with Vista as an alternative to the normal Linux that is usually provided. This is the latest addition to the market, the really nice looking HP Compaq 2133 Mini-Note PC with its sleek aluminum case. The external good looks are further supported by a keyboard that makes full use of the limited space, and a 9″ screen that boast a resolution of 1280×768. The notebook provides an impressive list of specifications that you would expect on a standard laptop including a 120 GB hard drive, 1 GB Memory, WiFi, Bluetooth, a network adapter, USB ports and a webcam.

It is not all good though, the default configuration of the Linux OS that is installed has not been so well designed for the unit and its intended users as was the case with the Asus Eee. In addition the HP 2133 is powered by the VIA C7-M 1.2GHz CPU instead of the 900Hz Intel Celeron CPU favoured by Asus for the Eee. Unfortunately this may not have been the best move as the few reviews I have read do say that notebook does struggle on the performance. Still a really nice looking piece of kit, and if you are want a small neat machine for email and browsing the HP 2133 may be a neat option.