Recommendations on Laptop Cooling Tray please

[Amy SF]

The laptop cooling tray that I bought for $30 at Staples last year doesn't work anymore. I cleaned it out with an air compressor, but it didn't help. So unless there's another way to get it working again, it's dead, and I need a new one.

So, who uses a laptop cooling tray? Do you like it? Does it still work the way it's supposed to? Would you recommend it? Are there any others you'd recommend? Don't worry if it's pricey; if it's good, I'll spend the money on it.

 

[ledboots]

I use my laptop in my (very hot in summer) house and have never needed a cooling tray. I have a plastic lap tray (like the breakfast in bed things, but smaller) that I got at the flea market for $5 about 10 years ago.

 

[Mel]

Personally I feel that these cooling trays just blow air (and dust) into the underside of the laptop.

I use a vented table that my husband built for me. You can buy some though on amazon, but I feel like the one I have is better, because way more ventilation.

This seems to be a good one though. Adjustable so it's easy to use in bed or any situation. Furinno Adjustable Vented Laptop Table - Google Search

This is what mine looks like. I just looove it!

 

[Mel]

Oh and I forgot to say: If your laptop gets that hot that it needs to be cooled, then it probably needs to be opened up and cleaned of dust.

 

[Joe]

What was the brand of the cooling tray you bought that now does not work? It would be kind of pointless for me to recommend the same brand.

I do not use a cooling tray because my laptop never gets hot. But I have a friend, Peggy, whose laptop got quite hot. I bought her a Targus cooling tray. She seemed to be happy with it, but moved to New Orleans several months later. She has so far failed to send me regular reports about her cooling tray.

If you are running Windows, there is a free utility program that will give you reports about the temperature(s) inside your computer and that will allow you to tweak some of the settings to cope with overheating problems and the like. It's called Speedfan. SpeedFan - Access temperature sensor in your computer Unfortunately, it is highly technical--too technical for me to learn to use it.

 

[Amy SF]

The one that stopped working is in fact a Targus. It worked for quite a while, so it was only just a couple weeks ago that I realized it wasn't working anymore.

 

[Joe]

The one that stopped working is in fact a Targus. It worked for quite a while, so it was only just a couple weeks ago that I realized it wasn't working anymore.

Pick a different brand, then.

Just Google "laptop cooling pad reviews" to find plenty of articles comparing and rating these things. Some are noisier than others, some are more portable than others

What OS is your laptop running? Windows? Or is it a Mac? (Or running Linux or other such?)

If you are running Windows, you should install Speedfan and monitor the temperatures while you have your laptop on.