Hey guys, what's up?

I've done a few searches on here, and a ton of searches on google, but still a little confused.

I bought a 17" Dell Inspiron laptop a few months ago, but just started to use it. I'm at my parents house right now, and just set up wireless and will start using my laptop mostly. I have a desktop but for a few different reasons I can't use it right now...So I will just be using the laptop for a few months.

I've never really used a laptop as a main computer so I have some questions I was curious about...

At Best Buy the guy told me I needed a laptop pad to put under the laptop with cooling fans, or else it will overheat and shutdown if I use it for hour and hours (Sometimes I do)...Although I will not be sitting in my bed with the laptop...I have it set up on a dining room table. Does it still need a cooling pad? Does it not cool efficiently from the factory, on a flat surface?

Next question I have is regarding the battery...If I'm going to be using the laptop for most of the day, almost every day, do I leave it plugged in? Do I charge it up at night, and then run off the battery until it dies, and re-charge it again? Can I leave it plugged in 100% of the time? The guy at the store told me to remove the battery if I'm going to be using it all the time. Also my desktop I leave on 24/7 for the past 5 years...(until now) Can I leave the laptop on all the time, or should I shut it down?

Sorry for the noob questions, I feel like such a noob with the laptop. Although I'm starting to like the fact that I can just pick up and sit anywhere with it. Has anyone made a transition from desktop to laptop? I just scooped a small usb mouse, and it makes it so much better.

Thanks guys!!

 

No, you shouldn't need a coolin pad unless you find some info on the internet about that model overheating. I got a laptop for my wife from bestbuy a few months back. she uses it alot and it even came with a sticker on the inside saying "caution could get extremely hot near palm rest" or some garbage but we haven't had a single issue. If you want to try to help cool it, just prop the back up with something so its angled towards you. that'll give it some air beneath.

I personally would condition the battery, meaning run it on battery until its necessary to charge. Then charge and unplug again. When are you aren't using it, i'd make it sleep. That'll save battery, prevent dust from collecting inside the fan and extend the life of the HD.

 

I have an older Dell and it does run hotter than most laptops that I have owned or used. I do not have a cooling pad. Never found it necessary if I set it to standby. I once had it fail to go into standby because something was left running and the heat blistered and cracked the wood of the table it was on. Not kidding. I have it in a well ventilated area and have it set to go to standby after 30 minutes or so. If I know I will not be using it, it gets put into standby mode.

As for the battery, I have heard a lot of people say that conditioning it works best. I recommend it if you can. Unfortunately, my wife doesn't always remember to plug it back in if she takes it out of the cabinet, so I know she will forget if we have to plug it in and out. We just leave it plugged in all the time. I did get a replacement battery a couple months ago. They are not too expensive. You may want to consider getting one.

 

Never used a cooling pad. After it's a year or two old you may notice that the fan is running much more than it should. All that means is you need to open it up and blow out the dust because it can't breath. That's also an indication that you are a dirty mofo and need to clean your room.

 

A cooling pad is not necessary.

Li-ion battery last longer if you charge it daily. If you drain it and charge it, it "kills" the battery faster.

Since you said you will be using the charger most of the time to power your laptop, I suggest still keeping the battery in. Li-ion battery loses it's charge no matter if it's used or not. Let's say you bought a brand new battery but that battery have been sitting on the shelves for 1.5 years, that "new" batter will probably lose 25-50% of it's charge, if not more. So for another advice, make sure the battery you buy haven't been sitting on the shelves for a year.

Leaving your laptop/desktop on all night is like leaving your car on all night, you wouldn't want to do it. Just put the laptop to sleep (Start->Shut Down arrow->Sleep), that way boot up is almost instant and very little electricity is used.

If you travel a lot with your laptop, I recommend using a wireless mouse with a nano receiver. The receiver plugs into a USB port and is so small you might forget it's there. I have it and it's very convenient. No need to install drivers. Plug and play on Win 7.

 

My old toshiba needed a cooling pad. Known problems with the shit getting clogged up. My newer one (2006) is starting to run the fan more. I'm just going to take it apart and clean everything.

 

I'm using this http://www.newegg.com/product/produc...82E16834998686

My laptop is used a lot, and it is always cool, always. To those who said you don't need it, should open a few laptops to see how bad the airflow is, thus you see failed hard drives, lcd switches, fans..etc.

But then again, please do not use a cooling pad, it keeps me in business!

 

I have to disagree on the desktop. A well designed desktop with decent airflow has no problem being on 24/7. All of my home desktops are on 24/7 for years (average 4-5) and always get replaced because I want to upgrade, not because of any failures.

 

In fact, some people feel turning it on and off adds extra wear-and-tear from the expanding and shrinking of the metal. I personally don't feel that it will really decrease longevity that much, but just throwing it out there.

On topic, no you probably do not need a laptop cooler. You will probably see better performance when your laptop is nice and cool but even then you will most likely not even notice unless you are doing high resource consuming tasks.

 

You like to waste electricity? Oh well, at least you're paying for it.

 

What I like to waste or not waste is my own decision. The cost of electricity was not the issue for the OP, heat was. Thanks for playing.

 

You should get the laptop cooler TeknoKing is using. I have the smaller model made for 15 inch laptops and it works very well. Also leaving the laptop plugged in all the time shouldn't have an ill effect on the battery. I would suggest putting it into sleep mode when you arent using the laptop.