Laptop fan

aruna · Dec 6, 2010

It's always on, quite loud, and the laptop heats up considerably. Is this a fault?
It's a fairly new laptop, a Sony, still under guarantee.

ejket · Dec 6, 2010

You could google on the model and see if others are having the same problem. Also if a laptop has a fast CPU and fancy graphics it'll tend to run hotter. Laptop fans can be noisy, so that's not necessarily a problem, but it shouldn't run all the time.

Paperback Writer · Dec 6, 2010

You could also go to sony.com, look up the model and call tech support. They will usually ask for your serial number and then they will try to assist you.

dpaterso · Dec 6, 2010

Fan shouldn't be making noise (above a gentle purr/whirr) and laptop shouldn't be running hot, last time this happened to me, my (previous) laptop joined the dinosaurs. Yours sounds fixable especially if it's under guarantee.

-Derek

Torgo · Dec 6, 2010

aruna said:
It's always on, quite loud, and the laptop heats up considerably. Is this a fault?
It's a fairly new laptop, a Sony, still under guarantee.

This doesn't sound too unusual to me, although I guess it depends how hot it's getting. If the vents get clogged with dust the fan will tend to work harder; make sure you're not using it somewhere dusty or where it can't draw air in properly for some reason. Eventually if the fan is failing to cool it efficiently it may overheat and shut itself down.

aruna · Dec 6, 2010

Thanks. I'll check things out with Sony.

aruna · Dec 6, 2010

I called Sony; I was taken to their support site and told to download something called BIOS. They'll call me tomorrow to see if it has helped. However, as soon as I applied the download the noise of the fan went down. It's looking good!

Margarita Skies · Dec 6, 2010

That's weird because my laptop fan is completely silent. The only noise the computer makes is when I'm burning a CD or a DVD and the noise is very faint. It becomes just a pinch louder when the burning is almost done, but then it stops and the laptop is silent again. The only noise is my almost-constant typing.

RJK · Dec 6, 2010

I had an HP 17 inch laptop (gave it to my sister) that constantly ran the fan at either low or high speed. It always felt hot underneath. I reverted to placing it on top of 1 inch gum erasers to allow more air to circulate under it. That seemed to lower the temperature quite a bit, but didn't stop the fans from running. The computer is > 6 years old and still running, so I'm guessing the fans aren't hurting it.

Lhun · Dec 6, 2010

aruna said:
I called Sony; I was taken to their support site and told to download something called BIOS. They'll call me tomorrow to see if it has helped. However, as soon as I applied the download the noise of the fan went down. It's looking good!

Sounds like the driver regulating the fan speed wasn't working properly. I.e. the fan always ran at full speed instead of slowing down when the CPU was already cool enough.
The Laptop getting hot is normal as long as it's within acceptable parameters. Computers can run safely up to ~60°C, although they should run at around 40 unless running at full power (gaming or similar). A CPU produces more heat per surface area than an electric iron.

Laptop fan

aruna

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