Despite arrival and growing popularity of mobile computing devices and gadgets like tablets and smart phones, laptops continue to be the most preferred choice for millions of users. There is no denying the uncompromised computing experience and portability offered by the laptops. While laptops continue to become more advanced, powerful and sturdy with time, you need to use the right accessories with them to extract maximum performance. A cooling pad is a handy accessory for your laptop, no matter if you use a budget or high end model. It helps keep the laptop’s temperature within limits and prolongs its life.
Choosing The Most Apt Cooling Pad For Your Laptop
Like any other laptop accessory, you need to be careful while buying a cooling pad for your laptop. Below listed are a few handy tips you should remember while shopping for laptop cooling pads.
- Size of the cooling pad– This is something you should analyze carefully before buying a model. Laptops come in varying sizes starting from 11 inch ultraportable to 17 inches desktop replacement units. The cooling pad should be suited for the size of your laptop. Buying an undersized cooling pad will result in the laptop slipping off the surface often. The cooling efficacy will be reduced as well. Similarly, buying a big cooling pad for use with an ultraportable does not make sense.
- Cooling mechanism– Most laptop cooling pads are powered by USB ports. They need to be connected to an USB port of your laptop and one or more fans are run by the drawn power. This helps cool the bottom of the laptop. If you are a heavy user, opt for a pad that has at least 2 cooling fans.
- Additional features– Some high end laptop cooling pads have additional features that come in handy for the users. For example, you will find some such pads equipped with additional USB ports. These will be helpful, when you want to charge devices like Smartphone when you use the laptop. You may also attach small LED lights in case the laptop lacks a backlit keyboard for nocturnal usage.
- Ease of use– Some entry level laptop cooling pads are meant for use on lap or table and you have to put the laptop on the surface. However, you will also find a few costlier models that have stands with tilt mechanism. This enables you to use the pad as an adjustable laptop stand. This comes in handy when you are touring and need to view the laptop screen at varying angles. Some cooling pads have quality rubber hinges at bottom that prevents the units from sliding on smooth surfaces.
- Aesthetics– There are a number of users who are particular about using accessories with their laptops that look aesthetically pleasing. You may find laptop cooling pads in various hues, though most of them have grey or blackish shades. If the pad has an inbuilt light that can be helpful when you use the device at night.
- Build quality– The build quality of the laptop cooling pad is very important. You should buy a model that has solid retractable parts and hinges, for example.
Summing It Up
Buying a suitable laptop cooling pad should not be problematic. You need to keep in mind aspects like budget, features and usability. You will benefit by reading the reviews of these models online. However, you should keep your expectations on cooling capacity of such pads at a realistic level. Using such pads will surely help you reduce laptop temperature, but do not expect the laptop will not get hot at all.