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Do Black macbooks get hotter in the sun?

roker

roker

macrumors regular
Original poster
Apr 14, 2007
171
0
New Zealand
I was looking at getting a macbook as an upgrade to my mac mini, so that I can take it around the house with me & outside, wirelessly connecting to stuff, particularly on sunny days. But would I have problems doing that with a black macbook? Do they get even hotter when in a sunny area?:confused: ?

Cheers
 
Well given that they're black I'd have thought they'd absorb some heat, but unless you live in the desert I'm not sure it'd be a big deal.

EDIT: New Zealand has UK like weather doesn't it? Then you'll be fine. They use them in California too!
 
Well my silver & grey acer laptop would get concerningly hot if I was using it in a sunny area- considering that the macbooks run quite warm anyway I thought that, added to heat from sun could melt the casing. I have had cd cases turn to puddles of hard plastic a few times (especially black ones) so yeah. No one seen any warping or melting? What about through windows in cars etc?
 
black, as a color, gets hotter. like a black car vs. a white car.

also, the matte finish tends to heat up more than glossy (doesn't reflect as much sun away).

but, this shouldn't be a big deal. if you leave it out in the sun, then yes, it can probably get pretty hot. but if it's that hot anyway, and that sunny... you probably won't be using your computer outdoors anyway.
 
I don't really want to be a smart-ass, but pretty much anything gets hotter in the sun. It's also not advised to expose electronic equipment to direct sunlight, if you can avoid it. Pretty much any manual says that.
 
Also, the glossy screen is pretty much worthless when it's bright outside. Good luck.
 
I was doing about this in school Black absorbes light, light = heat so the answer is yes, I asked my teacher if a black car would be hotter than a white car and she said yes. White and other colours refract light, Black absorbes and a mirror reflects.
 
OK thanks everyone, kinda already knew that the colour black absorbs heat energy, should have worded my concern/ question differently.
What I was meaning was that does the fact that the black macbook is black make it not possible to use in bright sunlight (ignoring the glossy display) because of overheating of the components and / or case damage.
 
So your asking if the difference between a white and black macbook in the sun, in terms of temperature, is marginal, or if the black macbook can't stand it because of it's color ?

iToaster said:
technically, yes. It won't have any impact on it though.
Click to expand...

-Perhaps you can ask for responses from all black-macbook owners only.

I know the sun can be pretty nasty in NZ, I got sun-burnt within an hour last year while skiing.
 
hey mate a blackbook owner here from welly, nz and i can say that it runs no probs.

if you're deciding between the two i owned a 1st rev white and then got a 3rd rev blackbook. i love the black. quite unique in NZ too - haven't seen many around. didnt like the matte a first but it grows and u. and you know what they say once u go black..

but then again i dont take my blackbook to the beach that often
:)
 
And question solved. Simple.

I'll tell you why you don't see them around much, because they're expensive enough as it is, and I know you were getting screwed in NZ with Mac prices previously... have things changed yet ? Has Renaissance been taken down a notch yet ?
 
sm0 said:
hey mate a blackbook owner here from welly, nz and i can say that it runs no probs.

if you're deciding between the two i owned a 1st rev white and then got a 3rd rev blackbook. i love the black. quite unique in NZ too - haven't seen many around. didnt like the matte a first but it grows and u. and you know what they say once u go black..

but then again i dont take my blackbook to the beach that often
:)
Click to expand...

Cheers sm0, I have found mac computers in general to be a rarity here (ie in Dndn), but I can see the growth & having "switched" myself 6 months ago I have convinced a lot more people that it is worth it. def wouldn't take a comp to the beach though ;) lol.

samh004 said:
And question solved. Simple.

I'll tell you why you don't see them around much, because they're expensive enough as it is, and I know you were getting screwed in NZ with Mac prices previously... have things changed yet ? Has Renaissance been taken down a notch yet ?
Click to expand...

Actually yes, after the last revision of the macbooks (new 2.16 model) a couple of weeks ago the prices for macbooks decreased around 9%, the low end 2.0ghz model now retailing at NZ$1850 (US$1380), from a previous RRP of NZ$2079 (US$1550).
 
samh004 said:
And question solved. Simple.

I'll tell you why you don't see them around much, because they're expensive enough as it is, and I know you were getting screwed in NZ with Mac prices previously... have things changed yet ? Has Renaissance been taken down a notch yet ?
Click to expand...

yes afaik most the world bar the USA got a price drop when the latest MBs were released? in nz price went from NZD2849 to 2499 for blackbook.

good for people in here, but for me it meant i saved less (from buying in states) than i had first anticipated - around 500NZD (2nd gen pricing). a saving nonetheless :)
 
Nice, perhaps I'll see more Macs around Wanaka this winter, however I somehow doubt it :p

roker said:
I was looking at getting a macbook as an upgrade to my mac mini, so that I can take it around the house with me & outside, wirelessly connecting to stuff, particularly on sunny days.
Click to expand...

When you thinking of upgrading ?
 
This is a serious matter guys.

My friend's Blackbook started spitting out weird messages one day while we were out trying to find some free wireless. Turns out it obsorbed so much solar heat it was being inhabited by Ra. Which, let me tell you, isn't not as much fun as it sounds.

He sold it, but first put on a new sticker - "Do not expose MacBook to sun for excessive hours. May become inhabited by Egyptian sun god."
 
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