Does Wrapsol or other skin make MBA run hotter?

[jnyepu]

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Got a 13" MBA this past Friday and am waiting for my Wrapsol skin to arrive. This will be my first skin on a computer - have used on phones before.

In one of my obsessive fits of thought, I started wondering whether or not skins like the Wrapsol would make the MBA run hotter and affect battery life.

Thoughts?

 

[Mechinyun]

I dont have it, but my guess would be yes. Since the air uses it's aluminum housing as a large heat sink to a certain extent, putting a plastic "coat" on it will keep the heat in longer. Just how much? dont know.. may be splitting hairs at this point.

 

[2IS]

Under heavy usage it most certainly would. When I'm doing something in iMovie, particularly when the Air is plugged in, the entire base gets warm. Aluminum is a great conductor of heat so I think it goes a long way in keeping everything as cool as possible. Plastic is an insulator, so you'll be depending on the fan for all your cooling, which will be fine for basic tasks but for anything intensive I think your CPU will start to throttle down quite a bit.

 

[philxor]

In my past experience with the MBP it has no effect on temperatures in any way, even during heavy loading. The MBA may be different but there are plenty of folks on here using Wrapsol who can probably comment.

 

[swburks]

nope

I have the wrapsol and it does not. It also looks good.

 

[sm0]

just my 2c but have u considered hardening up and going naked? i did and its a good move. i paid a premium price for a seksi piece. aint wrapping or covering or protecting it or nothing.

feel free to tell me to bugger off.

peace

 

[jnyepu]

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Wrapsol arrived yesterday, so now the moment of truth.....to apply or not to apply, that is the question.....

Thanks for all the replies so far!

 

[ritmomundo]

i put a ZaggSkin on my MBA 11, full body coverage, and I think its great. Gives it a unique look, for sure, plus a little grip. As for heat issues, I dont really notice a difference. It didnt heat up before, and it doesnt heat up now, althought I'm not a very processor-heavy user. The laptop doesnt feel cold to the touch anymore though, as the bare aluminum is no longer exposed. It makes sense that the aluminum acts to disperse heat, but I wouldnt imagine it makes a huge difference having something covering it, as long as you're not covering the opening for the fans (which is in the hinge).

 

[MacMur]

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Wrapsol arrived yesterday, so now the moment of truth.....to apply or not to apply, that is the question.....

Thanks for all the replies so far!

I have a Wrapsol on my 11.6 MBA and it looks better than the invisible shield. However, when I installed it I did not know that you need to stretch it to fit. Mine has a very slight border around it exposing the MBA a tiny bit. I do not believe it is a problem and it works very well. I have not noticed any heat issues.

 

[philxor]

I installed the Wrapsol skin and honestly I think it makes the MBA look better than it does without it. My only issue is I did not quite use a clean enough area to apply it and unfortunately got some small hairs (pets) under the Wrapsol. Not that noticeable though and I really don't feel like taking it off and reapplying it.

 

[oakie]

i have a bodyguardz skin on mine and have had no heat related issues at all. even according to iStat, the operating temperatures havent changed.