First iMac, Temperature issue Question

[Missubaru]

I've just purchased my first Mac computer, the iMac24" 2.93GHz .

I've noticed that the computer gets really hot and unlike the towers with the PC's I've had I can't hear a fan. Is this normal?

I haven't noticed any problems with the computer itself because I turn it off when I'm not using it but I'd like to keep it running. Would that be damaging to the monitor?

 

[Hellhammer]

Download iStat Pro http://www.islayer.com/apps/istatpro/ it'll tell you the temperatures of your Mac so you can let us know. Normally you can't hear the fans of iMac and yes, that's normal.

Put it to sleep instead of shutting down, I always do that. It opens up faster and I have everything as they were. LCDs don't get burn-ins like plasmas so don't be afraid that keeping it on would break it.

 

[Roller]

Also, take a look at smcFanControl, an app that lets you monitor temps and set new minimum speeds for the fans if you feel that the computer is running too hot.

 

[Kate.]

It may also just be a perception thing. When I got my iMac (2006), the first few days, it seemed ridiculously hot compared to the iBook I'd had previously. After monitoring the temperature for awhile and doing some reading, I realized it was just normal and it was me that wasn't used to it. Then I just stopped noticing it.

 

[AlexisV]

Perfectly normal.

Machine should be very quiet and the top left of the case in particular should get very hot. Fans are inside, but nice and silent.

 

[benzslrpee]

iMacs run from hot to very, very hot. my hard drive cooked itself to death last week because the fans would never run despite the temperature hitting +70C, that and the power supply was toasting at +80C as well. luckily i bought Apple Care.

this was over a period of 1.5 years, by the time i found out about iStat and SMC fan control my hard drive was already periodically crashing.

so to answer your question, yeah it's normal for the iMacs to run hot but i don't think it's supposed to happen. since the iMac uses laptop components i just mimicked the settings on my MacBook Pro...idle fan speed of 2000 rpms.

 

[AL2TEACH]

I've noticed that after updating to 10.6, which I should add that I just think it's dandy, the puter has been running hotter or was it after installing iStat Menus?
lol, heck it just runs hotter and I just got the smcfan because I don't think the fans have ever kicked in above 1250rpm most if not all the time the fans run 1197rpm.

 

[drjuice]

I second iStat Pro - though I prefer iStat Menus (which does the same thing, only puts the info in the Menubar).

Your iMac will get hot. It's not a traditional tower-style desktop, and there's simply less room inside for air to move and heat to dissipate. The temperatures that iStat will show are being pulled from several internal temperature sensors - if any one of these reads over a certain point, your machine will shut down and will not let you power it on until it has cooled (the iPhone 3G and 3GS are equipped with the same thing, in fact, all Macs are). These sensors are what spin up the fans.

iMacs and notebooks are very similar in that they are "all-in-one" designs. They will get warm - perhaps even uncomfortably so. But, they are designed not so much to be comfortable but to avoid excessive heat that could damage internal components and to comply with various national safety standards. There's no law that says a computer should always be cool to the touch, but there are laws that require them to be manufactured so they aren't incendiary devices.

 

[AL2TEACH]

thanks. I took a pic of the temps when I started up and will take another in a hour or two of just browsing, minus the PSU.

 

[Missubaru]

Download iStat Pro http://www.islayer.com/apps/istatpro/ it'll tell you the temperatures of your Mac so you can let us know. Normally you can't hear the fans of iMac and yes, that's normal.

Put it to sleep instead of shutting down, I always do that. It opens up faster and I have everything as they were. LCDs don't get burn-ins like plasmas so don't be afraid that keeping it on would break it.

what a cute app!
So my mac's HD temp is reading at 51 celsius. I hope that's the one I'm looking for.
And I've taken your advice at just putting it to sleep, it's a much better idea.
Thanks so much for your help as well as everyone else who posted.
Still loving my mac.

 

[Hellhammer]

what a cute app!
So my mac's HD temp is reading at 51 celsius. I hope that's the one I'm looking for.
And I've taken your advice at just putting it to sleep, it's a much better idea.
Thanks so much for your help as well as everyone else who posted.
Still loving my mac.

51c is perfect HD temperature, you have nothing to worry about. If you want it to run cooler as I do, download SmcFanControl