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Left Side of MBA hotter than Right
- Thread starter weeyao
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On mine the right side is hotter than the left. Did Apple put my CPU in the wrong side? Should I send my MBA back? Couldn't... help... myself...
Plugged in or on battery?
The power adapter plugs into the left side, so that would make sense that that side is hotter when plugged in.
The CPU is basically located in the middle, while the hard drive is on the right. The outside temperatures aren't as important as the internal ones. Download the iStat widget and see what your temps are under normal use. Post them here and we can tell you whether they're in range or not.
The power adapter plugs into the left side, so that would make sense that that side is hotter when plugged in.
The CPU is basically located in the middle, while the hard drive is on the right. The outside temperatures aren't as important as the internal ones. Download the iStat widget and see what your temps are under normal use. Post them here and we can tell you whether they're in range or not.
Right now, I am just surfing the web on battery and my CPU temp is 51 degrees with fan at 2502. Earlier on in the day, I was charging and doing exactly the same thing and my CPU temp was 60 and fan at 6200. The left side of my air is still warmer than the right whether or not I am charging.
Could it be the wireless card that is located on the left side that is causing the heat?
furthermore, the charging port itself heats up (excess of 60 deg C) during charge. Because theres nothing but passive cooling, the system might spin up the fans using the casing itself to cool the charging port. The port is held magnetically onto the case.
Try using your MBA when battery-powered, or fully-charged with ac. It may behave differently.
To the OP the temps you mention are in range, so nothing to worry about for now.
Also, the case is actually meant to act like a giant heat sync. iFixit explains it better than I can:
So in a way a warmer case is a good thing, since it means more heat is being moved away from the internal components.
Also, the case is actually meant to act like a giant heat sync. iFixit explains it better than I can:
So in a way a warmer case is a good thing, since it means more heat is being moved away from the internal components.
The L bracket does NOT touch the lower casing. It does add pressure on the core/chipset to bring the heat from the core to the heatsink.
I've opened my Air and I have to say I was skeptical about that claim from iFixIt (thought it would make sense), but alas, I no longer have X-Ray vision, so I can't confirm or verify it. 
It is possible, but I doubt it "rests tightly against the lower case" which means it's thermal transfer to the case wouldn't be optimum.
It is possible, but I doubt it "rests tightly against the lower case" which means it's thermal transfer to the case wouldn't be optimum.
The thermal connection however, comes from the rubber seal around the heatsink. Those do touch the lower case, therefore can transfer heat.
However, since the heatsink would be 60 deg C and the lower case being only a cool 20-30 deg C, it is possible the heat is transferred through the air, rather then a physical contact (which would better for heat transfer). If you were to add mass that actually makes physical contact with the L bracket to the lower casing (no electrial contact since the case is lined with a piece of plastic? or something like that), the temps would drop DRASTICALLY since there is 10x more mass to move the heat to. (remember heat moves to a cooler place, trying to balance)
However, since the heatsink would be 60 deg C and the lower case being only a cool 20-30 deg C, it is possible the heat is transferred through the air, rather then a physical contact (which would better for heat transfer). If you were to add mass that actually makes physical contact with the L bracket to the lower casing (no electrial contact since the case is lined with a piece of plastic? or something like that), the temps would drop DRASTICALLY since there is 10x more mass to move the heat to. (remember heat moves to a cooler place, trying to balance)
Left side on mine. So, has there been any definitive resolution to the extreme heat issue with the MBA, or do we have to wait for some kind of update from Apple?
Mine is running the latest SCM firmware.
Mine is running the latest SCM firmware.
The 2 options to solve this issue are:
- undervolting with Coolbook (or Rmclock in windows.)
- re-applying the thermal paste
I don't believe any update could fix this.
Unless it would be sacrifising performance.