Silent laptops - What can be recommended?

Anna Johansson · Post by **Anna Johansson** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 11:48 am

In another post I asked for recommendations about silent desktops, but I'm also about to buy a new laptop.

The one I run now from Fujitsu-Siemens sounds as a vacuum cleaner after a couple of minutes when its fan starts working - and I rather not want another laptop like this.

So what are the recommendations here, for a new laptop as silent as possible "out-of-the-box", and preferable from any of the major manufacturers (such as Acer, Apple, Dell, Lenovo, Fujitsu, HP).

Thanks in advance for tips and recommendations!

Post by **MikeC** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 12:10 pm

Most Lenovo laptops I've used in the past few years have been very quiet. An older T42 w/ 1.7G Intel Pentium M I use regularly is usually just about silent -- only the hard drive is softly audible most of the time, and though the CPU fan does come on occasionally (especially if you block the vents), it's relatively muted and doesn't stay on for long.

The key is CPU heat, mostly, and HDD noise, secondly, and then fan control intelligence. Most modern mobile CPUs run fairly cool, so it's mostly the 2nd and 3rd items that matter. With #2, as long as you stay with a 5400rpm model, you should be fine. Fan control intelligence does vary -- and I don't have enough long-term exposure to laptops to speak authoritatively about lots of brands.

If you're running Vista, tweak it so the OS doesn't access the drive constantly -- a nasty source of noise in my wife's Acer and another LG I've used.

Anna Johansson · Post by **Anna Johansson** » Mon Apr 28, 2008 12:50 pm

I'd like one with 15-17" screen. Is there a recent fanless model with that screen size?

Post by **MikeC** » Wed Apr 30, 2008 9:42 am

Anna Johansson wrote:I'd like one with 15-17" screen. Is there a recent fanless model with that screen size?

AFAIK, there are *NO* fanless laptops. Certainly none that size, which tend to be driven by more powerful (read: hotter) CPUs. These are generally considered desktop replacements... which begs the question of why you need both a silent desktop and a silent desktop replacement laptop?

The reality is that if you're planning to work on both machines, you'll be spending a lot of time keeping your files synchronized... and if you're like me, cursing when you're using one w/o access to the other and a changed file is on the other.

Your requirements may be very different from mine, of course. I use a laptop, but it's a 4.5 lb 14" -- about the smallest I can use for web page design -- and I use it only when I'm traveling. I'd be interested in the 13.3" super lights, personally.

Capsaicin · Post by **Capsaicin** » Wed Apr 30, 2008 11:03 am

My Dell Vostro 1500 is pretty quiet. Most of the noise from it is HDD seeks. My HP dv6000t isn't quite as quiet. The fan is a bit noisier (mostly if it gets "rattle-y") and it has the (core duo) CPU whine when unplugged. Both are much better than laptops I used to have (e.g., mobile P4 era), though.