Hacker News Reader

Comment by rareEarth | Hacker News Reader

I can't believe the new MacBook has no internal fans.

[0] Fanless architecture

The new MacBook is the first Mac notebook ever without a fan. Since the Intel Core M chip draws only 5 watts of power and therefore generates less heat, no fan or heat pipe is required. Instead, the logic board is seated on top of an anisotropic graphite sheet, which helps disperse any heat that is generated out to the sides, all while your Mac stays virtually silent.

I've had issues in the past with macbook pro fans failing, so it's great to remove that potential mechanical failure. But I've also had issues with my macbook pro outputting an unreasonable amount of heat. I'm curious if they've solved that issue, especially now with no internal fans.

[0] https://www.apple.com/macbook/design/

View on HN

Exactly. My daily driver is still a mid-2009 macbook air whose CPU actually actually hit its TJMAX for the first time ever last week.

I've asked Apple in the past to clean out the hardware with compressed air and re-apply the thermal paste, but I don't think they did, and they told me that they can't re-apply the thermal paste because they don't have the tool to do it anymore [Bethesda, Maryland store]. I've never had an Apple product that hasn't had overheating issues at some point in its lifecycle, and this new no-fan architecture honestly has me worried for this product in the long run.

On the bright side, passive cooling generally can't fail, unless you physically snap something in two or separate the heatsink from the die. Notice that laptops generally have cooling problems as they age- I'm sure some of this is due to the processor degrading over time, but most is going to be due to gradual failure of the cooling system as the fan dies and the fins fill with dust. Neither is usually a problem with passive systems.

> they can't re-apply the thermal paste because they don't have the tool to do it anymore

They don't have the same screwdriver they use on the latest MacBook Airs, some alcohol wipes, and the same thermal grease they use on everything except today's MacBook? Try an Apple Authorized Service Provider – i.e. an independent shop that repairs Macs – they should be able to help you out.

The CPU dissipates a maximum of 5W, there's no discrete GPU, and the power dissipation of the other logic board components is minimal (maybe a watt or two at most). That's barely enough to warm the machine up, let alone to make it hot.

I wonder with an SDD and no fan if that means there are no moving parts at all anymore. I can't think of anything else that would have a motor. I guess the vibration in the touchpad?

I believe the camera has focusing components that move as well, but I think they're very close to having nothing moving.

Loudspeaker? :P

Think of it as an iPad

This machine also has a weaker CPU. I'm guessing it would output less heat.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com