Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Computing

Are the New i7 MacBooks Hot Enough to Boil Water?

By

Apple has a lust for packaging loads of electronics into tight metal enclosures. That desire has made it perhaps the hottest gadget-maker on the market, but it also has brought it perennial overheating issues. From overheating iPods and iPhones to the overheating iPad, heat issues have become an unpleasant fact of life for many Apple product owners.

Last week testing by PC Authority indicated that the new 17″ MacBook Pro with an Intel Core i7-620M processor is overheating so badly it could boil water. During testing, the site ran the benchmark Cinebench. In OS X the laptop hit a balmy 90° C (39.9° C is approximately 102° F, for the non-SI units inclined), while in Windows 7 (using Boot Camp) the temperature spiked to 101° C, according to the laptop’s temperature diode.

Recommended Videos

Such issues under Boot Camp are not particularly new. On the Apple support forums, one customer “ADKIM”, owner of a mid-2009 Penryn MacBook Pro writes, “I’ve had Windows 7 Home Premium installed for a little over two weeks now and the temparature (sic) gets so hot that my MBP will actually auto-shutdown.

It gets as high as 195F/90C!”

Related

The latest MacBook Pro does appear to be hitting even greater highs heatwise, though, particularly in OS X.

Already users have begun to complain on Apple’s forums. Writes one user:

I was playing WoW in Windows 7 in boot camp and the laptop felt hot to the touch to the point that if i were to leave my finger there it would start to burn. The hottest part of the laptop was the top left corner. Thinking it was overheating, I downloaded a GPU & CPU monitoring program. The CPU and GPU were both sitting around 70 deg celcius (sic) and i could hear the fan blowing at max speed. Is this normal operation temps for the new model of macbook pros?

The system I am using is the 15-inch Macbook Pro, the model that just came out. Thanks for the help!

It’s unclear what the source of the Apple MBP’s heat woes might be. The good news for MacBook Pro owners is that the Intel Core i7 can operate up to 105° C, as can most of the other hardware onboard, apparently.

As one commenter “eww” remarks in an Apple forum post, “100°C at the processor core is not overheating. It is within the safe operating temperature range for all current MBPs.”

Technically, he’s right about it being within the operating temperature. But the bad news for MacBook Pro buyers is that even if the case doesn’t get quite that hot, it may be hot enough to cause discomfort and even possibly injury (burns or blistering) to the user, if their skin comes in contact with the fully heated case. Also, such a high heat load raises the risk of hardware failure over the life of the device.

Apple has not yet commented officially on these developments.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Ian Bell
Ian Bell
Publisher
I work with the best people in the world and get paid to play with gadgets. What's not to like?
Best Buy’s deal of the day is $150 off the MacBook Air M2
A woman working on a 2023 MacBook Air with M2 chip.

For Mac lovers, Best Buy has one of the best laptop deals at the moment with $150 off the MacBook Air M2. Usually priced at $999, you can buy it for $849 right now making it great value for anyone who wants to get involved with the Apple ecosystem without breaking the bank. Stylish and speedy, this is a laptop that will suit mostly everyone from students to people working from home or commuters. Here’s what you need to know before you hit the buy button. As always with such good deals, bear in mind that you could miss out if you wait too long.

Why you should buy the MacBook Air M2
One of the best laptop brands for reliability and being high quality, buying a MacBook Air is an investment that will last. While Windows-based laptops can lose their lustre over time, MacBooks tend to keep going for longer. While the MacBook Air M2 doesn’t have the latest Apple silicon -- the M3 -- it still offers fantastic performance. The M2 chip has an 8-core CPU and 10-core GPU and this model is still considered to be the best MacBook for everyone. This particular model comes with 8GB of memory and 256GB of SSD storage which is sufficient for all everyday tasks and saving documents easily.

Read more
You can still buy the M1 MacBook Air, and it’s cheaper than ever
Apple MacBook Air M1 open, on a table.

Apple deals are rarely particularly cheap but Walmart is continuing to sell the Apple MacBook Air M1 with 13.3-inch screen for just $699. The lowest price ever, it’s the perfect entry point for anyone considering checking out macOS. It feels like stock must be starting to run low here so if you don’t want to miss out on one of the better laptop deals around, hit the buy button now before you miss out. Otherwise, here’s what the MacBook Air M1 has to offer.

Why you should buy the MacBook Air M1
The MacBook Air M1 isn’t considered one of the best laptops any more but just because its processor is a few years old doesn’t mean you should ignore it. MacBooks are typically built to last with support for macOS continuing for a number of years. With the MacBook Air M1, you get the M1 chip with an 8-core CPU which is sure to outperform Intel chips of the same era. The leap between Intel-based MacBooks to Apple silicon was pretty huge which is why the M1 chip remains highly potent.

Read more
The 5 best MacBooks for video editing in 2024
Apple MacBook Pro 16 front angled view showing display and keyboard.

Video editing is one of the most demanding things you can ask of your laptop. Not only do you need a powerful processor to keep things running smoothly, but you'll also need loads of RAM and a solid GPU to best carry out the task. If any of these components are lacking, you could run into trouble with your software – resulting in sluggish performance and a frustrating overall experience.

Hunting for a laptop that's robust enough to handle video editing isn't easy, but you can make things more manageable by sticking to Apple's MacBook catalog.

Read more