Non-crispy lap

Summer classes begin on Monday (so soon!). I was dreading the idea of spending the evenings with a warm laptop in my lap, plugging away at notes and assignments. There was a warm snap in April and I would come home and stare at my computer, knowing that I should get some classwork done but dreading the idea of just how hot my computer would get. Around 9pm, it would get cool enough that I could stomach the possibility, but by that time it’s kind of late to start writing papers.

Don’t get me wrong - I love my laptop. I just replaced my ThinkPad R51 (which went to my boyfriend’s sister) with a ThinkPad R60. I’ve been very happy with them, overall. Compared to the laptop I had before, which was a little like holding a just-out-of-the-oven glass pan on my lap, the ThinkPads run much cooler. It’s just that you can only stand so much heat when it’s already warm out!

Of course, I could always solve my problem by using my laptop at a table. But where’s the fun in that? I’d rather sit on the couch. It’s more comfortable than our chairs, and also means that I can watch TV at the same time. So to address the heat problem, I ordered one of these: Kinamax Notebook Cooler USB-Powered Quiet 3-Fan Laptop Cooling Pad.

It was delivered yesterday. Ahhh. It’s so refreshing to be able to use my computer without the threat of a burnt lap. I’ve only been using it for a day (well, less than that, really), but so far it’s wonderful. I can’t hear the fans running, meaning it’s no louder than my computer already is. It just sits under my machine and powers its 3 fans with a USB cable. Hopefully, I’ll still be singing its praises in June and July when it warms up even more.