How many hours can a laptop be on?

[HouseOfLove]

Hey there.

I'm curious to know if it's ok to keep a laptop computer on for as many as 24 hours straight.

I keep my laptop computer on for that long when I'm downloadig stuff, but I don't know if its ok. Latley I've noticed the fan makes a lot more noise than it used to, and the computer is only about 16 months old. So I don't know if it's because of that.

Any advise would be appreciated!

 

[Corny]

That should not be a problem with modern laptops. You want to remove the battery if you are running it permanently on the power supply (safes battery life). Check if the fan is clustered with dust, that the most common reason for noise. If you cannot reach in there to remove dust, carefully try hovering it out

 

[sheep]

Laptops by the nature of their small size and lower cooling capacity compared to a tower tend to run hot. There are free apps for Mac at least that show the processor temp and fan speed. Heat is the number one killer of electronic components so timely vacuuming of vents is essential. The answer to your question is *how long is a piece of string?*
In other words turn it on when you are using it and shut it down when you know you won't be.
Personally I like a nice big box by my feet that runs 24/7. I got 6 years out of my Mac G4 and it is still going although I upgraded to a Mac Pro Quad this summer. Only thing I don't like about it? Doesn't keep my feet as warm as the G4

 

[thermodynamics]

They're built to run continuously. As sheep mentioned, watch the cooling.

 

[morgaes]

I usually keep mine on constantly, when I'm not using it I put it on Standby. I shut it down like once a week on average.

 

[bhg08054]

Semi-random thoughts:

• Make sure you have it on a hard surface, so the various air vents don't get blocked.
• Avoid areas with high ambient heat, or direct sunlight (that desk that's dark at night might not be during the day!)
• Some laptops run cooler with the lid open, some with the lid closed, so experiment (but your choice is limited if yours is set to suspend/hibernate on lid closure!)
• IMHO, fans tend to be the "weak link" in today's computers, and often fail long before any other component, but then lead (sometimes quickly) to major failures, so be careful. If your fan is indeed making more noise, than you do need to keep an eye (ear?) on the system.
• If you're just downloading, look for app(s) that let you run the system at lower performance levels (CPU speed and the like).
• Make sure the screen AND the backlight shut down, reducing power and heat.
• Be careful with the removing the battery idea, some systems don't run, or run at reduced capacity, with the battery removed. Also, the battery acts as a built in UPS if you have less than pristine power.
• Moving parts tend to fail first, so after the fan the disk is the next likely thing to wear out. You do have good backups, right?
• In general though, you shouldn't really have problems.

 

[ANDORYUU]

That should not be a problem with modern laptops. You want to remove the battery if you are running it permanently on the power supply (safes battery life). Check if the fan is clustered with dust, that the most common reason for noise. If you cannot reach in there to remove dust, carefully try hovering it out

The new MacBooks and MacBook Pros run at approximately 63% of their max performance when their batteries are removed, that's a decrease of 37%. So they are best left insitu.


/Andrew

 

[Corny]

from what I got he is not using a mac but still .. this is err .. "interesting" (fucked up i'd say) .. what the heck has the battery to do with that? do you have any more info on that?

 

[trawler69]

Many computers run at reduced speed when on battery power, I have never heard of one that runs with reduced speed when the battery is removed. That makes no sense at all, unless the mains is removed as well of course Duh!