Post Menu and Details.
- Signs Your Gaming Laptop is Overheating
- Reasons Why Your Gaming Laptop is Overheating
- What Can You Do About It?
- Final Thoughts
Words: 1026
Reading time: ~4 minutes
Gaming laptops are one of the best things a gamer can invest in. They are incredibly convenient for gamers to allow them to play games on the go. Gaming laptops also offer more advanced technology and extra features to enhance your gaming experience compared to your standard laptop. But despite it having advanced technology, it does not take away the fact that the gaming laptop could overheat.
A gaming laptop overheats due to several reasons. One of which is because they have high-performing CPUs and GPUs that will generate more heat the longer your play hardcore games with the laptop. And since gaming laptops are not designed to be incredibly big and typically have a small chassis, the heat build-up is trapped inside, restricting airflow, and causing overheating.
However, overheating is normal, but it’s not healthy. Too much heat could damage your gaming laptop and deteriorate your gaming laptop’s gaming performance. So, here, we listed 5 of the main reasons why your gaming laptop is overheating and what you can do about it.
Signs Your Gaming Laptop is Overheating
There are many signs you might notice when your gaming laptop is overheating, these include:
The Fans are Spinning Fast and Loud
When your gaming laptops’ fans are spinning very fast and they produce a loud noise, it is a clear indication that your laptop is already overheating. This indicates that your laptop is doing its best and is working hard in order to cool down your already overheating gaming laptop.
Certain Areas of Your Laptop are Hot to The Touch
Have you experienced playing a very hardcore game for a long period and when you touch the sides of your trackpad, it’s extremely hot? Well, that can happen if you’re overworking your gaming laptop.
The heat that is trapped inside your gaming laptop is transferred to the exterior of the gaming laptop. This is a very bad sign, especially if this happens often.
Suddenly Shuts Down
Another indication that your laptop is overheating is when your laptop suddenly shuts down on its own. This is every laptop’s safety mechanism in order to prevent permanent damage to the laptop’s hardware.
The sudden shut down can also be an indication of other damage within the PC’s hardware so if your laptop constantly shuts down, you should get it checked by a tech professional immediately.
Lagging or Super Slow Performance
Constant lagging can be a sign of your laptop’s old age, too many windows open, or overheating. When your PC lags and is unable to do simple tasks, then your laptop might already be damaged. Your CPU or GPU could already be throttling.
Error Message
The last sign and one of the most obvious indications of overheating is getting a pop-up error message about your PC’s temperature.
Reasons Why Your Gaming Laptop is Overheating
Now that you know the signs to look out for, here are the reasons why your gaming laptop is overheating.
Faulty Built-in Laptop Fan
Gaming laptops were built to endure hardcore gaming, which is why they are built with powerful fans to keep them cool during long gaming sessions. These fans are there to lessen or ensure that your gaming laptop gets little to no damage due to heat. However, there are times that you might purchase a gaming laptop with a faulty fan or cooling system which can cause overheating.
Too Many Programs in the Background
Having too many programs or windows open in the background, even if you’re not using them, puts a lot of stress on the CPU. This can cause overheating and it even slows down your laptop’s performance.
Overworking Your Gaming Laptop
Everything has a limit, this includes your gaming laptop. You have to be aware when you are overworking your laptop since overworking it can cause overheating, lags, and even cause permanent damage. Allow your gaming laptop to rest.
Hot Gaming Room
Another reason why your gaming laptop is overheating is that your room is hot. When your gaming setup is placed in a hot room, it makes it hard for the cooling system of your gaming laptop to maintain a cool temperature.
Software Configuration Limiting Your Laptops’ Fan Speed
Gaming laptops have a feature where you can configure the fans’ speed. If you’re a newbie with an advanced gaming laptop, you might not have known this. So, to fix this, you would have to research your gaming laptop’s fan software configurations.
What Can You Do About It?
There are many ways to lessen and prevent overheating of your gaming laptop. Here, we listed a few ways to do that.
Reapply Thermal Paste in Your CPU and GPU
Thermal paste is used to improve the dissipation of heat between both the heat diffuser and the CPU and GPU card cooler. It can lose its effectiveness over time and therefore need to be reapplied.
It is also possible that it was applied incorrectly during production, impeding proper heat dissipation in new gaming laptops.
Close Unnecessary Programs
As mentioned, too many background programs open can cause unnecessary stress to the CPU. To prevent this, you may start to close any programs that you are not currently using to help limit the strain it could put your CPU into.
Clean The Inside of Your Gaming Laptop At Least Twice a Year
Dust and other particles can get inside your gaming laptop’s fans, causing it to get clogged. This can hinder the fans from doing their job of maintaining a cool temperature. To prevent this from clogging the air vents, you should also clean the inside of your laptop and remove any dust and particles.
Check Your Rooms’ Temperature
Check if your room has a nice cool temperature to allow your gaming laptop to maintain optimal temperatures even during long gaming sessions.
Replace Any Faulty Fans
If you notice your fan is constantly being too loud and faulty, it would be best to replace them immediately, instead of waiting it out. This is because, waiting it out could cause permanent damage to your laptop, so it would be best to replace it immediately.
Final Thoughts
Even if it’s normal for gaming laptops to get hot during a long and hard gaming session, going over 80-degrees and constant overheating can cause immediate damage to your unit. If you suspect that there is a problem, let a professional check out your gaming laptop immediately to prevent further damage.
Thank you for reading!