Overheating like crazy

I got a MacBook Pro Core 2 Duo, and its great for common usage, email, browsing, word processing, voip, etc productivity tasks.

I also have to mention I'm a first time Mac user, and am happy with it overall-- there is one area however where my MacBook Pro sucks -- and thats gaming . I don't know whether the problem is general or my MacBook Pro has specific issues.

For most graphic intensive games, within just a few minutes the fans start on furiously and starts overheating. It happens again and again and either automatically quits the game or I have to quit or my Mac will start cooking.

This happened when playing even the Chess game pre-installed. It happened when playing Age of Empires 3, as well as Tribal Trouble.

Whats the use of downloading and playing these games if the fans go craZY and dont stop after just a minute. This isnt right -- is this a MacBook Pro issue, a Mac issue, or a fan problem.

IWell, Supertux plays fine without the fan turning on. Looks like Macs just overheat like mad when playing graphic-intensive games-- i thought Macs were good at that =

Anyone with a take ?

I've never had a problem like that with my MBP when playing games, either Mac or PC games (via BootCamp). You have the screen open and nothing is blocking either the keyboard or the vents on bottom & back?

I don't use any special fan control utility, etc., just the built-in automatic system that OS X runs in the background.

OK, when i play AE3, fans come on within minutes,, and stay on.

After 10 minutes with the fan speed getting louder and more insistent, the game quits without any error messages and back to the desktop = so i relaunch it again to play and again it fans on continuously.

Yeah, i dont see anything wrong with fans turning on occasionally,theyre job is to cool down the system, but if the fans come and and keep going without stopping then not a good job is being done to cool the system --

I could just ignore the sound but is it really normal to have fans whirring away without letup accompanied by overheating? I know my Dell laptop\s fans come on and off but not to the level experienced with my new MBP C2D- Specs 2.33 Ghz, 2 GB RAM.

Its obvious the system overheats quickly and the fans arent able to cool it down enough quickly, otherwise the fans would stop whirring ominously in the background.

The original MBP CD had well documentated fan and heating issues -- and this problem just happens with games, not movies, or the apps i use --

So do all u MBP C2D users just get used to an always on fan when playing things like WOW, AG3 etc or or are my fans not doing a good job to cool my system

yah, that's not alright. I read somewhere it happens, that people use too much heat conductive paste. maybe that happenend with your book. I play some games from time to time and yes, the fan turns on after a while. But not as intense as you describe it.

Did you check the activity monitor if there might be an app in the background that crashed. Something like that could eat up even more cpu power which would produce more heat.

I would go to an Apple store to let somebody check that...

heat conductive paste ?

My fan runs at times, but it is whisper quiet. Seriously, the sound of my typing drowns it out.

I have the same specs (2.33 C2D, 2G RAM) and have never crashed a game from heat. I've played the OS X built-in chess game for hours at a time without a problem, and the demo of Prey for OS X. I've also played NWN2 through Boot Camp for hours (and hours and hours).

What are you using to determine your computer is overheating? Is the mere running of the fans a complaint or are they loud?

The fan noise is quite noticeable on my machine -- so based on noise -- i hear there is a tool ( iPulse?) where u can measure heat, where can i download it and check out heat compared to other users ..

I keep Temperature Monitor Lite running on my menubar 24/7.

Hmm.. downloaded Temp Monitor ... different temperatures for different things -- I'm going to see how high the temp goes with my fans on like crazy,, wat specific temps should i compare for a test ( CPU 1, Graphics Processor etc)

I played tons of World of Warcraft on max settings - I have a first gen MBP and I never had a fan issue - although the laptop does get EXTREMELY hot and needs to rest on a table.

This is a random thought - is the surface you're using metallic or more condusive to heat? Just an idea.

Sounds like you're the odd Apple out to me I'd take that thing to a Mac store if that keeps up.

After experimenting awhile and reading the experiences of other MBP users it seems obvious -

1) MBPs fans turn on and stay on when playing graphics intensive games or any CPU-intensive program

2) I actually plumped my MBP C2D on a carpet and jumped in and fans came on and the case got hot,, now play on a hard surface and while the fans come on and stay on, and the temp shoots up to 58, the case itself doesnt get so hot as too be comfortable.

Rsunusi,

Just to put you at ease, CPUs are manufactured to run easily up to 80C. You really only need to be concerned if the temperature exceeds that for any prolonged period of time.

Good luck!

Yeah, 58C is absolutely not running "hot" for a MBP. I've had mine close on 70C before and that doesn't worry me.