17 MBP running hot with 2 apps open!?!?!?!?!?!

The last two days my fans have been running non stop...even when I'm not using the laptop. I installed Temperature Monitor Lite and closed all applications but two: safari and mail and my temp is between 58-62 degrees C with just these two programs running. I have been running parallels but I quit that and it hasn't made much difference. Has anyone else experienced this? I've heard some people's MBPs get hot when gaming but I am hardly doing anything.

Will these feet help (https://www.radtech.us/Products/coolfeet.aspx)--has anyone used them or these: (https://www.radtech.us/Products/Pawz.aspx) or should I take it in to Apple?

Any thoughts appreciated!

Hello, I would recommend using SMC Fan Control so you can raise your fan speed a little bit to help cool off your MBP. I have found it to be an invaluable piece of software that saves a lot of heat from my 15" MBP, especially when under load. You can get it here: http://www.macupdate.com/info.php/id/23049

An alternative option, though I use as a supplement to the fan control, is to get a cooling pad to put underneath while on a desk. I use a Targus Chillmat with a built in powered USB hub and it's great. You mentioned that you run parallels; I use vmware fusion on my laptop and even when it is idling it raises the temp since the program is always using about 10% cpu even at idle to run the virtual machine, though you said it does this even when it's not running. Open activity monitor and go to the CPU page and monitor how much usage there is at idle with safari and mail open; perhaps there is something running in the background you aren't aware of like a plug-in on safari. Also, do you notice this when the laptop is on your desk or only when it's on your lap? It's normal for laptops to be a bit warmer when they are sitting directly on your lap since they lose air circulation.

One final thought though could be that the thermal paste on your CPU was hastily applied; i've seen articles where people have unassembled their MBPs and replaced the sloppily applied paste neatly with higher-end stuff and notice a drastic heat reduction. Perhaps if all other remedies fail, this could be something to be discussed with an Apple tech (unless you are inclined to try yourself; www.ifixit.com has excellent how-to guides). Anyway, good luck!

Thanks, I will give that a try...I just don't understand why it would start doing this out of the blue. Since I've gotten it I have put way more stress on it than that and it has barely warmed up now its so hot that sometimes its uncomfortable to type.

My MBP is runninat 48 degrees c and the fans are at minimum rate of 1500 rpm. Maybe where you have been using it has sucked in dirt or fluff which is stopping some air flow and causing it to heat up. Its not just MAC laptops though, my daugthers Win XP laptop gets too hot to cmfortably keep on your lap after a while. One day I could here her laptop fans roaring away, working hard. I opened the hatch to the graphics card and the amount of fluff crammed in there was amazing. Cleaned it out and it hasn't been as hot since.

that is not a bad idea...i'm just not sure where to start as far as doing the same thing on a mac. now my computer stays about 70-75 degrees C when I am actually using it--and that is just with safari and mail open.

http://www.macworld.com/2006/11/firstlooks/mbtemps/index.php again i posted this link before on another heat problems with the MBP i have the 17inch mbp too and trust me i know how you feel.....it works like a heater in my room...but in that article (the link) shows that when macworld magazine did their experiment u havent even reach the maximum heat yet! this laptops gets fired up in after a while lol! i love my mac anyway...

thanks for the help....i love my mac anyway too....but i am such a perfectionist....lol....thanks again.