Cooler Master NotePal U3 Plus Review
To test the effectiveness of the NotePal, I decided to test it in three different scenarios. One scenario used standard web browsing for 30 minutes. After timing 30 minutes on a stop watch, I recorded the CPU temperature. Next, I played 30 minutes of Mark of a Ninja with and without the NotePal. Again I timed the 30 minutes and recorded the final temperature. For my last test, I used Cinebench’s CPU test and took the highest reported temperature after my computer’s fan had turned on.
As the table shows, the NotePal keeps things much cooler, especially when the fan kicks in. After 30 minutes of web browsing using the NotePal, temperatures stayed at 40 degrees Celsius. However, when I was browsing without the NotePal, my Macbook got up to a much hotter 67 degrees Celsius. Once I started tasks that use more resources, temperatures were much closer. Playing 30 minutes of Mark of a Ninja, temperatures got up to 84 degrees Celsius with the NotePal, and 90 degrees without. Lastly, the Cinebench benchmark had temperatures with the NotePal up to 90 degrees Celsius. Without the NotePal, temperatures got up to 93 degrees Celsius.
Overall, the NotePal holds up to its name and keeps the Macbook cooler. I really like the design of the NotePal as it looks good on any desk. The 19” design doesn’t support 13” or smaller notebooks very well. My Mac couldn’t take advantage of the laptop carrier because it just slid through. It seems like the 19” model really only properly supports 15” to 19” notebooks. We also found some of the edges quite sharp from production.
The Fan Speed Control Clip
The USB passthrough, control clip, and modular fan design are three things I really like. I have personally used a few notebook coolers over the years and the NotePal U3 Plus is by far the best one that I have ever used. I highly recommend it to anyone, although the 17” model may be a better idea for 13″ laptops. The cable mounts work well and may help provide some cushion if you were to drop it.
| Pros | Cons |
| – Great Aluminum Design
– Three Modular Fans – USB Passthrough – Fan Speed Control Clip – Lightweight – Duals as a notebook carrier – Keeps notebook cool |
– Edges can be sharp
– Can get loud when fans are on high – Notebook carrier doesn’t work with small notebooks |
If you have an older notebook or have just purchased a new one, we highly recommend the NotePal. We believe it deserves AlienBabeltech’s Editor’s Choice award for its innovative features and lightweight design. The NotePal is available on Newegg for $42.99 right now.
If you haven’t already, check out ABTs look at NVIDA’s new GTX 780 Ti as well as an overview of EVGA’s reference GTX 780. As always, visit the ABT forum for the latest news and discussions.
Why did you use Mark of the Ninja to benchmark for the higher temperatures? It’s not exactly a system smasher by any stretch of the imagination.
Agreed. However on my macbook pro, it got temps plenty high. The goal was to take playable games and compare temperatures. There isn’t much else that my mac can run smoothly.