Elite Bastards

Thermaltake iXoft notebook cooler review

I think it's safe to say that, at some point in time, most of us have felt a burning sensation in our crotch.  I am, of course, talking about using a notebook on your lap.  What did you think I meant?!

Everything you need to know about the heat output of modern notebooks is given away by the simple fact that they don't call them laptops any more - Far too many of them are now too uncomfortable to use on your lap, despite constant improvements in heat and power consumption with the latest generations of mobile CPUs.  This problem has opened up a new corner of the notebook user market all of its own - Those looking for additional cooling in some shape or form for their shiny new notebook PCs.

Of course, adding external cooling to your notebook potentially opens up a whole new can of worms for you to deal with.  First, there's portability, which can often be lost if you have to carry anything too bulky around alongside the notebook.  Then there's power consumption - If the cooler needs fans of any kind, these normally run from a USB port on the notebook, draining power and thus reducing battery life.

Thus, enter Thermaltake's latest effort in the notebook cooling market, which certainly has the potential to be a work of simple genius.  It's small and flexible, and thus portable, and requires no additional power.  How does it work?  Read on to find out all you need to know about the iXoft.