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In a similar fashion to the vast majority of Arctic products we've looked at over the past months, the NC Notebook Cooler is packaged within a form-fitted plastic packet that shows off the design and shape of the cooler very well. Unfortunately this isn't likely to provide much protection during transit but, due to the nature of the packaging, we're almost certain that etailers will use some kind of outer packaging as well which should provide a greater level of protection.
Arctic don't exactly provide a wealth of accessories with the NC Notebook Cooler but all the necessities are catered for. There is a very short USB 2.0 cable which powers the fans and supplies the four-port USB 2.0 on the rear of the cooler. It's worth noting that if all the USB 2.0 ports on your notebook are along the sides then the cable may not quite reach depending on their positioning.
Alongside the USB2.0 hub, there is a roller switch that lets us adjust the speed of the two 60mm fans and a power-in jack (adapter not included). These fans suck in air through the top of the cooler and blow out the front onto the underside of the notebook. The fans aren't ideally placed as the hot air expelled from notebooks with rear exhausts could be sucked back through the cooler.
Arctic have created something quite good looking in the NC Notebook Cooler. The soft-touch grey finish looks and feels great and the slightly rubbery texture to the paint really helps to keep the laptop in place on top. The two 60mm fans manage to create quite a breeze whilst remaining almost completely silent on maximum speed and completely inaudible on the minimum speed.
The laptop doesn't actually fix to the cooler in any way, it just rests on the lip at the back. This makes it extremely easy to set up the cooler and to remove the notebook when the cooler is not needed. But our Clevo M860Tu didn't feel completely secure when being used with the cooler and larger 17″ and 18″ notebooks will suffer from this even more.
So the question you'll all be asking now is, how much of a difference will this cooler make to my notebooks temperatures? The answer is… its noticeable. As you can see from the graph above, there are improvements in the system temperatures all round.
Weird design, it doesnt rest completely under the machine?
I love the shape and design, ideal for a desk, but its certainly not good for a lap? How would you balance that on your knee with a laptop tipped on the edge?
Great price, i just ordered one.
Will look great with my Alienware machine, im going to order one for the desk.
Excellent pricing, weird unit though, i prefer one that sits completely under the machine and cools the whole underside. wonder why they opted for this design.