Quest for a 13" dead silent!

ThePhi · **Joined:** Wed Jul 06, 2011 1:43 pm **Posts:** 3

Hello !
First I'm new here so greetings everyone!
I am the proud owner of a Dell mini 10, which was exactly the perfect notebook for me: fanless, you can only hear the DD.
But I would like to find maybe a bigger screen like 13". I know there's no fanless PC with this size (what a shame!), but do anybody know a notebook which could be "fanless-like" (fan off most of the time, or that you can't hear at all) ?

I've read about the ASUS UL30, but I am not sure whether the fan is running sometimes or not.

Thanks!

Dr. Jim Pomatter · **Posted:** Thu Jul 07, 2011 12:17 pm

ThePhi wrote:

Hello !
First I'm new here so greetings everyone!
I am the proud owner of a Dell mini 10, which was exactly the perfect notebook for me: fanless, you can only hear the DD.

Good to have another noise snob on the site, and I mean that is a positive way. I was tempted by the Dell Mini 10, but Intel's Atom is just too slow for my tastes.

SSDs are the easy (but expensive) solution to DD noise. I used my whole new-laptop savings to buy a 600GB Intel 320 SSD a few days after they were released; before they started going up in price.

ThePhi wrote:

I would like to find maybe a bigger screen like 13". I know there's no fanless PC with this size (what a shame!), but do anybody know a notebook which could be "fanless-like" (fan off most of the time, or that you can't hear at all) ?

My Thinkpad T61 (with the mentioned SSD) has a fan that is on all the time, but it makes less noise at normal loads then the refrigerator that is two rooms away. I expect that the current 15" Thinkpad T520 would also be as quiet as the HDD, and they start at $800.

Quote:

Thinkpad T520 System Noise

The T520 doesn't show any irregularities in use with low load and stays at a constant noise level of 32.5 dB(A). It can be perceived as a low pitched noise. The fan noise remains on an idle level for a long time when the load is increased, for example in 3D applications, only to turn up to 34.4 dB(A) later. A maximum noise level of a very audible 36.8 dB(A) can be reached.

The 14" T420 is about the same size and weight as the ASUS UL30, and it is quiet. It is going to be much, much, much faster. It starts at $750, but will cost you $830 with a 720p webcam, bluetooth, and 9-cell battery upgrade.

Quote:

Thinkpad T420 System Noise

The T420 always remains fairly quiet regardless of the load. The system noise is a constant 32.2 dB(A) in low load. The hard disk is slightly louder with 32.5 dB(A) during access.
The test laptop just only reaches a maximum noise level of 35.2 dB(A) during our stress test (GPU and CPU in full load).

ThePhi wrote:

I've read about the ASUS UL30, but I am not sure whether the fan is running sometimes or not.

Quote:

ASUS UL30A-A1 Heat and Noise
Under a light to moderate load the ASUS UL30A-A1 stayed quiet with only a few hot spots forming. Fan noise was minimal, with it defaulting off under most conditions. When the fan was on, your ear had to be next to the case to hear it. With the system on for the entire morning, the case warmed up about 10-15 degrees over room temperature, with all the keyboard and palmrest staying the coolest.

For an extra $150 in money and less then one pound in weight, I would go with the faster & more solid choice: Thinkpad T420.

Yes, I know that the ASUS makes less noise...

Abula · **Posted:** Thu Jul 07, 2011 12:22 pm

If you could wait a couple of months i would go with ASUS outs UX21 ultrathin laptop with up to Core i7 CPUs, comes with CULV i7, also the built in gpu on Sandy Bridge mobile CPU is much better than with UL30, its going to be similar to the Ul30, but thinner and much better looking.

ThePhi · **Joined:** Wed Jul 06, 2011 1:43 pm **Posts:** 3

Thanks for your answers!
Exactly Dr. Jim Pomatter, when we speak about noise of their computers, most of people seem not to care about it at all! It's a bit frustrating to see that this element doesn't seem to be important even for constructors (where could you find "noise level" on the constructor website of a notebook?? Nowhere!)

So there are no fanless laptop for the moment except the Dell mini10

but only laptops where fan is quiet or at least not constantly on...

I've seen the DELL Latitude XT2 too (not exactly the same type of product but I always like the tablet function and I still have my HP TC1100...)
It seems that the fan is turned off most of the time ( http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Del ... 746.0.html ). Do anybody know more about the noise level of this one?

CA_Steve · **Posted:** Thu Jul 07, 2011 6:28 pm

MacBook Air. Refresh this month.

Anatorax · **Posted:** Mon Aug 08, 2011 4:02 pm

I have read somewhere the MacBook Air is not that silent after all. Approach with caution.

Check out Dell's Vostro V13/V130 line. I wrote about it in another topic in this section. In regard to silence comes damn close to 9/10 IMO.

Quest for a 13" dead silent!

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