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Question: A question about laptop coolers and usb ports?

(Posted by: FranDaMan on 2010-03-09 19:18:28)

I use a laptop cooler all the time which is running thru a USB port. The thing is the fans are plugged in all the time and I never usually turn my laptop off. Would this damage the USB as the fans are constantly drawing power out of them? thanks for your help.

Posted by: Ryteach on 2010-03-09, 19:20:27

I am not 100% sure but I don't think it will hurt anything. I leave flash drives in my usb ports all the time and haven't had any problems.

Posted by: Karl on 2010-03-09, 19:20:56

No - USB ports are one of the most durable things on a computer.

Posted by: thisisme272 on 2010-03-09, 19:21:50

Why don't you turn it off? I don't know if it would damage the USB port, but I think your laptop would "crash " faster than if you actually turned it off at the end of the day.

Posted by: Sean H on 2010-03-09, 19:29:23

It shouldn't hurt the USB port but I did the same thing on a Dell D600 and after a year or so the USB port wasn't as reliable... sometimes had to jiggle the cooler cable to get it to power up. After reading all kinds of conflicting information on the benefit of active coolers and how they negatively impact airflow in some cases, and how some say it's best to have airflow in one direction and others saying the opposite, I eventually decided on an passive cooler and left it at that... no power drain on my laptop and it's quieter and it allows airflow under the laptop... so far so good: amazon.com/ Xpad-Original-Non-slip-Laptop-Heatshield/ dp/ B000PH2E3E

Posted by: Bdig85 on 2010-03-09, 20:51:42

It probably doesn't do any damage to the computer, but it does suck energy and shorten the life of the cooler. When you have the computer in sleep mode, you should unplug the fan.