I've had this overheating problem for a long time now with an i5 430M and did something similar. The problem is not the fan, it was always kept clean however the problem is the bad thermal paste on the processor, gpu and northbridge. Given the fact that there is a single heatpipe and fan design in this laptop, it doesn't help the temperatures.
The processor was overheating and reaching thermal shutdown when doing intensive work such as running 3d modeling applications/playing games. To fix this, use a thermal compound cleaner and apply new thermal paste (I went for Arctic Cooling MX-4 as I had some lying around). Check the dell service manuals on how to open up the laptop. Make sure to apply new thermal paste to all the chips that the heatpipe covers (and don't apply too much - a thin layer over just the "core" itself is fine)
Temperatures dropped from around 95-105 temp at max load to 80 - 85C at max load. I've noticed for day to day things like browsing the internet, the cpu is at around 50 C on both cores. The type and amount of paste added onto the processor is the problem. Too much paste can cause an insulating effect which I believe is what is happening to make vostros overheat. I've not had a single overheat since doing this trick. The fan barely spins up at all anymore and the machine is also ultra quiet! Everything should cost around $10 so it's really worth the time. Hope this helps anyone having problems with the 3700.
ghjk123
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0
April 7th, 2013 11:00
I've had this overheating problem for a long time now with an i5 430M and did something similar. The problem is not the fan, it was always kept clean however the problem is the bad thermal paste on the processor, gpu and northbridge. Given the fact that there is a single heatpipe and fan design in this laptop, it doesn't help the temperatures.
The processor was overheating and reaching thermal shutdown when doing intensive work such as running 3d modeling applications/playing games. To fix this, use a thermal compound cleaner and apply new thermal paste (I went for Arctic Cooling MX-4 as I had some lying around). Check the dell service manuals on how to open up the laptop. Make sure to apply new thermal paste to all the chips that the heatpipe covers (and don't apply too much - a thin layer over just the "core" itself is fine)
Temperatures dropped from around 95-105 temp at max load to 80 - 85C at max load. I've noticed for day to day things like browsing the internet, the cpu is at around 50 C on both cores. The type and amount of paste added onto the processor is the problem. Too much paste can cause an insulating effect which I believe is what is happening to make vostros overheat. I've not had a single overheat since doing this trick. The fan barely spins up at all anymore and the machine is also ultra quiet! Everything should cost around $10 so it's really worth the time. Hope this helps anyone having problems with the 3700.