MacBook Pro mid 2012 CPU idle temperature

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MacBook Pro mid 2012 CPU idle temperature

Hello, please forgive me if this question has been asked before. But I have a mid 2012 MacBook Pro. Running a Samsung evo 860 ssd. 16gb of ram and recently installed a new battery. I downloaded the program “clean my Mac” and I realized my Mac is idling at about 140 degrees Fahrenheit. My fan is clean, the grill is clean and I have dusted the inside. Is this normal? For just an idle laptop this old? I figure it is for my macs age but I guess another question is at what temperature is it dangerous or damaging to my laptop? I use my MacBook for music production. When I have a large session going it reaches up to 175 sometimes max.

for more detailed info, these are why my temperature sensors are reading while idle, according to macs fan control. Fahrenheit.

CPU CORE (average): 155

CPU CORE 1: 162

CPU CORE 2: 154

CPU CORE PECI: 154

CPU PROXIMITY: 136

GPU INTEL GRAPHICS 4000: 154

Heatsink proximity: 122

I don’t know what any of this means. My Mac seems to be performing fine and only gets hot to the touch if I’m really putting it thru the ringer, which I usually don’t. But again, is this normal temperature for idling with a MacBook this old? Thank you all for your time.

Posted on Dec 22, 2020 1:42 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

neuroanatomist

Level 9

56,997 points

Dec 22, 2020 1:48 PM in response to Jeevesmakingnoise

First, uninstall CleanMyMac – it's not needed and actually adds load to your CPU. If you want to view temps and other stats, use a monitor-only app like iStat Menus (bjango.com). Having said that, your temps are perfectly normal. Under heavy load, CPU/GPU temps can get over 90 °C (194 °F).

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Answer 2

Dec 23, 2020 12:14 PM in response to HWTech

After uninstalling CMM, my idle temp average is about 55-60 c which definitely took it down about 10 degrees

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Answer 3

Dec 23, 2020 11:51 AM in response to Jeevesmakingnoise

Macs Fan Control is a nice app for monitoring temperatures.

Regardless of the app used, in the future please post temperatures in Celcius. Every benchmark and tech site references computer temps in Celcius. It is a pain having to convert temps.

Once you uninstall CMM and any anti-virus or third party security software if your idle temps are still at 60C, then the heatsink thermal compound may need to be replaced as it tends to dry out with age. IIRC the idle temp is around 35C to 40C, but it has been a while since I looked at temps on this model. FYI, it is unlikely the thermal paste will do more than drop the idle temp by 10C so if you are still running hotter, then run EtreCheck and post the report here using the "Additional Text" icon which looks like a piece of paper.

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MacBook Pro mid 2012 CPU idle temperature

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