Is 70C CPU temperature when idle normal?

yonajon wrote:

I know there are a million threads about MBP temperatures, but I can't figure out if my situation is normal, so please forgive another post. My MBP (2010 2.66 GHz i7 8GB after-market RAM) CPU hovers between 70 and 75 degrees celsius when the CPU is 95-98% idle. The computer is elevated on a stand, and I'm running only Firefox and other random background utilities. As noted, CPU utilization is light. Fans running at 2000rpm. When I use smcFanControl to crank them to 6000, temp drops quickly to mid 50s C.

Should I get this looked at?

Thanks!

160º F is rather high for a idle machine, more like 100-120º F is more like it, I keep my quad core just under 100º F, but I sit in front of a A/C vent too. 🙂

Are you sure you just didn't take this reading after a heavy CPU/GPU operation?

You really need to keep smcFanControl keeping the fan speeds to just under the acceptable audio level to make up for the 5 gallons of thermal paste Foxconn is slapping on everyone's motherboards.

I don't know what Apple or anyone can do unless it fails and your covered under AppleCare, liekly they will just send you home and say all computers are like that.

You can run the Apple Hardware test, see if it shows anything. 🙂

yonajon wrote:

I had just turned the computer on after 8 hours off. The temp read 55 right after boot. Climbed to almost 80 within 2-3 minutes.

Called Apple - they said it's a bit hotter than they would expect and that I can bring it to the Apple Store. I'm running AHT extended test now.

Yes, you do have a problem, perhaps a fan or sensor is dead.

Take it in and good luck. 🙂

One more thing before you take it to the hospital:

Are you running Parallels software? There are numerous recent reports of it making the Dock use 100 percent of the CPU cycles, thus running up the temps and shortiening battery run time after upgrading the Mac OS to 10.6.8.

Updating Parallels to the latest revision seems to cure the problem.

Did you recently update or delete spotlight cash... if you updated then spotlight is potentially rebuilding it's cache directories. When you open the activity monitor what processes are running that use the most CPU... Also, are you getting the temperature from smcFancontrol, try updating SMC and see if the temperature is fixed. If you don't have any runaway applications and the bottom of the computer is only lukewarm it may be a sensor that is screwed up...

I have an older MBP, so our situations aren't identical, but....

When I have the discrete GPU going the temperatures are about what you describe. When I run the integrated GPU my idling temps are in the upper 50's C.

charlie

Well, it can't be nothing. Obviously something is causing this. If you have an external drive handy, why don't back your stuff up. wipe the partition and reinstall osx? If something is wrong with your system and they have to replace the logic board then your stuff will get wiped anyway.