T61 - high CPU Temperatures?

[Raiden1969]

Hi Friends,

I own a Thinkpad T61 7663 series laptop. Specs are mentioned at the bottom of the post (3 GB RAM in lieu of 1 GB RAM). I have 2 doubts.

a) Real Temp 3.00 is used to measure the core temperatures. Running Matlab, Weka (java program) and Firefox (around 15 open tabs) leads temperatures as high as 81 C. Is this safe for the laptop in the long run? The heat from the left heatsink vent is warm enough to melt the lip balm (Labello brand). The ambient temperatures are 23 +/- 2 C. Real Temp sounds off an alarm at these temperatures. The CPU T7500 runs at maximum performance ( I am not 100% sure '2194.5 MHz' - the power manager is set at "Power Source Optimized"). The T61 Fan noise is very annoying! It sounds stressed, as if there is some misalignment. I had already replaced the fan once in March 2008 (laptop bought on Oct 2007 - US). The Lenovo warranty in Germany informed me that they had replaced the fan, and could not guarantee system stability as there was an additional bank of non-Lenovo RAM (Samsung 2 GB module). My questions:

1) How high can the CPU temperatures for laptops rise w/o damage to laptop?
2) How can I ascertain if my fan is working correctly?
3)I have a nVidia graphics (128 MB) also. Would its malfunctioning affect CPU's temperature? Is the noise due to GPU fan?
4) How do I monitor fan speed?
5) Can members kindly post the idle/working/peak load temperatures of similar T61?
6) Does non-Lenovo RAM lead to loss of system stability as claimed by Lenovo Germany? I ran a memtest for 2 days, and it was clear.

b) These heat issues are compelling me to consider a warranty extension for my laptop. I shelled out $2000 for this machine, and I am not very happy with it. I am worried if any other component will fail in due course. I don't want to buy another laptop for the next 3 years. As a Masters student, I run Matlab, Gimp, and some ocassional Java programs. This would suffice for me hopefully. Now, my question is regarding the purchase of warranty. IWS coverage of my T61 is available in Germany also. I had registered my T61, and sent it once for fan replacement. This system has a 3 year limited warranty, on-site with next business day (this is what the lenovo site says!).
My warranty expires in August 2010.

1)What warranty pack can I buy ? 3 year / 4 year ? Please inform me if such an upgrade is possible?
2)Can I buy the warrranty from the US? My uncle stays at Michigan. Will this cover my laptop in Germany?
3)If I want to buy in Germany, which is the part number of the warranty pack? I am confused with the options available.
Please clarify this Bring-in, On-site warranty terms and other terms pertaining to warranty cover for thinkpads. There is also courier pick up option available! The prices vary accordingly!
4)When I search for dealers online, they present so many options with different part numbers, that I don't now which pack will suit my purpose of extending the warranty coverage for another 3/4/5 years? I ask this question as the packs vary from 25 Euros to 215 Euros. The explanations are not lucid enough for a novice like me. I cannot also buy the warranty directly from Lenovo Germany; I should approach other dealers. As a student, I search for online deals that are around 20-40% cheaper than those officially listed on the lenovo germany site.
I found a pdf document from the Lenovo Germany site which talks about the warranty upgrade options. The image link is shown below.

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[img]http://www.freeimagehosting.net/uploads/a2140f756d.png[/img]

Can I buy any pack from the 3 year option ( I have a 3 year base warranty) ? I am totally confused.

I request all the members to help me out of this predicament. I need to send my T61 for an urgent replacement, is what I think. Am I right?

Thanking all the members profusely in advance,
Gokul

P.S: I have Spybot's TeaTimer occupying lot of CPU load and around 150 MB RAM; this VeOH player also takes its share of CPU load. All this combined increases temp to 81 C. I have presently disabled these two programs.

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Lenovo ThinkPad T61 7663 Laptop Computer Core 2 Duo T7500 / 2.2 GHz -Centrino Duo -RAM : 1 GB - HD : 120 GB -DVD±RW (±R DL) / DVD-RAM -Gigabit Ethernet -WLAN : 802.11a/b/g, Bluetooth 2.0 EDR -TPM -fingerprint, SmartCard - Windows XP SP2 -14.1" Widescreen
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[sktn77a]

The computer is running a little hot. Before the warranty expires, remove the 2Gb Samsung ram and send it in to be fixed. You can get an extra 2 years warranty coverage in the US for about $150 - well worth it if you want to keep the computer for 5 years. The part number is 45K6025.

Good luck!

[Raiden1969]

Thanks a ton dude!

I shall remove the RAM and send this T61 for repairs. Then, I would buy the warranty pack you suggested.

It is funny, that this pack is non-existent in Germany! I was asked to buy a 3 for 4 year Onsite upgrade (110 Euros) + a post warranty for 1 year (100) ::::: (i.e 4 + 1 = 5 year total onsite warranty!).

Total cost including shipping works out to 220 Euros (after a student discount!). Expensive eh!?

I have one small query. If the machine is purchased in US, and registered location is Germany, would the upgrade pack purchased in US also work? Would there arise any "mismatch of purchased location and user location" ? Just a thought crossed my mind!

Thanks dude, I shall go ahead with this pack as suggested!

Gokul

[sktn77a]

Well, if the machine was purchased in the US and the warranty extension is purchased in the US, I don't see a problem - the warranties are "international" warranties.

[Raiden1969]

Hey Keith,

I am sorry that it took almost a month to update the progress. I called up Lenovo, and a tech service representative turned up at my door finally.

He brought the CPU cooler (looked like a Copper tube with a fan mounted on it - shaped like a conch!?) and replaced the defective one.

Now I tested the laptop in his presence with prime95 torture test; it runs upto 70 degree Celsius (full 2.2 G mode). The tech rep told me that he has replaced quite a few CPU coolers in T61 during his service visits in Germany.

My pertinent questions are::::


1)Which is the best Thinkpad laptop I can buy now? (Internet browsing, occassional MATLAB-CAD, MS Office etc.)

2) Shall I dump this T61 7663 model?

I need a reliable Thinkpad/laptop which is stable and no failure record (atleast high reliability with high MTBF). I am sick of having to replace the part every 8 months. The warranty must be purchased now (another 150-170$ ) as I am wary of this Chinese part. This is the second time the CPU cooler was replaced since October 2007.

Where is the flagship IBM quality? Has it taken a beating since Lenovo's entry?

I am not sure, if it is manners to ask for an advice in this forum regarding a Macbook. Is it superior to Thinkpads?

Many Thanks for your assistance!

Cheers