Fan noise issue for T4x series

[ThinkpadAddict]

I remember that the T4x series had a strange and annoying fan noise issue. I think it was T41-3? I'm thinking of purchasing a used one from IBM a T4x series laptop but dont want to get stuck with one of these. Please advise.

Thanks

[richk]

Some fans are louder than others, even with the same model. Some people are more sensitive. Having said that, I have heard more complaints on T43 than on T40/41/42

[droopy128]

I have a t41, t43 and t43p.. the t43p fan is the loudest, and also hotter than the t41.

[Harryc]

I've owned all 3 in one form or another, and the T42 and T42/P fans are the quietest.

[sugo]

The fan on my T42 is definitely quieter than the one on my T61. Both are 4:3 14.1" models.

[dr_st]

Yeah, the T43 was known to have such a problem on selected units. This was because the thermal design of the laptop hasn't changed from previous T4x models, but the 533MHz Dothan CPUs were running noticeably hotter than their 400MHz counterparts, thus requiring the fan to run faster and more often.

[Johan]

I remember that the T4x series had a strange and annoying fan noise issue. I think it was T41-3? I'm thinking of purchasing a used one from IBM a T4x series laptop but dont want to get stuck with one of these. Please advise.

From reading on this forum for a couple of years, my impression is that the T40 and T41 are (often!) almost completely noise-less (the fan will only come on if using 100 % CPU), owing to the less heat-generating CPU and ditto GPU. In the newer ThinkPad T42 series there are a somewhat wider selection of CPU's and GPU's available; CPU's from 1.5 GHz to 2.1 GHz (the latter only available in the high-end "T42p"-models), and GPU's from ATI Radeon 7500 (w/32 MB VRAM) up to ATI Mobility FireGL T2 (w/128 MB VRAM). Because of the wide selection of CPU's/GPU's in T42/p's, IBM have two different fan's available on T42/p's: A short fan (only cooling the CPU) and a long fan (designated M10), the latter cooling both the CPU and GPU. If you have or get a long fan, you will end up with a powerful, low-noise system: I have e.g. the fastest T42p (2373-Q1U w/2.1 GHz CPU and the FireGL T2 GPU), and when having installed the (free!) Notebook Hardware Control program, and having chosen the power management profile to "CPU-speed= Adaptive", my fan will remain off for at least 50 % of the time, and when coming on for the other 50 % then only at the lowest, very low-noise level.

All this said to emphasize that even if you get a T43 (some models of which are known to be more noisy than prior T4x's), there are ways to reduce the noise... apart from the Notebook Hardware Control, you will also want to know about forum.thinkpads.com user Shimodax's Fan Control Utility - he got a noisy T43, and he cured it!

If I were to get a new ThinkPad today, I would get one of the refurbished T42p's from IBM Certified Used PCs, Notebooks, Laptops, PCs - namely this top-of-the-line T42p - read why in the thread: Buying a 2nd hand T42p (see the post of Sat Jul 28, 2007 4:49 pm). Alternatively, check the Marketplace in this forum, and/or keep an eye on eBay (better deals are more likely on eBay, but you know less good what you're gonna get compared to if trading through the Marketplace here, there dealing with some trustworthy, enthusiast-ThinkPad owner).

Best regards,

Johan

[ulrich.von.lich]

I have a T43 and its fan is always on. Although it's not very loud, it's still annoying to use somewhere quiet, such as in library. However it can be turned off manually by TPFanControl. If you slow down the CPU at the same time, it shouldn't exceed 56C with the fan completely off.

I've never had any other T4x thinkpad, it seems they run quieter/cooler but slower too. So it depends on what you need from the laptop. A low-end Dothan + Raedon 9600 seems a good choice.