Review: Cooler Master NotePal Infinite

Cooler Master NotePal Infinite is the latest edition of notebook cooler by Cooler Master. It claims to be “the first notebook cooler with a truly comprehensive cooling mechanism” in the market. Notepal Infinite has a metal mesh surface which increase the cooling area by 150%. The rear side air intake allows you to use on sofa or in bed without blocking the airflow.

I had iLap but the notebook always sliding down from its surface. I was planning to get a Cooler Master NotePal (my brother owns one). I decided to get NotePal Infinite instead for a few reasons:

• It is a NEW product
• It is not expensive
• The fan speed is adjustable
• It has anti-slip rubbers
• It supports a wide rage of notebook sizes from 12-inch to 17-inch

The last point is very important for a 12″ notebook user (and 17″ notebook user wannabe) like me.

Buy NotePal Infinite in Malaysia

NotePal Infinite is a new product that was only launched in July 2007. Most stores do not have it yet. Cooler Master has 2 distributors but no online store in Malaysia.

I contacted both distributors by email and one of them replied, AV Future Link. I was told that Cooler Master NotePal Infinite price is RM110 (~$31.66 USD).

I asked for courier service and they agreed for additional RM10 fee. I transfered the funds(total: RM120) to their bank account and prayed.

Surprisingly, I received my NotePal Infinite at the 3rd working day. Thumb up for their sales service! The other distributor lost a customer because not reading/replying emails.)

NotePal Infinite review

First of all, NotePal Infinite is lighter (700g) than I expected. The bottom is black plastic. It has only a big fan (90mm x 90mm x 25mm) at the center, which covered by gray metal mesh surface.

Image: Front of Cooler Master NotePal Infinite notebook cooler

All the buttons, ports and air intake are at the rear side. The fan speed adjuster, connector(mini usb) and a USB port are the the right hand side. The power switch and air intake are at the middle. The anti-slip rubbers hold notebook very well to prevent it from sliding the 8.5-degree inclination (read: comfortable typing).

Image: The ports of Cooler Master NotePal Infinite notebook cooler

You have noticed that NotePal Infinite does not act as USB hub, it has only 1 USB port for your other device. The fan speed adjuster is easily reachable by finger touch. You don’t need to see it to adjust the fan speed. The power button has a beautiful blue light when it is on.

Apple MacBook (USB ports on left) users should note that the right side connector design make the cable management design (hook and slot) at the back become useless to you. This does not apply to MacBook Pro (has USB ports on both side).

NotePal Infinite performance

NotePal Infinite has 3 fan speeds. The low speed (1000rpm) is very quiet and you hardly hear the fan noise. On the other side, high speed fan at 2000rpm could be annoying to other people on your side. The air flow on metal mesh surface is not noticeable even at high fan speed.

After working for long hours, my hot iBook’s CPU temperature is always above 60°C and internal fan speed above 6000rpm. It even heat up my desk (placed directly on desk) !

I am writing this article with NotePal Infinite running at high fan speed. The lowest CPU temperature recorded is 46°C (notebook internal fan speed: 0rpm).

Cooler Master claims that NotePal Infinite can cool down your notebook up to 17 degrees C, it is truth!

My two cents

I recommend Cooler Master NotePal Infinite to anyone who is looking for notebook cooling.

It supports all common notebook sizes in the market, you do not need to get another cooler for your future notebook. You can use NotePal Infinite at anywhere, whether on your desk, on sofa, on bed, or on lap.

Most importantly, it works!

View slideshow of Cooler Master Notepal Infinite »