Fanless Windows 10 laptops

[_Matej]

Hello ladies and gentlemen,
Laptops are not really my forte, but recently I found myself in need of one due to going back to school. And being a 0dB PC enthusiast, it would certainly be fitting to go with a fanless laptop.

Since I am not well informed on the latest laptop trends, I thought this would be the best place to ask.
The main requirements are that it has no fans and comes with Windows 10. An SSD is preferable, but an HDD is fine as well. It would also be a plus if Office comes bundled with it.

I primarily only need it for wi-fi internet and word processing, so low end models should be perfectly satisfactory. Though I am curious what is available in all price ranges, in case something neat catches my eye.

Thank you for any input.

 

[pigeoncracker]

Most Chromebooks would be applicable to what you've mentioned, though they do not have access to Windows 10. They are an option nevertheless. The Microsoft Surface Pro is also a good option or any of the surface tablets.

My favorite is the Asus Zenbook Flip UX360CA, and it's around mid-range: 700$.

Truthfully, you'd be better off consulting a website like this one:
http/www.ultrabookreview.com/6520-fanless-ultrabooks/

It's going to be a lot more comprehenable than what little I can remember.

 

[jsmithepa]

A quick browse through pigeoncracker's list, looks like most of them are "convertibles." That's what immediately popped into my head when I read fanless, a notepad!

Am personally not a fan of convertibles, I think they don't do the job of either well, too heavy for a notepad, and too underpowered to be a laptop, and I don't trust the hinge mechanism, seems like gimmick to me, but that's just my personal opinion. Once I thought about getting an iPad with a flip cover-keyboard, then I thought the better of it that such a setup has to be desktop use and won't work too well for my on-my-lap habit.

Lastly think about your fanless requirement. I hear ya brother, I too like them quiet. I currently own a Macbook Air and it has a fan, but at everyday browsing, email, just your menial tasks, the Mac's fan idles at 2,000 RPM, which is inaudible. I don't regret the purchase.


For you 0 db amusement, I built a fanless HTPC, because, well, any noise in my high fidelity environment is just not acceptable, click my SIG for pic. Many people these days say a little fan won't hurt anybody, but when I built it, I just had this thing on my mind being pure, no-compromise, no budget.

 

[pigeoncracker]

A quick browse through pigeoncracker's list, looks like most of them are "convertibles." That's what immediately popped into my head when I read fanless, a notepad!

Am personally not a fan of convertibles, I think they don't do the job of either well, too heavy for a notepad, and too underpowered to be a laptop, and I don't trust the hinge mechanism, seems like gimmick to me, but that's just my personal opinion. Once I thought about getting an iPad with a flip cover-keyboard, then I thought the better of it that such a setup has to be desktop use and won't work too well for my on-my-lap habit.

Lastly think about your fanless requirement. I hear ya brother, I too like them quiet. I currently own a Macbook Air and it has a fan, but at everyday browsing, email, just your menial tasks, the Mac's fan idles at 2,000 RPM, which is inaudible. I don't regret the purchase.


For you 0 db amusement, I built a fanless HTPC, because, well, any noise in my high fidelity environment is just not acceptable, click my SIG for pic. Many people these days say a little fan won't hurt anybody, but when I built it, I just had this thing on my mind being pure, no-compromise, no budget.

He did mention that it had to have Windows 10, so a MacBook would be out of the option. Convertibles came to my mind. The Surface tablets are going to be the best bet he has in durability. I'm not a big fan of the convertibles either. If you could have a fan that was extremely quiet that opens up to a whole slew of ultrabooks and mid-range laptops. If you consider that, my personal preference is the Dell XPS 13, which could not have a fan and I wouldn't notice.

Any cloudbooks would also be a viable laptop with a normal hinge and no fan, like the Acer One 11, which is my preferred of the bunch.

I rather like your HTPC. Did you machine the fins on the side of the case as well as the heatsinks yourself? Because that's ingenious.

 

[jsmithepa]

Oh am not suggesting he gets a Mac, am sure Windows boxes have similar, speed-controlled fans as well.

I rather like your HTPC. Did you machine the fins on the side of the case as well as the heatsinks yourself? Because that's ingenious.

Oh no, can't take the credit. The enclosure itself is ready-made by a german company HUSH, but since then have stopped selling the product. I just got the box from eBay and made modern modifications to it.

 

[pigeoncracker]

Oh am not suggesting he gets a Mac, am sure Windows boxes have similar, speed-controlled fans as well.

I rather like your HTPC. Did you machine the fins on the side of the case as well as the heatsinks yourself? Because that's ingenious.

Oh no, can't take the credit. The enclosure itself is ready-made by a german company HUSH, but since then have stopped selling the product. I just got the box from eBay and made modern modifications to it.

Too bad. It's a really nice case. I like it a lot.

 

[jsmithepa]

Too bad. It's a really nice case. I like it a lot.

There are still a couple of outfits who will sell you fanless enclosures with big heatsinks on the sides, intended for heat pipe cooling. One is hd-plex.com.

 

[pigeoncracker]

Too bad. It's a really nice case. I like it a lot.

There are still a couple of outfits who will sell you fanless enclosures with big heatsinks on the sides, intended for heat pipe cooling. One is hd-plex.com.

I'll certainly look into it. I've been thinking of building an HTPC for streaming for a while, might do it fanless with one of these.

 

[_Matej]

Truthfully, you'd be better off consulting a website like this one:
http/www.ultrabookreview.com/6520-fanless-ultrabooks/

That is the list that I have been looking at as well. I was mostly just curious if anyone on here had any other personal suggestions or could recommend what to stay away from.

The ASUS ZenBook models seem to be the best choice right now, and I really like the aluminum shell.

Although I am also curious about the 11.6" mini laptops such as the ASUS EeeBook, which would fit even better on the tiny school desks and should satisfy my minimal needs.

 

[jsmithepa]

I too keep saying if I couldn't buy a Macbook, an Asus Zen would be my choice.

Watch out for EeeBook and similar "purse size" machines. Don't buy anything with under-powered Atom processor or anything less than an I3. I3 should be your minimum CPU spec.

 

[_Matej]

I too keep saying if I couldn't buy a Macbook, an Asus Zen would be my choice.

Watch out for EeeBook and similar "purse size" machines. Don't buy anything with under-powered Atom processor or anything less than an I3. I3 should be your minimum CPU spec.

How about a Celeron N3050 1.60GHz?
I am currently looking at the HP Stream 11 Pro G2, 11.6", 4GB RAM, 64GB SSD, Windows 10 Pro. Does not seem too horrible. It sells for 360-410$.
Then there is also the Acer Cloudbook 11.6" with the same processor, but 2GB RAM, 32GB SSD, and Windows 10 Home. This is the ultra cheap option for around 170-200$.

I had a Macbook a couple of years ago. All was great until it needed service, and I hope to not deal with Apple support again.
Plus in this case it will be more convenient to get something that already comes native with Windows and Office, simply because that is what the school uses.

 

[pigeoncracker]

I like the HP Stream. It's a nice little laptop, but I find it a little hard to type on, but then again, I'm used to full-size mechanical keyboards. Other than that, they'd be perfect for what you're wanting to do with one unless you wanted to do something else.

Cloudbooks are Microsoft's answer to Chromebooks. If you're getting one, you're getting a Chromebook. Little offline functionality, little support for multitasking, etc.

The Celeron N3050 is crap. It's a CPU that will do little else besides run a web browser and a word processor. It's not something you'd even want to make a presentation on. It's a step down from the Intel Atoms.

I'd much rather prefer a DELL XPS 12 XPS9250-1827WLAN (Long name) and it has a moderate price. Fanless, and it's like a Microsoft Surface with a much more substantial keyboard (As in, it has a tablet detachable part).

If you have a big budget, there's always the HP EliteBook Folio 1020 for 1500$, which is a fantastic laptop that will do plenty, but I figure that it's not really fitting into the whole "I'm not going to be doing much with this in the manner of taxing it" thing.

 

[jaguarskx]

Perhaps the Acer Alpha Switch 12 is a possible solution for a fanless device.

It is basically a clone of the Microsoft Surface Pro 4, but at lower price. It is a liquid cooled 2-in-1 12" convertible tablet with a Core i5-6200u CPU and it has a 256GB SSD. Micro Center sell it for $600, but you need to walk into one of their stores to buy it.

https/www.google.com/shopping/product/599231853545283140?lsf=seller:6859035,store:14341065400715985215&prds=oid:16368582522522351389&q=Acer+Alpha+Switch+12&hl=en&ei=gxy_V5OvNOPVgAbu5ZzwCA&lsft=gclid:CIDc_cj-3M4CFQxahgod6N0HdQ

Based on reviews that I have watched / read, the Acer Alpha Switch 12 is has pretty good build quality. However, there is a few trade-off compared to the more expensive Surface Pro 4 which are:

1 - Shorter battery life. The Alpha Switch gets 4 - 5 hours.
2 - The screen is good, but not as good as the one in the Surface Pro 4 which is excellent for graphic artists because of it's color accuracy.
3 - No digital is included. But the keyboard is included.
4 - Like the original Ford Model T car, the keyboard for the Alpha Switch can be any color you want as long as it is black.

Here's a video review:

https/www.youtube.com/watch?v=wP404GpoE2Y