Laptop cooler for DVRs

[Hall]

I know many people mentioned using laptop type coolers for their DVRs and I finally picked one up myself. It's the popular Targus model, PA248U. Staples has it on sale currently for $14.98, whereas it's normally $29.xx.

I've noticed my average temp slowly going up over time even though the 622 sits in a completely open rack. I even had it sitting up on some 3/4" rubber feet to get more airflow underneath it. Hopefully this will get things back to a nice, cool temperature.

Here's the link to the cooler at Staples:

http://www.staples.com/webapp/wcs/s...0051&langId=-1&productId=102485&cmArea=SEARCH

 

[pro96]

I know many people mentioned using laptop type coolers for their DVRs and I finally picked one up myself. It's the popular Targus model, PA248U. Staples has it on sale currently for $14.98, whereas it's normally $29.xx.

I've noticed my average temp slowly going up over time even though the 622 sits in a completely open rack. I even had it sitting up on some 3/4" rubber feet to get more airflow underneath it. Hopefully this will get things back to a nice, cool temperature.

Here's the link to the cooler at Staples:

http://www.staples.com/webapp/wcs/s...0051&langId=-1&productId=102485&cmArea=SEARCH

I happened to have one for my 710m and plugged it into my HR20-700's USB input and temps dropped from 122f to 118f ..

I placed it on top, since the bottom of the HR20 has very little vents.
Here is the jpeg right off my cell phone.

 

[KE4EST]

Did same thing here adding the fan made a lot of difference.

 

[mike1973]

I know many people mentioned using laptop type coolers for their DVRs and I finally picked one up myself. It's the popular Targus model, PA248U. Staples has it on sale currently for $14.98, whereas it's normally $29.xx.

I've noticed my average temp slowly going up over time even though the 622 sits in a completely open rack. I even had it sitting up on some 3/4" rubber feet to get more airflow underneath it. Hopefully this will get things back to a nice, cool temperature.

Here's the link to the cooler at Staples:

http://www.staples.com/webapp/wcs/s...0051&langId=-1&productId=102485&cmArea=SEARCH

I had one real similar to that. Had a BLAZING blue light on the front that I had to put a piece of tape over Lasted about 6 months. I don't think those are supposed to be on 24/7

Mike

 

[Hall]

This one has no lights and you need to put your ear withing an inch or two to hear it to know it's one. As for 24 hour/7 day usage, I agree with you on that. We'll see how long it lasts... Problem is, I'm not gonna get down and listen for it so it could die and I'd not know it for a long time.

 

[VegasVoomer]

I had one real similar to that. Had a BLAZING blue light on the front that I had to put a piece of tape over Lasted about 6 months. I don't think those are supposed to be on 24/7

Mike

Thats the one I have. I did the same thing with the tape.
My temps dropped about 5 degrees. I will probably unplug it when its cooler in the room this winter.

 

[ChetK]

That's great that your temps are lower. Now, does this actually affect performance and longevity of the DVR?

 

[VegasVoomer]

I would think it does. I dont know about performance since I never had a problem but the outside of the 622 was almost to hot to touch before the fan. That cant be good for longevity.

 

[Tom Bombadil]

If you read the reviews on various laptop coolers from sites like Amazon, you'll find that many of them break within 6-12 months even at the low usage rates of real laptop users. So don't be surprised if they only last a few months at 24X7.

 

[Hall]

I hope by buying a "name brand" one I might see a bit higher level of quality vs buying the no-name ones. By the same token, I realize they're all probably made in the same place !

The Targus does have a 1-year warranty and I'll keep the receipt and exchange/return it once if it dies before a year is up.

 

[Jared Twomey]

personally I dont think the heat in the dvr's is that big of a deal... I have a 625 and Tivo Series 2 stacked on top of each other, and they have both ran perfectly for a couple years now...
i mean, yeah, heat isnt good for stuff, but my laptop gets way hotter than either of my dvr's ever have

 

[Hall]

I had a DVR from Time Warner that was in an armoire. Two of them died in a 12-month period (less than that, actually, but I can't say for sure how long). When I got the 3rd one, we put it outside the armoire and it worked fine 'til I cancelled service and returned it.

 

[VegasVoomer]

personally I dont think the heat in the dvr's is that big of a deal... I have a 625 and Tivo Series 2 stacked on top of each other, and they have both ran perfectly for a couple years now...
i mean, yeah, heat isnt good for stuff, but my laptop gets way hotter than either of my dvr's ever have

The difference is the laptop isnt running 24/7. I dont know why the 622 HD needs to run even when the thing is turned off.

 

[Hall]

I dont know why the 622 HD needs to run even when the thing is turned off.

Some people like to set timers to have things recorded when they're not there or in the middle of the night or day. If the DVR is off, it can't record...

Does any DVR has "sleep" functions for the hard drive ?? The 622 doesn't, nor did my 525. My SA DVRs with TWC, an 8000, 8000HD, and 8300HD didn't either. I have to believe there's a technical reason that none of them do.

 

[Pepper]

The old 7x00 DishPlayers would spin down the drive after a few minutes of powered "off" - it would periodically spin up again periodically, probably the result of getting something from the satellite stream that it decided it needed to update.

There's no technical reason I can think of that all DVRs should not do this.

 

[Allin4greeN]

My Targus ChillHub is going on it's 7th month of 24/7 use. However, it is showing signs of aging. It had run silently when I first installed it and now the fans' whirring and bearings' grinding can be heard, although faintly... I expect I'll be picking up a new cooler within the next month.

On a more positive note, the cooler dropped temps in the box by 10-20 degrees.

 

[Jared Twomey]

The difference is the laptop isnt running 24/7. I dont know why the 622 HD needs to run even when the thing is turned off.

actually I leave everything on all the time (laptop, desktop, dvr's, ect) i'm too impatient to boot stuff up i guess...

 

[Anole]

cool me down!

Problem is, I'm not gonna get down and listen for it so it could die and I'd not know it for a long time.

I use 'em 24/7 for my laptop.
Yep, I keep one running on the corner of my bed, and it keeps the computer up off the air-strangling sheets, etc.

One failure mode is for 'em to get clogged and stall (cpu, power supply, and case fans do that).
What I've found with my laptop coolers is that they get noisy with time.
The one pictured looks like a couple I have used.
I think I got about a year on it 'till it became too noisy.

I'm currently on an Antec, which was around $10..$15 after rebate at CompUSA early this year.
Still running fine in 24/7 mode.
I consider the blue LED a nice night light.
At least it has only the one. Previous unit had three, if I recall!

As for the heat, the PVR is not a laptop, and does not have a power-sipping laptop drive, so the heat should not surprise anyone.
These are computers and they are very poorly ventilated!

 

[ehalleen]

I need to cool my 622 off. Just thinking of the future here but if Dish came out with external storage would I be able to hook up a laptop cooler and and external harddrive via a usb hub? My 622 is located in a closet now and gets real hot. Just wondering if I should relocate out of the closet or would the hub work?

 

[Anole]

come OUT of the closet !

Every part of "real hot" is very bad for the longevity of electronic equipment.
At the very least, put a circulation fan in there with it; you shouldn't notice any noise.

As for the hub, you won't need one; the USB coolers don't do data, and so are equipped with a pass-through USB plug to get power.
Any external hard drive (should it ever ship) will come with its own power supply.
(and if I turn out to be wrong, I'll give you an alternative solution at that time)