Testing the Surface Pro Fans

Question

Hi,

My new Surface pro 2 256GB is working fine and I am very pleased with it, my question is regarding the fans.

Is there a way I can test that they are working as I have yet to hear them come on, the back of the Pro sometimes can feel warm to the touch when using if for extended periods.

Thanks

Paul.

Answer 1

Well fortunately, with a Pro 2, you can install utilities and programs.  You can go to http://www.freewarefiles.com and probably find a utility that will display system information to include the cpu fan rpm speed, temperature, etc.

I don't have a Pro or Pro 2 but I do have that Intel Core i5 (4th gen. Haswell) processor in a desktop and I can tell you that, that processor practically does not put out much heat.  I get nothing but cool air coming out of the vents even if I use the machine all day long.

The heat you are feeling which is probably around the mid-center section will be the two battery packs which do put out heat when in use.

If the cpu gets up to a certain temperature, it will then kick the fan on if needed but will shut it down if not.  Most new computers today do that and is not a problem.

If the fan fails, that tablet will not turn on.  The cpu will read that fan is not available and will refuse to activate the tablet.  It is designed to do that and so are desktops and laptops.

Your tablet has no problem if it is running fine.  Just don't obstruct the vents in any fashion.

Answer 2

One reason for loving the Surface Pro 2.  In a totally silent room with zero background noise the fan is totally silent.  I think if you held a stethoscope to the tablet there would still be no sound.  An amazing feat of engineering.

Answer 3

I think they use the cyclone cooling fans which are offset from the CPU and those things are real good.  Almost all laptops use them and is the main reason why they are usually dead quiet even when the CPU kicks the fan on.  Most of them now don't have a bearing in them and am surprised how these new tablets would have an older style fan assembly.

Answer 4

Check to see if your power profile options have the cooling set to active.  If so, you can run a program like Prime95 that will peg the CPU to 100%.  After a min or so of that, you'll hear the fans slowly spin up.  I have to say they fans in my SP2 are much quieter than my SP1.