New Tech Cools Notebooks Through the Lid

File under clever ideas that could dramatically change portable technology: Chinese laptop manufacturer Compal, which builds computers for a variety of U.S. brands, has come up with an innovative, new way to keep laptops cool, by routing the heat into the back of the screen, which works much like a radiator.

Laptops are normally kept cool by a series of heat sinks and fans mounted on the bottom (and sometimes the sides or back) of the machine. But the minimal amount of airflow underneath a laptop makes this system very inefficient, and if you've ever looked at the underside of your machine, you know how badly those vents can clog with dust.

Compal runs a traditional heatsink from the CPU into a special hinge, which directs that heat into a large aluminum or carbon plate behind the LCD. Natural airflow around the screen dissipates the heat from there. According to The Inquirer, the lid heats up lightly, but not uncomfortably. And who's handling the lid of their computer, anyway?

Lid cooling could offer some exceptional advantages over traditional cooling systems: Fans would run less often, saving power and decreasing noise. Lower-power machines would even be able to built without a fan at all, letting manufacturers build machines that are completely sealed, eliminating "dust, the silent killer" from getting into the system at all.

Check out the complete story for more details and a photo of what the inside of the case looks like.