If there is one thing that Silverstone is known for, it is their exquisitely crafted computer enclosures. Replete with features galore and a propensity for fine craftsmanship that borders on obsession, Silverstone has built a reputation that few other companies can match. Today, however, Silverstone diverges from their normal modus operandi with their new Noble Breeze NB01B notebook cooler. Will their new entry into the notebook cooling market make a splash? Can Silverstone achieve the same level of success with the NB01B as they do with their enclosures? Time will tell as we take a closer look at the Noble Breeze NB01B.
Specifications
Silverstone NB01B
Dimensions: 14.15” x 0.75” – 3.00” x 11.75” (W x H x L)
Weight: 1.75 lbs
Material: Aluminum and Perforated mesh
Noise: 10~20dBA
Input Voltage: 5V / 300mA (Connects with Notebook USB Port)
Colors: Black
Supported Size: Up to 15.4”
Fan
Fan Quantity: Three
Individual Fan Size: 92mm (17.4 CFM)
Bearing Type: Rifle Bearing
RPM: 1000RPM±20%
Price: Approximately $50
While many enthusiasts think that Silverstone is a one trick pony, consistently producing some of the most finely crafted aluminum chassis on the market, they would be wrong. In addition to their deep enclosure lineup, Silverstone also manufactures power supplies, computer accessories and peripherals. Recently, they have also introduced their own line of notebook coolers in the form of their Noble Breeze or NB series.
These notebook coolers strive to match the qualities that made Silverstone famous for their enclosures: craftsmanship, quality, and a sense of design and function. With their NB01B, Silverstone looks to take advantage of a market already inundated with notebook cooling solutions. Banking on solid aluminum construction and a bevy of cooling fans, Silverstone’s new cooler is going up against stiff competition, who are only too eager to send the NB01B packing.
The packaging of the NB01B includes a 24” long USB 2.0 cable and two spare rubber stick-on feet. Also included is a very brief instruction card which demonstrates the location of the USB ports on the unit, and a reminder that the USB ports are capable of supporting thumb drives or mice only. Enthusiasts looking to connect external 2.5” hard drive enclosures to the NB01B that require 200mA or more may be disappointed as the USB ports on the unit may not be able to support that high of a power requirement.
Evaluating current laptop coolers today, one would find a plethora of plastic monstrosities that are ill-conceived and constructed. Plastic coolers have their niche, where price is concerned, but this is not the case with the NB01B. Made of thick, extruded aluminum, the NB01B is indeed a massive and heavy notebook cooling solution. The culprit for this weight is the 4mm thick aluminum construction, although in some places it can exceed 5mm or more.
While I enjoy a well made product as much as the next enthusiast, considerations must be made where weight and size are concerned. For many road warriors, portability is the primary concern, and lugging around a notebook cooler that is nearly two pounds in weight cannot be overlooked. However, for those enthusiasts content on desktop replacement laptops, the NB01B seems to be the perfect salve for preventing notebook overheating issues.
Cold-rolled carbon steel supports the weight of both the NB01B and notebooks placed on top of it. Utilizing a meshed manufacturing process, the steel allows airflow to pass unhindered throughout the underside of the cooler. This permits the three 92mm cooling fans to operate as efficiently as possible without trapping heat within the cooler itself. The benefit of using cold-rolled carbon steel as the foundation of the NB01B is that it is incredibly strong. This is ideal since you can place the cooler on a lap or other uneven surface without the metal mesh material warping or bending from the weight of a notebook.
The Silverstone NB01B plays host to a trio of 92mm fans which complements the surface of the cooler. Arranged in a row, these fans are rated at 1,000RPM and deliver a very low noise signature, around 12-15dBA, which is nearly whisper quiet. This low noise signature is due in part to the way that these fans are powered. Utilizing the USB cable in the packaging, connect one end at the rear of the NB01B and the other to an available USB port on your laptop. Doing so allows the three fans to run from a single USB 2.0 port.
It is important to note that the three fans blow air towards the underside of a notebook. While I personally have no preference, many enthusiasts maintain that fans blowing air away from a notebook, effectively exhausting hot air from the area, is a much more effective way to cool a laptop. It is a hotly contested debate, but in the end, as long as the cooler produces good results, the orientation of the fans makes little difference in my opinion.
For desktop replacement laptops, ergonomics play an important part, especially if using the notebook sans external keyboard. To offer enthusiasts a more comfortable typing experience, the NB01B is tilted approximately 12 degrees. I found this tilt to be rewarding, as my wrists and hands felt neutral without having to excessively bend them while typing. The NB01B is 3” at its highest point, while 3/4” at its lowest.
Gracing either side of the NB01B are reliefs in the cold-rolled carbon steel. The reliefs allow an enthusiast to easily transport the cooler with a notebook mounted on top, and for good reason. The cooler by itself is quite large and heavy, and picking this unit up with a laptop can be difficult. Notice that the reliefs are made of the same mesh-like material as seen on the bottom of the NB01B. This further increases the total surface area for the three fans to draw cool air from.
Taking a look at the rear of the NB01B, Silverstone includes two USB 2.0 ports and a power button which operates the three 92mm cooling fans. Serious notebook cooling aficionados will no doubt find the lack of a RPM fan regulator to be disappointing, as well as the inability to individually turn each fan on or off. The two USB ports are a welcome sight, while one will be used to operate the fans, the other can be used to power thumb drives, mice, or other peripherals.
As mentioned earlier, devices that require more than 200mA of power may not be sufficiently powered by the second USB port on the NB01B. Since the included USB cable essentially powers both the fans and the spare USB port on the NB01B, enthusiasts planning to use external 2.5” hard drive enclosures may find that their storage solution operates with reduced performance or functionality, or not at all.
Silverstone ideally designed the NB01B to accommodate 15.4” laptops. With my HP Pavilion dv6500t resting on the cooler, I found there is no notebook overlap as the cooler is slightly longer and wider than a 15.4” laptop. One feature that will appeal to enthusiasts concerned about maximizing cooling potential is that the NB01B incorporates a ledge at the rear of the unit for the notebook to sit on. This effectively props the rear of the notebook up, increasing the amount of space, about 3/8 of an inch, between the underside of the laptop and the cooler itself.
This extra space allows hot air from the notebook to be exhausted much more efficiently. Most notebook coolers on the market simply have the notebook sitting flat against a surface which in turn creates pockets of hot air. These pockets of hot air remain trapped underneath the notebook, increasing system temperatures dramatically. A lip at the front of the NB01B prevents a notebook from sliding forward due to the extra incline of the rear ledge.
With a laptop sitting on the NB01B, you can see just how wide the cooler really is. There is absolutely no laptop overhang, and 15.4” notebooks fit comfortably on the unit. With the recessed handles on each side of the cooler, enthusiasts should have no problem with transporting their laptop short distances safely.
While this may not be an issue for newer laptops with audio jacks on the sides of a notebook, the NB01B may present a compromising problem for some enthusiasts intent on utilizing the front mounted audio connections on their laptop. Enthusiasts may find that the front lip prevents adequate access to audio connections on their notebooks, although with my dv6500t, this was a non-issue.
One thing I would like to point out is that the front lip is not padded. Since the NB01B is made of aluminum, this material is much less forgiving than plastic when it comes to preventing scratches on a notebook. Enthusiasts concerned about keeping their notebook in pristine condition may want to invest in single coated foam tape to prevent errant scratches from occurring on the front of their laptop.
To benchmark the Silverstone NB01B, I performed two separate tests. The first was a battery drain test to see how quickly the three 92mm cooling fans drained my notebook batteries. I did this by recording a baseline battery drain sans notebook cooler fans, and then ran the same test again with the notebook cooler fans running off my laptop’s battery.
My second assessment was a cooling test, and by far, the most grueling. I ran PCMark Vantage along with two concurrent instances of CPU Burn-In and monitored CPU, GPU, and HDD temperatures with Everest Ultimate Edition. I verified that my processor had a 100% CPU load by using CoreTemp. Each test was run for 45 minutes or until no appreciable increase in temperature was observed over a five minute period.
As with the battery drain test, I first recorded an idle/load baseline without the cooler, then repeated the same test with the notebook cooler and the fans set at maximum RPM. All cooling tests were conducted at room temperature, approximately 22 degrees Celsius, and with a 6 cell Lithium-Ion battery installed.
Let’s begin with the battery drain test first.
My battery drain test consisted of an HP Pavilion dv6500t Special Edition notebook with the following specifications:
Intel Core 2 Duo T7700 processor
Intel Crestline GL960/GM965/PM965 motherboard
4GB of OCZ DDR2-667 RAM (2 x 2GB)
WesternDigital 320GB 5,400RPM SATA HDD
nVidia GeForce 8400M GS (128MB)
Intel Pro/Wireless 4965A/G/N NIC + Bluetooth
LightScribe SuperMulti 8x DVD+/-RW
15.4″ WXGA BrightView Glossy Widescreen
WindowsXP Home Edition (32-bit version)
During my battery drain testing, I used two batteries with my laptop: a 6 cell Lithium-Ion and a 12 cell version of the same battery. The LCD monitor was set at half brightness and PowerMizer and wireless connectivity were enabled.
The results of the battery drain tests are impressive, as the Silverstone NB01B appears to be a solid performer where battery life is concerned. This is an important consideration when taking into account the NB01B’s three 92mm fan configuration.
For my notebook cooler test, I ran two concurrent instances of CPU Burn-In and monitored CPU, GPU, and HDD temperatures with Everest Ultimate Edition. I verified that my T7700 had a 100% CPU load using CoreTemp. Each test was ran for 45 minutes or until no appreciable increase in temperature was observed over a five minute period. Cooling tests were conducted with a 6 cell Lithium-Ion battery.
Ambient room temperature: 23 degrees Celsius
With my baseline temperatures recorded, I ran my idle and load benchmarks with the Silverstone NB01B notebook cooler in place. Please note that the three 92mm fans were operational during all phases of the cooling portion of my tests.
The cooling results of the Silverstone NB01B are striking. The cooler posted notable temperature decreases in all major heat-producing areas, including the hard drive. The most significant improvement was the 12 degree Celsius drop in temperature at load for the CPU, which is quite good considering that three 92mm fans at 1,000RPM each are responsible for this reduction. The GPU also fared well at load, boasting a 7 degree difference between the non-cooler and the NB01B. Even the hard drive recorded a 3 degree dip in temperature at load, and while not spectacular when compared to the CPU, is still an improvement.
I found the overall performance of the NB01B to be excellent when compared to other coolers on the market. The ability to carefully navigate the tightrope that exists between battery life and cooling design in a notebook cooler can be perilous for those wanting to make their mark in the industry. Silverstone has achieved this delicate balance needed to market an effective notebook cooler while minimizing, as much as possible, the drawbacks that are inherently associated with these types of products.
Conclusion
The Silverstone NB01B is one of those products that comes along every once in a great while that simply does what it says. You aren’t going to find outrageous marketing claims, fancy doo-dads, extra “features” that only serve to limit the product instead of expanding it. The NB01B is a solid performer with very few drawbacks. The build quality, materials used, and craftsmanship is all top notch. Silverstone is renowned for their aluminum-based computer products, and the NB01B is no different. It has proven to not only be functional, but also offer simple elegance in a black brushed aluminum look.
I do have quibbles with the NB01B, however. Because of its sheer size, the NB01B is definitely not meant for those on the go. The unit is simply too massive and heavy to be considered a true portable notebook cooling solution. I also wish that Silverstone incorporated an RPM regulator for the fans as well as a padded area at the front of the cooler to prevent laptops from being dinged against the aluminum extrusion. Lastly, the restriction of not being able to use some 2.5” external hard drives is a bit of a letdown.
Nevertheless, the NB01B is a terrific product, aimed at a particular sect of enthusiasts, those with desktop replacement notebooks. Granted, you’re not going to be carrying this cooler from the home to the office every day, but its graceful lines and elegant looks are sure to turn the heads of your peers. While the price of the NB01B will most likely be the determining factor as to who owns this cooler (about $50 USD retail), you can rest assured that this solid aluminum cooler will long outlast any 15.4” notebook you purchase today.
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