Features and Use

With Cooler Master's NotePal, we have an aluminum apparatus (with dimensions of 320mm x 300mm x 42 mm) that fits underneath most laptops. It is angled on a downward slope facing the user, and it feels like those hand-rest attachments for desktop keyboards. Typing feels easier than normal when the whole thing is set up on a flat surface. When placing it on a lap, there is some extra room for arms to manoeuvre due to the slope.

When placing the laptop on the NotePal, you may notice a concavity under the main section where the twin 70mm fans may blow air through the bottom (more on this later). The fans are powered through a USB connection; a USB cable is provided, and there are two USB ports on the NotePal itself in the back. One is meant to replace the one port lost due to connecting the NotePal to the laptop and the other is meant for powering the fans. There is also a power button for the fans.

The fans are very quiet at 21dBA and are even quieter with the laptop covering them; each fan is rated at 1700rpm with 10.5CFM. We did see a potential problem with the fan hitting the fan guard. If this is the case, all you need to do is unscrew the fan guards and bend them inwards slightly so that the fans have a bit more space so they do not brush up against the guards. It is not so much a faulty design as it is a manufacturing or shipping and handling problem because the fan guards are only slightly out of place; the "defect" is actually not apparent until the fans are making a terrible sound.