The Orbitron JustCooler notebook cooling pad is a dual fan system (blue arrows) with integrated stereo speakers (red arrows).  At first we weren't quite sure why speakers would be of interest to anyone until our sales guys said "Hey, that' great... now my laptop won't get so hot during those 3 hour long multimedia sales pitches."

The unit's power switch is at the front.  All connections (audio, power) and vents are in the rear.  The two heat exhaust fans are mounted flat on the pad, is spec'ed to spin at around 1500 RPM, and can move 28 cubic feet of air per minute. 

The audio connection is via a standard mini plug.  This means most audio device will be able to use the pad as external speakers.  The speakers are rated at 120W. 

We are pretty sure most laptops will not drive these speakers anywhere close to that limit.  However, they would be convenient for giving louder presentations or for watching DVDs without using headphones.

The power for the fans are drawn from the laptop's internal power via the USB port.  This should be fine as long as the laptop is running on AC power, but may be a drain if running on batteries.

The USB and the audio plug locations are different for each laptop.  They may or may not be convenient when everything is attached, so take this into account when considering this pad for your specific needs.

The rubber feet raises the laptop away from the cooling pad to create an airspace so heat can be pulled from the laptop.  Our small Sony Vaio laptop was not big enough to sit on all four rubber pads.  The larger Apple G3 and Dell laptops had no problems resting on all of them.

The air flows (blue arrows) from the top and exhausts out the rear of the pad.  In the FirstUse report, we'll run a laptop with and without the pad, measure the temperature difference with a temperature probe, and see if there are any significant cooling effects.

This unit is more suitable for use on a desk since there is no way to securely attach it to the bottom of the laptop for use on your lap.  It will work but the laptop may slide if you should move around.

Electronics run much better when they run cooler.  Some desktop units have very elaborate cooling systems to keep the CPU and the associated chips from cooking themselves when pushed.

Laptops usually do not have anything more sophisticated than an internal fan.  They also tend to run very hot because everything is crammed into as small a space as possible.

Orbitron Internations has created a laptop cooling device called JustCooler NB-808 for those that want to keep their laptops from frying themselves.

The FirstLook review will take a quick look at the device and how it works.

In the FirstUse review, we will see exactly how much cooler the laptop is with this device underneath.

Reviews:

1. FirstLook

2. FirstUse

Review Summary:

Initial Impression- Cool

Usability- Computer powered

Durability- TBD

Price- $50