Adjusting your CPU involves deciding between power settings or temperature limits. Which approach suits your needs best?
Adjusting your CPU involves deciding between power settings or temperature limits. Which approach suits your needs best?
Hi, I'm looking at an ultrabook with an i5-8250U processor. By default, it limits performance to 1.9 GHz under full load, which is lower than its potential 3.4 GHz. I adjusted the throttling settings using Throttlestop, raising the temperature cap to 90°C. In the first case, I boosted the long turbo from 15W to 27W while keeping short turbo at 29W. This kept the CPU around 2.6-2.8 GHz with a 90°C limit. The second setting reduced long turbo to 12W and kept short at 29W, resulting in a cooler 2.2 GHz run at 75-80°C. Power throttling is active in both scenarios.
Your questions:
1) What’s the ideal max CPU temperature for an ultrabook? The keyboard gets very hot at 90°C, so staying below that is wise.
2) Which approach works better—temperature limits or wattage adjustments?
3) Does a smaller clock speed like 0.2 GHz really improve real-world performance?
1) 90 degrees Fahrenheit feels quite intense. Reduce it to around 80 degrees.
2) The temperature inside the laptop may change.
3) A speed of just 200 MHz won’t have much impact.
It seems you're using a Lenovo laptop. They are the only brand I'm aware of that achieves such low thermal throttling settings. Intel suggests a safe threshold of 100°C, which means your Intel CPU can run smoothly up to this point. Ultrabooks often operate at 90°C or above during gaming. Intel processors are built to handle themselves well. You can safely lower the temperature limit using ThrottleStop to around 90°C or 95°C. Many slim laptops struggle with adequate cooling. The keyboard may feel warm when the CPU reaches its maximum rating. If it gets too hot, consider an external keyboard. Whether you use throttling or power limits doesn't really matter much. Some users prefer one method over the other. Try different approaches to find what suits you best—small differences won’t be noticeable. Some people choose to reduce their laptop’s CPU speed to manage heat better. Whatever works for you is fine.
It's an Acer Swift 3. The keyboard becomes responsive when warm, mainly around the "F9" and "Delete" keys until they get hot. As you mentioned, 100°C is generally considered safe for Intel. I'm considering sticking to that limit for now. Regarding extended processing times like overnight video compression (such as with HandBrake), 90°C seems reasonable. Also, I just noticed again—you're the creator of Throttlestop, which I saw at TechPowerUp, Reddit, and now here. Nice to meet you! Your Intel XTU doesn't offer or support those features. Thanks a lot.
It's possible to damage the keyboard. Most notebooks aren't built to handle long periods of heavy use. Choose a proper desktop setup instead.
Acer machines typically rely on power throttling features. They may reduce performance when reaching 70°C, though this is often due to low power caps. Some Lenovo laptops adjust their thermal limits depending on usage. Intel likely lowered its thermal thresholds because running CPUs at 90°C seemed safe. For most Core i series introduced in 2008, the safe operating temperature is set at 100°C. Previously, they used 105°C but later reverted to 100°C. Intel probably assumes their processors can handle up to 100°C without issues. As long as your CPU functions stably around 90°C, you likely won’t need concern. Many data centers host CPUs that operate under poor cooling for extended periods without issues. Most users overreact to high temperatures when they’re not really a concern. If money were talking, I’d be rich from all the forums I join.