90+ degrees CPU when idling

[Lambier]

Hi there,

I bought my Omen 16.1, 12700H, 3070TI laptop in December so  I've had it for just over a month now.

A couple of weeks ago I noticed the temperatures would get quite high in the Omen Hub program (and the keyboard felt quite hot) so I  installed Core Temp to monitor it better. I'm finding regular high temperatures, even when idle. at the moment of typing it is showing 10% utilization with a 92C temp and the fans manually set to MAX power. 

My observations as below:

1. When idling the temperatures frequently hang around 90C for cores 0-5 sometimes going up to 100C. Cores 6-13 remain below 84C.
2. this seems to be the same when I play games, the only thing that changes is that the GPU gets a bit warmer around 60C, 
3. I have had one blue screen error today, but i'm struggling to see where I can find the cause for it. Is there a way to see if it was temp related?
4. the temps have been creeping up over the past few weeks, it used to just get hot when gaming but now when idling too.

I currently have a KLIM Cooling pad underneath it running 4 fans a full speed and house temperature is around 21C. 

I'm not sure what to do with this. Should I/ Can I investigate further? Should I send it back to HP for repairs? 

From what I understand reaching 100C is bad even if the new intel gen runs a bit hotter than 'normal'. Would appreciate any insights.

Cheers

[TzortzisG · Accepted solution]

 Hi Lambier.

Your 12700H CPU has a T-junction of 100°C. Take a look at your CPU's specs here or here. If you click on the T-junction part it will tell you that it's "the maximum temperature allowed at the processor die." 

For more information about CPU temps and T-junction, read this: Information about Temperature for Intel® Processors.

I'll just quote the relevant (to your question) parts:

• Could my processor get damaged from overheating?
  It's unlikely that a processor would get damaged from overheating, due to the operational safeguards in place. Processors have two modes of thermal protection, throttling and automatic shutdown. When a core exceeds the set throttle temperature, it will reduce power to maintain a safe temperature level. The throttle temperature can vary by processor and BIOS settings. If the processor is unable to maintain a safe operating temperature through throttling actions, it will automatically shut down to prevent permanent damage.
• Is it bad if my processor frequently approaches or reaches its maximum temperature?
  Not necessarily. Many Intel® processors make use of Intel® Turbo Boost Technology, which allows them to operate at very high frequency for a short amount of time. When the processor is operating at or near its maximum frequency it's possible for the temperature to climb very rapidly and quickly reach its maximum temperature. In sustained workloads, it's possible the processor will operate at or near its maximum temperature limit. Being at maximum temperature while running a workload isn't necessarily cause for concern. Intel processors constantly monitor their temperature and can very rapidly adjust their frequency and power consumption to prevent overheating and damage.
• Where can I find more information if my computer is overheating?
  Always contact the system manufacturer when you have an overheating issue.

In fact, Intel has tested its CPUs to withstand constant temperatures of around 110°C, and suffer little to no degradation. The misunderstanding that processors have to run at low temps or otherwise sustain damage, comes from the world of overclocking where high(er) voltages are used for stability -which causes what is known as electromigration. This indeed destroys the CPU over time.

So your CPU is fine with running at these temps, or even a little higher. However, the rest of your motherboard is certainly not gaining any longevity points by having the processor constantly producing all this heat on it.

The fact of the matter is that CPUs normally (should) idle at temps between 40-60°C in laptops. I seriously doubt that what you're experiencing is related to the design of the laptop, especially since as you said "the temps have been creeping up over the past few weeks, it used to just get hot when gaming but now when idling too". Something is definitely wrong with your cooling system, and it's obviously getting worse.... I think that there's nothing left for you to investigate -just take it in for inspection and repairs. This is definitely a hardware issue and can't be fixed by firmware updates or software tweaks.

Take care!

[Lambier]

Hi TzortzisG,

Thank you for taking the time to read and answer my question. I had actually looked at the intel pages for my processor before but was looking for something relating to 'temperature'. I'd never heard of Tjunction before, thanks for explaining that.

I'll contact HP to see what the next steps are to get in for an inspection. 

Thanks again - very much appreciated.