I’ve installed firmware version 22 and set the fan option in the bios to quiet mode, but still the fan is constantly on, even when the computer is not even hot. The CPU usage is somewhere at 5% but the fan is still quite noisy.
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Thanks @strathausen - Unfortunately GPD are saying that its impossible for them to turn the fan off under a certain temperature. @Lp36746 asked for specific profile I think under 40 degrees C and others have complained on IGG comments about this issue.
I think if more people still complain then maybe they will do something about it. Maybe not?
I still don’t understand why GPD have taken a decision to not allow the user to do passive cooling instead of active cooling when Software will allow the user to choose which they prefer. It doesn’t make sense to me.
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@strathausen - What are you using the P2 Max for, for me (when I eventually manage to get some free time) I intend to use P2Max as a dedicated research powerhouse using Ubuntu Mate and Emacs.
So my use case is low cpu, low power, maximum battery.
You may want to look at advance power settings if your a Windows User and you can edit “Processor Power Management” settings I found this helpful on Windows.
As yet I havent got round to looking at options on Ubuntu.
Originally, I intended it to be my software development station when travelling, or even when being neither home nor in the office. I really liked working with the GPD Pocket. It forces me to make some breaks 
but the keyboard is really nice. So I’m working on Linux mainly. So I guess I’d somehow manage to tame the fan on Linux.
Anyway, now my wife saw the P2 Max and wants it as her computer! (The alternative would have been a way more expensive XPS13) So her use case would be excel, web and movies (but on Windows). The only thing preventing her from using it is the fan noise. It’s not just that it’s constantly on, it’s also noisy and has a high-pitch whistling sound to it.
So in either case, we wouldn’t be using it for high power in daily life (except for the occasional game). Which is exactly my point, the fan shouldn’t be running this high when I’m barely doing anything. Otherwise this is a great machine.
Is there a way to manage the fan on Windows? I briefly looked through the power management settings but haven’t found what I was looking for. I remember I did something on Linux back then on the eeepc, to keep the fan down when the CPU is under 65 degrees Celsius. Would it be hard to replace the fan with something more silent?
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I’m running 0.22 bios
I’ve enabled quiet in bios and saved changes in bios
In Windows 10 home
I’ve also modified cooling system to passive on battery and plugged in (didn’t do much at all) but have left it that way and
I’ve today changed
- The balanced power plan to maximise battery without charger plugged in and plugged in.
- advanced power settings Processor Power Settings and cut the power to 60% max on both battery and plugged in.
It’s pretty quiet now.
I’m on 8100y model.
YouTube 1080p tested with other apps open and all is much quieter. Perhaps I’ve gotten used to the loudness over the last week though but I did earlier on think the fan had gone off when I just had opera on and held it up to check. It hadn’t but it was much quieter after modifying Processor Power Settings.
I think if you see the battery tweaks video of Phawx it may help you.
Weird - so my fan noise is very loud again most of the time. I checked bios and the previous setting change which I definitely saved was no longer on Quiet mode but Standard Mode.
I’ve changed it back to quiet mode and saved the changes in bios and even restarted booted into windows, restarted and entered bios and its still sat on quiet mode. I will continue to monitor but should state that the above information is no longer accurate. The quietness has gone.
Hmm not sure, will check it out later. But it looks like upgrading the bios doesnt solve the issue yet? Probably gonna wait for next version i think…
I am also a software developer and I need a quiet PC as I usually read at night on the bed. I do this with GPD2 and I always have the fan off - I love GPD2 because we have a button specifically to turn off the fan!! I was not aware of this issue of the fan on GPD P2 Max and now I am thinking in send it back.
Or maybe someone can find an mod to disable the fan?? Even if is an hardware mod…
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OK so my fan was definitely off for 10 minutes or so after resuming from standby and resuming to watch a youtube video in Windows 10 Home. So I was watching a youtube video on the train home (360p (because i was conserving battery and mainly was listening not needing to watch).
I closed the lid, packed it away and come to open it up just now and I was surprised there was no audible noise I clicked play and resumed watching for a few seconds then I paused the youtube video. held the p2 max close to my ear from the underside and absolutely no noise at all, the fan was as far as im concerned not spinning. (I couldnt be 100% certain without unscrewing the case) but im 99% certain.
As I went to open a new tab in Opera the fan kicked in.
The talk that GPD cannot turn off this fan is frankly BS.
I’m personally not sure how I get it to go off again but I’m proof its possible.
Since we’re talking about fan here,
my dell xps 13 9370 had a dead board because of a bios bug (not sure)
which makes the fan still running even after the lid is closed
Apparently i forgot to shutdown and the fan kept running overnight,
costed me 200 usd cause i’m out of warranty.
So lesson learned now i never leave my laptop in sleep mode before closing, i always shut it down first.
UPDATE: I just resumed from standby again and there was no audible noise and the fan was not spinning. (Second time for me this has happened) I still had web broswer and file manager running from standby session.
I hit windows key and opened calculator - still no fan noise at all.
I turned the laptop over. You can actually see through the grill in the bottom that the fan was definately not spinning. I then pressed play on the youtube video which was half through and in paused.
and the fan kicked in.
There is definitely a way to turn this fan off (at least in Windows) I only wish I was a more of a tech guru like @joshwiththegoodhair to figure it out.
Also with bios 0.23, silent profile, the fan in my unit does not stop spinning even at low CPU load and a CPU temp of 37C. With none of the bios versions I have experienced a completely silent unit, the fan is always on. I sort of got used to it, but can’t imagine it is not possible to cool the device passively…
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From a brief test @milly on HWiNFO64 - I think Bios 0.22 was better for me.
I was using less Power Consumption at idle and my load time from cold was a 2 seconds faster compared with 0.23
My settings:
Win 10 Home
1920 x 1200 Resolution
Power Saving Plan in Windows
Idle CPU temp 36/37C
Max Processor State in Advanced Power Settings set to 60% on battery and 60% on mains.
I second your opinion about the power consumption being better in 0.22 in comparison to 0.23. Also the fan keeps running still despite the update.
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Right. So I’ll go back to 0.22 and wait for 0.24
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I want to also add that I’ve observed the same behaviour after resuming from standby in 0.23 as I did in 0.22. The fan is off initially and I can use windows file explorer and for example windows calculator with no fan spinning. I monitored the cpu temp during this period and it was 32/33 degrees C. As soon as I open a browser (opera) cpu hit 35 degrees and fan came on.
Is anyone else seeing the same behaviour or is just me? Ie fan stopped for short time on resuming from standby after closing the lid and leaving for about an hour.
This was moved from a previous thread ADMIN EDIT: Is it possible to change the fan for a more expensive quieter fan model is this possible?
I do not have the device yet to look but quiet laptop fans are fairly cheap?
Would this be a simple solution?
Please comment?
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In my humble opinion a fan replacement would not resolve this issue. The noise being made by the fan is mostly due to the speed in which it is rotating, and the constrained space, narrow vents, and basically due to the size restriction of the system. The humming sound that we hear is partially of the motor, and also due to the air being sucked from and being pushed against narrow parts. So the faster the fan runs based on the instruction from the system controller or BIOS the more noise it makes. Just like how a whistle works. So the noise being emitted by the fan is not just because of the fan by itself.
Hence what I feel is: Changing the system controller or BIOS to optimally operate the fan would be the only solution to this problem.
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I wish we could anyhow change the fan behaviour. If we can not change the bios, why not disable the fan and control it from the outside?
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What would happen if we simply unplug the fan from the motherboard? Would it not auto throttle the cpu? THIS IS A HYPOTHETICAL QUESTION. Disclaimer: I do not endorse doing so and will not be liable for damage caused if you do.
I personally wouldn’t like to try it on what I hope will be my daily driver but im just wondering as I don’t believe we will get a fan off solution. Today GPD state they are testing bios version 0.22 and looking to do a “silent setting” which will reduce fan spin by upto 37%
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