At first we would like to thank Cooler Master for sending a sample of their MasterNotepal Maker Laptop Cooler for testing and reviewing.

 

 

About Cooler Master:

"Cooler Master was founded with the mission of providing the industry's best thermal solutions. Since its establishment two decades ago, the company has remained faithful to this mission, emerging as a world leader in products and services for companies dealing with devices where heat issues must be resolved.

 

In pursuing this mission, Cooler Master is absolutely committed to delivering solutions that precisely meet customer requirements for features, performance, and quality. Moreover, we strive to be a reliable long-term partner for our customers that they can truly depend on. It aims to be the first and foremost name that comes to mind for companies around the world seeking thermal solutions, and seeks to build such a reputation through outstanding technology, sophisticated design, and superior service.

 

Cooler Master's current business encompasses a comprehensive lineup of thermal solutions for a full range of applications. Its products range from heat sinks and fans to component housing, chassis, and ducting for computers, industrial machinery, telecommunications equipment, and many other devices.

 

A critical component of Cooler Master's ability to successfully pursue its mission is an unstinting commitment to quality, as demonstrated by the ISO 9001 certification granted to its main manufacturing plant in Taiwan. It has also enforced ISO guidelines and is in the process of applying for ISO 9002 certification at its second and third plants, located in China. Cooler Master has also implemented a number of analytical and testing protocols to ensure top quality, including at subcontractors, to further ensure thorough quality control. Moreover, Cooler Master's dedication to quality extends beyond manufacturing to every aspect of its operation, including service."

 

Product Features:

 

Sandblasted Aluminum Surface - excellent material for rapid heat dissipation

 

Viewing Angle Customization - choose between an ergonomically proven 8° viewing angle with the base model or several others with Pro and Maker models

 

Adjustable Fans - clip to any position for targeting hotspots

 

Upgradable Design - expands functionality and versatility

 

Product Specifications:

 

The latest Cooler Master modular product series has also reached the laptop cooling series, with the availability of the MasterNotepal, MasterNotepal Pro and the MasterNotepal Maker models, which start from the same frame but the complexity increases from model to model. In this article, we will take care of reviewing the MasterNotepal Maker model, which allows multiple viewing and typing angles thanks to its custom base, does ship with a portable USB hub, while the included fans allow mounting in many positions in order to fit perfectly with your laptop intake grills.

The product ships inside a medium-sized cardboard enclosure and on the top area we will get to see a photo of the actual item, along with a product description. The manufacturer also mentions here that the MasterNotepal Maker is compatible with laptops up to 17’’:

 

 

 

The box is provided with a plastic handle, for easy manipulation:

 

 

 

More details on the cooling pad can be observed on the back box area, along with the technical specifications:

 

 

 

After lifting the top cover, we will get to see the chassis of the laptop cooler, which is surrounded by foam material, but also wrapped in a transparent plastic bag; its appearance is reminding us of the NotePal A200 cooling pad which we have reviewed back in 2013:

 

 

 

The first part of the bundle comprises of the data/power cable, the User Manual, but also a Warranty Information leaflet:

 

 

 

The User Manual explains step-by-step the installation process of the MasterNotepal Maker:

 

 

 

This cooling pad is using an USB 3.0 interface, for optimal transfer speeds between storage devices:

 

 

 

Inside the box we will also get to see a secondary plain cardboard enclosure, which contains more bundle components:

 

 

 

 

Here we will find two fans with a custom chassis, two sets of rubber pads but also the portable USB hub:

 

 

 

The 80mm fans can be taken out of the plastic assembly for cleaning by removing the four black screws:

 

 

 

The power rating reveals an operating voltage of five at 0.25A and these were designed to spin at 2000RPM:

 

 

 

On the top area of each fan assembly, we will get to see a black metallic grill:

 

 

 

Both fans get power from the same USB connector:

 

 

 

This connector also allows the user to plug in another device in the back, so the port is not lost in the process:

 

 

 

The removable stoppers have two different shapes so depending on the chassis of our laptop, we can choose the one which suits best:

 

 

 

The USB hub is covered by a dark grey rubber layer, which is easily removable; Cooler Master thought the USB hub to be used in two different ways: by having it mounted to the cooling pad or it can be placed separately on the table, with the rubber cover on:

 

 

 

On the fontal area of the hub, we do have a DC-5V port, a Micro USB 3.0 port that connects to our laptop via the supplied cable, one USB 3.0 port for having connected high-speed storage, but also two additional USB 2.0 ports for additional peripherals:

 

 

 

In the back of the hub we do have a Power out USB 2.0 port, along with a central plastic clip:

 

 

 

The top of the cooling pad is made of sandblasted aluminum, and we can spot many ventilation holes. Here we can also spot the anti-slip grip, which prevents the equipment from slipping, but also the lower areas for mounting the stoppers:

 

 

 

 

 

The lower area also comes with the manufacturer logo:

 

 

 

On the bottom area of the unit that holds the plastic base, we will find no less than six circular rubber feet:

 

 

 

The plastic base can be lifted and removed when necessary:

 

 

 

The bottom segment also comes with the area for mounting the USB hub along with the rubber layer with cable grooves:

 

 

 

For installing the fans in the back of the grill, we will have to lift up the base station:

 

 

 

The base station allows the user to place the cooling pad at the desired angle:

 

 

 

The detachable fan assemblies can be mounted by pressing the button, which is available on the lateral:

 

 

 

Since we have opted to install the USB hub to the cooling pad, we will first have to remove the rubber layer:

 

 

 

The module can be installed in a snap:

 

 

 

If we choose to get fan power from the back side of the USB hub, it will not be possible to use the extra USB port (lack of room):

 

 

 

Here is how the assembly does look when fully installed:

 

 

 

We also needed to install the larger set of stoppers before placing our Lenovo IdeaPad 700-15ISK laptop onto the pad:

 

 

 

 

 

The laptop fit just perfectly on the pad; we only needed to supply power to the USB hub so the fans would also start up and do their thing:

 

 

 

 

In order to have a credible and fair cooling performance comparison, we made sure that the temperature in the room was held steady at 19 degrees Celsius. After installing HWINFO64 for monitoring, we have left the Lenovo IdeaPad 700-15ISK in IDLE mode for the temperatures to stabilize and afterwards we did start a session of Black Desert Online, which is well-known for consuming quite a bit of resources when the graphics details are turned up. Without the cooling pad installed, the CPU cores reached a maximum of 76 degrees Celsius, the whole CPU package got to about 78, the PCH has recorded a maximum temperature of about 50.5 degrees Celsius, while the video card has reached a maximum of 58 degrees. The Crucial MX300 SSD has reached a maximum of 39 degrees Celsius, while the mechanical 1TB WD 5400RPM HDD has remained very cold at about 29 degrees Celsius:

 

 

 

Time to see the improvements Cooler Master MasterNotepal Maker brings to the table! After connecting the product to your laptop, we have also left it for about 30 minutes in order to let the temperatures stabilize accordingly. The first thing we have spotted is that the CPU temperature in IDLE mode has decreased about five degrees, while the cores individually seem to tell the same story; in full-load, the CPU package has reached a maximum of 70 degrees Celsius, which is 8 degrees less than without the MasterNotepal Maker installed. The chipset went down about two degrees in full-load, while the video card has only registered 52 degrees Celsius as a maximum temperature. The Crucial SSD got a maximum of 36 degrees Celsius, while the mechanical WD drive has dropped one degree:

 

 

 

The MasterNotepal Maker cooling pad from Cooler Master offers quite a bit of flexibility regarding installation; the sandblasted aluminum surface helps with the head dissipation thanks to the large ventilation grill, while the fans underneath can be adjusted in the desired positions in order to match the intake vents from your laptop. The Maker version does include a base for adjusting the viewing angles, while the custom stoppers make sure that your laptop will never fall off.

 

The cooling pad is also offered with a removable USB 3.0 & USB 2.0 hub, which can be used in two different modes.

 

From our tests with the Lenovo IdeaPad 700-15ISK 15’’ laptop, we have concluded that the MasterNotepal Maker really helps with heat dissipation, so we are able to enjoy playing games or doing other resource-intensive work without overheating the components. The included 80mm fans are not noisy; with an ambient of 26.9 dBA, we have recorded the noise produced by the cooling pad 30cm away and got a 28.4 dBA value.

 

The Cooler Master MasterNotepal Maker cooling pad can be found online for about 55 Euros.

 

Cooler Master MasterNotepal Maker Cooling Pad is Recommended for:

 

 

We would like to thank again to Cooler Master for making this review possible!