CES 2020: Der8auer discusses using liquid metal in laptops

While doing the rounds at CES this week, Leo had the chance to catch up with Der8auer to discuss his work with Thermal Grizzly and the recent trend of liquid metal inside laptops from the likes of ASUS. 

With laptop CPUs getting more and more powerful, cooling has become trickier to manage in such a small form factor. As Der8auer mentions in the video, using traditional thermal paste can be a limiting factor here, as you can lose about 5°C to 7°C compared to liquid metal.

A lot of people will apply liquid metal on their own to upgrade cooling but doing so is a tricky process as spilling any of it onto surrounding components can cause damage or short circuiting. If the notebook is prepared for liquid metal from the factory prior to shipping, then applying it becomes easier.

Examples of laptop makers designing some units with liquid metal in mind include HP and ASUS. That includes using a nickel-plated heatsink, as liquid metal is corrosive to copper, so nickel plating acts as a barrier to protect against that.

Check out the full video above for the full discussion between Leo and Der8auer, also be sure to check out Der8auer on YouTube as he often does in-depth cooling and overclocking related videos.

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KitGuru Says: Replacing thermal paste with liquid metal is always an interesting talking point. Have any of you ever tried doing this before?

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