14 DAY TRIAL // The Lenovo Yoga 12 is a convertible Ultrabook that was introduced back at CES 2012 and was subsequently launched with a premium price tag of over $1,000 / €718.
However, ever since the machine was unleashed, users have been complaining of increased fan noise. User wulffone has started the topic on the Lenovo forums two years ago.
"I just got the Yoga 13 and the fan will not stop... ever... and it's loud. It's not broken.. it works just fine, but the fan is constantly running. This is incredibly obnoxious in a quiet space. Is there a fix for this? Do the later hardware revisions change the fan speed (or preferably turn it off when it's not needed)"
The topic stretches on and on for a whopping 90 pages until it reaches recent times, and we can see users picking up the model today are still complaining of the same issue.
User dubray acquired a Yoga 13 in 2014 and here is his opinion after being with the machine for a short period of time.
"Hello. I got a yoga 13 just today and I am, like many people it seems, pretty disappointed with the level of the fan noise. It's not constant, but when it appears it's too loud for me. I had hoped to use the laptop to record audio, which is impossible with this level of background noise."
"What I'm wondering is, would I be better off sending it back and getting a different laptop or using the software to switch off the fan and possibly reduce the lifespan of the machine thereby? I'm leaning towards the first solution but would like to hear other views. Thanks for reading."
As it turns out, users on the forum have managed to find a work-around to the situation, in the form of a piece of software called NoteBook FanControl. Here’s Berzerker’s feedback after installing the version 1.0 of the software.
"To all wondering about fan speed, I just installed Notebook Fancontrol 1.0, linked on the previous page, set the profile and clicked "enable" service, now the fans don't spin up until at least 60C, which is perfect as normal/light use of the notebook doesn't make the CPU run past 55C-ish on passive cooling. Now the laptop is basically perfect!"
Throughout this never-ending discussion, Lenovo seems to be a no-show. In certain cases, some users report having problems returning the machines, as dubray reports.
"I emailed the company on Friday the 17th, the same day I got the pc, to say I want to send it back and get a refund, which is within my rights. No reply except for the automated acknowledgement. Then I emailed them again yesterday quoting my original refernce number. No reply to that either."
"I rang them this afternoon but went straight to hold, for some minutes. I hung up because I can't afford to be on hold for too long. Basically, I think the company is not replying to my emails because they don't want to accept the computer back and want the 7 day return period to expire, forcing me to use the small claims court here in Ireland."
For those having the same problem, a possible solution might be the NoteBook FanControl software, but keep in mind this hasn't worked for everybody. Have any of you stumbled on the same issues?