I'm looking for the best way to attach a heatsink to my NVMe drive. I've had rubber bands snap on me after prolonged use, which is concerning, especially when using it in a laptop where it might short-circuit during transport or when in sleep mode. I wonder if using silicone bands is better, but I'm not sure which ones hold up to high temperatures. I've thought about zip ties, which are durable, but I worry about uneven pressure points compared to bands. Any recommendations on securing heatsinks? Maybe specific products that work well for long-term use?
1 Answer
For NVMe cooling, you really only need to cool the controller chip, so securing it with a zip tie at that point should be good enough. The most reliable heatsinks are those that are double-sided and either clipped or screwed in place, like the Arctic M2 Pro or the Thermalright TR-M.2 2280. These are designed to fit in consoles like the PS5, so check if your laptop has enough space as well. You could also consider heatsinks with adhesive backing, though be cautious as high temperatures can weaken the glue.
Great tips, thanks! I need to measure my laptop's clearance to see if those Arctic or Thermalright models would fit. Do you know of any AliExpress options available in different sizes? Also, how effective are those adhesive models? I'm concerned about their long-term grip, especially in high temps. The Glotrends heatsink sounds promising since it has a backup for when rubber bands fail, but could those metal clips also short-circuit?