Nanotherm Blue vs. Artic Alumina

OK, so the economy is rather poor at the moment. So what should computer related manufacturers do? Lower prices on more expensive items, or create more cost conscious ones? Arctic Silver has just introduced a new line of grease with some very mouthwatering characteristics: low price and non-metallic content. But how's the performance? Do we get Chevy performance for a Chevy price?

Factory Specifications

Nanotherm Blue

Available in two flavors: Ice & Blue
Negligible Electrical Conductivity
Thick, Viscous, Sticky Consistency
Does not Separate, Leech or Dry Out
Price: $5.95 USD for 1g/1cc

ESG Associates

8/10 Rating

Factory Specifications

Arctic Alumina

Layered composite of aluminum oxide and boron nitride to provide near Arctic Silver II level performance
Does not contain any silicone
The first thermal compound engineered for controlled triple phase viscosity
Price: $3.95 USD for 1.75g

Arctic Alumina

10/10 Rating

I remember an old TV ad that opened with senior citizens driving down a crowed street. A woman asked the male driver about changing the car's oil and his reply was, "motor oil is motor oil."

When setting up your new P4 or T'bird screamer, I'm sure most consider very carefully every single part that goes into the case. Except for some odd reason, the thermal grease gets left out. Some argue the benefits when grease is substituted for an inefficient pad, but is there is difference between greases themselves? Can one be significantly better than another? If you recall my aging Arctic Silver review, you'll see that quality of thermal paste varies greatly.

What I've discovered with heatsink compound is that generally speaking, you want a thick viscous compound. This is good for several reasons. First, a viscous grease is less prone to drying out over time (months, years). Second, tiny air pockets are less likely to decrease the tight coupling between heatsink and CPU.

Arctic Alumina is similar to Nanotherm Ice and Blue in that they both veer away from using small micronized metallic particles. These Metallic particles aren't necessarily bad; however, with all electrically conductive particles, some risk of damage may occur either over time or under extreme pressure. No need to worry with either Ice, Blue or Alumina.

Both products clean up rather well, unlike Arctic Silver, which must be almost "power washed" with isopropyl alcohol or something similar. For quick grease upgrades, the two greases tested today are very easy to apply and remove.

Notice on the testing page that the video card heat measurements are missing. During testing of the Nanotherm products, I thought I was getting some suspiciously low video temps and when I popped the side cover of the InWin S500 case, I saw my thermal sensor was 1mm above the video card instead of sitting squarely on it.

The CPU maximum temp hits 118ºF with Alumina, which is 2ºF lower than Blue. I believe that this is why the peak case temp is also 2ºF higher. More hot air is being expelled into the case as a whole, even though the video card temp hasn't been adversely affected.