> Hot and flat MacBook Pro
When using Chrome on my MacBook Pro 2018, it gets too hot to rest on my lap, and within 90 minutes it needs recharging. What’s wrong?
First, connect it to mains power without any peripherals connected to it, and start it up in Diagnostics Mode, holding the D key. If the diagnostic results are normal, you’ll need to ensure that any cooling vents in its case are cleared. Open Activity Monitor to get a better idea of what’s loading the processor. Select the CPU view and click on the header of the %CPU column to put processes which are using the most CPU at the top. You may see a process named kernel_task at the top. macOS gives that process a lot of CPU time to prevent other processes from loading the processor when it gets too hot. That’s part of its cooling system.
Chrome isn’t known to be frugal with the CPU, and you may find that using another browser such as Safari lets your Mac run cooler. If it continues to run hot in spite of Diagnostics being normal, it’ll be worth your while getting it checked out by Apple, as it still could prove to be a hardware fault, perhaps a failing battery.