Thermal Hero, a brand claiming to have years of experience making computer pastes, has been put to the test. Spoiler, two of the brand’s products can’t brag about their results.
igor’s lab has put two of Thermal Hero’s pastes to the test to see if the brand’s claims are correct and if these pastes are worth their cost. Thermal Hero brags about high cooling performance, long-term stability, and high thermal conductivity. However, according to igor’s results, it seems Thermal Hero doesn’t have the same definition of high thermal conductivity.
To verify claims, Igor selected mid-stack pastes named Ultra and Quantum. Unlike competing pastes from the likes of Thermalright, Corsair, or Cooler Master, which delivered close-enough results, Thermal Hero’s offerings were noticeably behind the pack. This includes both the effective conductivity and thermal resistance tests.
But that’s not even the biggest problem with these products. After only six hours of tests, Thermal Hero Quantum lost a whopping 38% of its thermal conductivity. Igor suspects such degradation is due to bubble formation and low-quality silicone oil. He notes that the paste works well enough after the initial application, leading many reviewers to think there is nothing untoward, aside from price. What many miss, however, is the fast degradation of said paste over time.
Funnily enough, the company projects – or at least tries to project – a premium-solution aura via higher prices and complete packages. Like expensive packs from competitors, they include a cleaning/degreasing pad, a spatula to spread the paste, and even an application guide. Nothing unusual for a paste that costs £50 for 25 grams.
This doesn’t sound good for a firm that claims 25 years of experience. That said, this is just a single review, thus we must give it the benefit of the doubt. Maybe igor’s lab got a defective batch or the products were stored inappropriately. In any case, this won’t encourage users to opt for its pastes instead of other solutions.
Take this as a reminder that even though thermal pastes look basic, nevertheless they require at least some amount of knowledge to make. In other words, don’t grab the cheapest paste available thinking it doesn’t matter. Give its name a quick search at least; chances are, the next-in-line offers a much better bank for the buck.