Thermal management of a personal computing apparatus

A portable computing apparatus comprising:

• a detector to sense tilt of said computer from a stationary surface, with said tilt detected by an accelerometer;
• a sensor to determine if a target temperature is exceeded in response to said tilt;
• a controller to transition said computer to an alternative cooling state in response to said positive determination;
• and
• a manager to switch heat producing hardware in said computer to a rapid cooling phase in response to a determination that said target temperature has been exceeded, with said rapid cooling phase changing fan speed and forcibly reducing performance of the processor and video.

An article comprising:

• means for detecting movement of a computer between a stationary surface and a non-stationary surface;
• means for determining if a target temperature is exceeded in response to said movement;
• means for transitioning said computer to an alternative cooling state in response to said positive determination;
• and
• means for switching to a rapid cooling phase of heat producing hardware in said computer in response to said target temperature determination means, with said rapid cooling phase changing fan speed and forcibly reducing performance of the processor and video.