The two biggest Computer Killers – Review

This is an add-on to my previous article “The two biggest Computer Killers” and focusses on two things; the Mac Pro (all models) and dust. In that article i describe what dust can do to a machine, amongst other things. A company called Transintl. Inc. has released a dust filter for the Mac Pro a couple of months ago called the iSchmutz Air Filter. I ordered one as my do-it-yourself filter got the job done but was hideous to look at. Here are my impressions.

Know that foam that’s inside shipping boxes? The iSchmutz is basically just a sheet of that stuff with adhesive strips on it. But as i, and many more folks, are simply not interested in creating an air filter ourselves, the $25 was spent.

The first version had a grey color and the adhesive strips were too weak causing the iSchmutz to separate from the adhesive strips. This resulted in an eyesore and having to stick the filter back in place several times a day. The shade of grey that was used was also not convenient, t was very hard to see if it was time to clean the filter. I contacted Transintl and a support rep told me a lot of people experienced the exact same issue and they were working on a second version which i would receive in the mail soon.
It has been a few weeks and the second version is perfect. The adhesive is much stronger so the filter stays in place perfectly and the color is darker so it’s easy to see when it needs to be cleaned.

I have carefully monitored the internal temperatures and fan behaviors before and after applying the iSchmutz and have found no difference at all, the filter allows for enough air flow even when the fans are at idle speeds. What i did notice was a huge decrease in dust inside the machine. Mind you this is not a HEPA filter so there is still some dust that is sucked in by this monster but not nearly as much. After a few days or weeks of use the filter will show you exactly how much stuff it has kept out of your machine. Specially if you have pets.

The Mac Pro is a very powerful machine that runs hot. With it’s efficient design, powerful fans and it’s position usually being on the ground next to a desk, it sucks up a lot of dust and debris you do not want inside your expensive machine. The iSchmutz helps a great deal and i recommend it. Can you build one yourself with some patience and $5 worth of material? Sure. Do you really want to make one yourself? Nah.

The iSchmutz has strong adhesive strips but worry not, they do not leave any residue on your Mac and the fit is very precise. For those that may have purchased the first version of this product, contact Transintl to make sure you get a V2. Even though they were aware of the issues they have kept their mouth shut to buyers of the V1 so they wouldn’t have to send out new ones. While this is shady on their end, once you do contact service they are pretty helpful.

You can find the iSchmutz here.

Note: Though with some small modifications this filter could fit on a Power Mac G5 i strongly advise against doing that. The G5 runs very hot and needs all the cooling it can get. Applying this filter on a G5 will cause the unit to run much hotter and fans to blow much harder/louder.