Hardware Monitor

Hardware Monitor Publisher's Description:
Hardware Monitor is an application to read out all accessible hardware sensors in Macintosh computers. Currently more than 100 different Macintosh hardware sensors and more than 200 hard drive temperature sensors are supported. The program can display and visualize measured values in a large variety of fashions. It can also store and export readings. This includes the following sensor types:

* Temperarature readings at different locations
* Battery data of portable computers
* Voltage sensors
* Current (amperage) sensors
* Fan speed sensors
* Sensors for pulse-width controlled fans
* Power and load sensors
* Ambient light sensors
* User-defined artificial sensors to monitor the operating system

Moreover, the applications can display additional technical information about your computer. Among other information this includes:

* Processor type
* Processor and bus frequencies
* Manufacturing information

Of course the applications can read out the data only if your computer is equipped with the necessary sensors, and if Mac OS X can access them without needing third-party device drivers. Beginning in summer 2002, Apple has begun to massively drive forward the use of monitoring probes in the PowerMac series, the Xserve series, and in portable computers. Some models are equipped with 38 and more sensors. But Hardware Monitor can detect sensors on many older systems as well if they are available.

We try to detect all sensors on as many Macintosh computer types as possible. However, a prediction which sensors are available in which models is not possible, because Apple very often releases "silent product updates", where the hardware equipments of some models are changed but the names are not (specifications are"subject to change without notice"). The particular graphics card and hard disk configuration used is also important because these parts can include independent sensors, too.

What's new in this version:

* Added support for new portable Mac systems with Intel T8000 processors.
* Added temperature sensor support for the standard PATA hard drive of the MacBook Air.
* Support for on-core temperature sensors of Intel processors based on 45 nm technology ("Penryn") has been modified: As confirmed by Intel, the core sensors behave no longer linear enough for the display of absolute readings in low temperature ranges. For this reason, support for core temperature sensors in 45 nm technology has been removed in Temperature Monitor. Hardware Monitor will display them as logical sensors showing "Core Hot" status information.
* The application will now detect first generation Intel Core processors which are affected by a hardware problem that can cause the core temperature sensors to stop working after the system wakes from sleep mode.
* Enhanced support for CPU clock frequency monitoring, especially on systems with Xeon 5400 processors and MacBooks running Leopard or running without a battery unit.
* Added a workaround for a security problem in Mac OS X which affects systems containing a GPU of the ATI Radeon X1000 series. In those systems, the GPU driver can crash, causing the screen content to freeze. Hardware Monitor now tries to avoid situations that could increase the likelihood for this defect to become noticable. NOTE: It is our policy not to discuss security holes in third-party products before giving the vendor (Apple) six months time to fix this problem.
* Corrected a problem with the display of Intel processor model codes when the model code was greater than 15.