Zalman ZM-NC3500 Plus Notebook Cooler Review

The ZM-NC3500 Plus is an aesthetically smart product. The matte black finish is very sleek and gives a sense of quality to the product, although the product’s finish does show hand marks quite a bit. From the top you get a glimpse of the large 220mm fan that provides the active cooling as well as a very discrete silver Zalman logo at the bottom right – kudos to Zalman for not going over the top on that.

The right side of Zalman’s ZM-NC3500 Plus notebook cooler shows us the integrated audio controls with there being (from left to right) an audio power LED, on/off button, mute button, decrease volume button and increase volume button. You can also fully see the silver circles which encapsulate a speaker on each side of the cooler. The silver accenting adds a nice touch to the overall aesthetic.

The underside reveals the fan grill from where air is drawn in (unfortunately not filtered) and four rubberised feet to stop the cooler slipping on hard smooth surfaces like a desk. Product codes, certifications and a serial number are included on a hard sticker.

The rear of the Zalman notebook cooler is well decked out for the average user. (From left to right) First up is a dial which controls the speed of the fan between its maximum and its lowest setting. Then is the micro-USB 2.0 input which is for the cable provided as standard in the accessory pack. Then is your integrated four port USB hub which splits the bandwidth of one USB port between four ports. Finally, at the end is the DC in 5v 2A input for the optional extra adaptor that is necessary to run all the USB 2.0 ports at full power.

Note the fan can draw power from either a USB connection or from the DC in adaptor.

The left side features the second integrated speaker and that’s about it – no inputs, connectivity or anything of note.