Introduction
The English word “Gelid” comes from the Latin word “gelid us” (very cold, icy). As the name indicates, the GELID Solutions are primarily focused on the thermal solutions as they design and manufacture CPU and VGA coolers, chassis fans, thermal compounds, accessories and other equipment for computers and electronic devices. The company also supplies a range of products for international OEM and ODM clients. They are based in Hong Kong and has multiple manufacturing facilities in Mainland China and Taiwan. The company believes in Quality, Reliability, and Efficiency as the main driving force behind the product ideas and execution.
GELID Solutions has sent us their GP-Extreme and GP-Ultimate thermal pads. These are high-performance thermal pads offering best in the class cooling performance. The GP-Extreme is available in multiple thicknesses ranging from 0.5mm, 1.0mm, 1.5mm, 2.0mm, and 3.0mm. The GP-Ultimate is for the enthusiasts who demand nothing but the best out there. The GP-Ultimate is available in two thicknesses; 0.5mm and 1.0mm. These thermal pads are:
- Non-Electrical Conductive
- Non-Toxic
- Non-Curing
- Non-Corrosive
Product: GP-Extreme
Manufacturer: GELID Solutions
Pricing:
| Product | Price in USD | Price in EUR |
| GP-Extreme 0.5mm | 5.35 | 4.80 |
| GP-Extreme 1.0mm | 6.00 | 5.40 |
| GP-Extreme 1.5mm | 6.50 | 5.80 |
| GP-Extreme 2.0mm | 9.00 | 8.00 |
| GP-Extreme 3.0mm | 16.00 | 14.35 |
| GP-Ultimate 0.5mm | 5.33 | 4.80 |
| GP-Ultimate 1.0mm | 7.00 | 6.35 |
Prices are at the time of the review.
Specifications
Packing and Unboxing
The product is shipped inside a small size paperboard box with blue color printing on both sides that looks good in person.
There are a GELID brand logo and name printed on the top right. GP-Extreme is printed in the upper-middle followed by the features of the thermal pad. The thickness of the thermal paste is printed on the right side. There is a cutout on the bottom. One can take a glimpse on the thermal pad from there.
The specifications of the thermal pad are printed here. The size of the thermal pad is 80x40mm. The GELID in-house test results are printed below the specifications along with the details. A serial no sticker is on the bottom. The thermal pads are made in China.
The GP-Ultimate have identical layout and printing. GP-Ultimate is printed in the upper-middle followed by the features of the thermal pad. The thickness of the thermal paste is printed on the right side. There is a cutout on the bottom. One can take a glimpse on the thermal pad from there.
The backside of the main packing box has the specifications of the thermal pad printed here. The size of the thermal pad is 90x50mm. The GELID in-house test results are printed below the specifications along with the details. A serial no sticker is on the bottom. The thermal pads are made in China.
Closer Look
The GP-Extreme and GP-Ultimate are designed to provide perfect thermal contact to the heatsink when installed on PCBs with height differences and uneven surfaces such as micro-controller units, memory ICs, analog ICs, MOSFETs, and other SMD components.
GP-Ultimate
The GP-Ultimate is a high-performance thermal pad that comes in two thicknesses; 0.5mm and 1.0mm. The thermal pad itself has a protective cover on both sides. One side’s cover is non-shiny blue with a textured pattern. The thermal pad is non-curing meaning it will perform to its optimal specification right out of the box without a need to cure for some time before giving this performance level. The GP-Ultimate features an extended operating temperature range of -60°C to 220°C.
The other side cover has a shiny blue color with a similar textured pattern. The GP-Ultimate is electrically non-conductive hence a user would have peace of mind when using on sophisticated and expensive components.
The thickness of both pads can be observed in the above picture. The use of thickness depends upon the surface of the PCB. If the surface has flat or evenly laid out components a less thick thermal pad will do the job. For unevenly populated components, more thickness thermal pad can be used.
The thermal pad has a dimension of 90x50mm and it is in gray color with a textured pattern. The GP-Ultimate is Non-Toxin and Non-Corrosive as well. It has a thermal conductivity value of 15 W/mK with a hardness rating of 60-70 OO and a density of 3.2 g/cm³. The GP-Ultimate features enhanced multilayer matrix and superior material composition to fill spaces properly and offers the best performance in class.
GP-Extreme
The GP-Extreme is like the second-best out there from GELID for the more mainstream market segment. It is soft enough to fill the spaces properly and features high thermal conductivity to offer the best performance in its class.
The thickness of the GP-Extreme thermal pads can be observed in the picture. Following thicknesses are available in GP-Extreme:
- 0.5mm
- 1.0mm
- 1.5mm
- 2.0mm
- 3.0mm
The components layout on the PCB is to be taken into consideration to determine which thickness the thermal pad is to be used.
Both sides of a thermal pad have a protective cover with GELID printing on it. The color of the thermal pad is gray and these pads are soft. Handle them accordingly. The GP-Extreme has a thermal conductivity value of 12 W/mK with a hardness rating of 35 OO. The density rating is 2.8 g/cm³. The GP-Extreme much like GP-Ultimate is Non-Curing, Non-Toxic, Non-Electricity Conductive, and Non-Corrosive. The size of these thermal pads is 80x40mm.
Testing
The testbed configuration is:
- Intel i7 8700k
- Asus ROG Strix Z390E Gaming
- CORSAIR Vengeance RGB PRO 16GB
- Noctua NH-U12S
- Lexar NM610 M.2 NVMe 250GB SSD
- GELID Solutions Subzero M.2 XL with 0.5mm Thermal Pad
- Thermaltake TP 750W Gold
The thermal testing of the GP-Extreme and GP-Ultimate has been done on the Lexar NM610 M.2 NVMe 250GB SSD. In order to determine the thermal difference, if any, the Lexar NM610 M.2 NVMe 250GB SSD was first tested without any cooling solution. A single run of storage drive test benches was made in a series. HWInfo64 was used to monitor the temperature of the drive throughout the testing. The maximum temperature after the tests is reported on the graph. The system was left on idle for 15 minutes before taking the idle temperature. The same process was repeated with GELID Solutions GP-Extreme 0.5mm and GP-Ultimate 0.5mm installed on the Lexar NM610 M.2 NVMe 250GB SSD. I am not reporting the delta temperatures on the graph which is why ambient temperature reading is also mentioned. I have not tested every thermal pad as thickness is subject to the requirement which varies and the thermal specification of each thermal pad in each product category is the same regardless of the thickness. Hence, one properly installed thermal pad will give the idea of how others are likely to perform.
Let’s take a look at the graph:
Without a heatsink, the maximum temperature on the Lexar NM610 M.2 NVMe 250GB SSD was 67°C. This was with the ambient temperature of 21°C. With GELID Solutions GP-Extreme 0.5mm, the maximum temperature was 44°C with an ambient temperature of 15°C. With GELID Solutions GP-Ultimate 0.5mm, the maximum temperature was 40°C with an ambient temperature of 15°C. This is an impressive performance even the drop in idling temperature is impressive.
We ran the tests on the drive when it came to us earlier and saved the results for later use. Since the ambient temperature is not the same for both testing, we can’t compare the results directly. Hence, delta temperature needs to be calculated which gives the 17°C drop in the thermals of the Lexar NM610 M.2 NVMe 250GB SSD using the GELID Solution GP-Extreme 0.5mm thermal pad and 21°C drop in the thermals using the GP-Ultimate 0.5mm. Heck of an Impressive performance for sure!
Conclusion
The GELID Solutions is well known for their high-performance thermal pads suitable for various purposes. We have taken a look at their GP-Ultimate and GP-Extreme high-performing thermal pads. The GP-Extreme comes in thicknesses of 0.5mm, 1.0mm, 1.5mm, 2.0, and 3.0mm. All these thermal pads have a size of 80x40mm. Their thermal conductivity rating is 12 W/mK with a hardness of 35 OO and a density of 2.8 g/cm³. These thermal pads are non-curing, non-corrosive, non-electrically conductive, and non-toxic. Their softness makes them ideal to fill the spaces over the surface where used which when combined with their high thermal conductivity will give high performance in its class.
The GP-Ultimate is like the best of the best from GELID. These pads are available in 0.5mm and 1.0mm thickness with the sizing of 90x50mm. Their thermal conductivity rating is 15 W/mK with a hardness of 60-70 OO and a density of 3.2 g/cm³. These thermal pads are non-curing, non-corrosive, non-electrically conductive, and non-toxic. The GP-Ultimate features enhanced multilayer matrix and superior material composition to fill spaces properly and offers the best performance in class. They have an extended operating temperature range of -60°C to 220°C.
The pricing of GELID Solutions GP-Extreme and GP-Ultimate starts at USD 5.33/EUR 4.80 and goes to USD 16/EUR 14.35 depending upon the thickness of the thermal pad in the respective product category. We have tested these thermal pads on Lexar NM610 M.2 NVMe 250GB SSD for which we cut the 0.5mm thermal pads from both categories to the size of M.2 SSD Type 2280. The GP-Extreme has provided a temperature drop of 17°C under load and GP-Ultimate has provided a temperature drop of whopping 21°C. The GELID Solutions GP-Extreme and GP-Ultra based on their excellent performance and relatively good pricing come highly recommended by us.
We are thankful to GELID Solutions for giving us the opportunity to review their GP-Extreme and GP-Ultimate thermal pads.
