Passive cooling

Radiator

— passive cooling system: a metal structure of a special shape (finned, plate, with pins, etc.), providing a maximum contact area with air with minimum dimensions.

Radiators are inexpensive, very simple and extremely reliable — there is practically nothing to break in the design, since there are no moving parts in it. For the same reason, such devices do not require additional power and work absolutely silently. On the other hand, their efficiency is very low — noticeably lower than that of coolers, not to mention water modules. So most of these cooling systems are intended for relatively weak and "cold" processors — or other components that do not emit high heat (for example, hard drives or RAM). Models designed for video cards may have other specifics — they can be produced as a component for assembling an active cooler from a separately purchased fan and heatsink.