Windows 7: Max processor state not working correctly under power options

I'm on a laptop that has a tendency to overheat; in fact, if I leave the maximum processor state under the power options at 100%, it will hit its maximum temperature and then throttle itself.


I've tried the options under power settings, but with bad results:



If I set the maximum processor state to anything >= 70%, it won't throttle at all.
However, if I set it to < 70% it starts to actually throttle, but excessively.


I've used third party software to manually cap the processor state (and disable any other throttling done by Windows, drivers etc.) and have noticed that the maximum processor state of any value I enter into windows below 70% actually corresponds to a real <= 50% - x state.

On the other hand, any value at or above 70% processor state under power options corresponds to 100% i.e. it doesn't throttle at all.


I know that I have found a solution to the problem in some capacity, but it's rather awkward relying on third party freeware and I'm afraid there might be something more sinister at work like bad drivers, or something else.

Thank you in advance for any help.


Edit: I forgot to mention that I actually gauged the processor state not only by temperature, but performance i.e. I'd choose a graphically demanding game, use the third party software to remove any throttling and compare with the performance at different processor states.

In addition to that I used other tools to see what the loads were at any given time just to be sure.