Why Do Laptops Get So Slow?
There's nothing that feels quite as good as a brand new, fresh, and still speedy laptop. Boot up time is very short. Whatever you click on or try to open jumps into view nearly instantaneously. There is very little lag time between your movements and the computer's reaction.
But for whatever reason, it seems like laptops slow down over time. That is strange. What would have changed? Why would it slow down? But this does seem to happen to every laptop I've ever owned.
Just as soon as you've gotten used to a speedy laptop and forgotten all about your frustrations with your old slow laptop, the new laptop begins to slow. Gradual at first, but it becomes extreme eventually.
Boot up takes minutes, then tens of minutes. You click on a computer program and it takes several minutes to open. You try to click on something and the whole computer freezes up. Sometimes it even gets so bad that it crashes.
Uggghhhhh!!!
It is so annoying!
I have researched online to find out what causes laptops to get slower over time and what can be done to remedy the situation. I have learned lots of potential causes and fixes, but they only ever improve things temporarily.
One trick I've found is to reduce the number of applications that try to launch automatically when you first start your computer. You go to the task manager by pressing CTRL, ALT, and DEL all at the same time. Then you click on the tab called "Startup". That list is all of the stuff that would like to begin working every time you boot up. Go through that list and decide what you don't actually need every time you start up your computer and "disable" it so that it won't use up your processing power on boot up.
I've read that disc defrag can be helpful. Disc Defragmentation is a process that organizes and condenses the data stored on your mechanical platter style hard drive. After you have used your computer for a while, you will have saved lots of stuff and deleted lots of stuff. As you do this, you create small areas of available memory that are too small to store any complete files. In order to make use of the little pockets of memory, the hard drive will break up a file and store it's portions in multiple locations. That is a clever way to use up available memory, but it means that when trying to retrieve that file later, it will have to work harder to find all of the pieces. That can make your computer run slowly.
Defragmenting the disc means that the hard drive will look for all of the bits of files and try to move them to available space so that they are stored in their complete form again. Depending on how many fragmented files you have, this process can take a long time. But sometimes it is worth it because a defragmented hard drive can make your computer faster.
One option that people have which should make your laptop work like new again is to reinstall your operating system. If you do a fresh install of Windows, then it will be exactly like it was when you first turned it on after you bought it. The obvious downside is that you will have lost all of your files and your downloads. Any necessary programs you had installed will be gone and will need to be reinstalled. That can be a major pain, but the opportunity to start over with a quick laptop again could make it worthwhile.
Installing programs and accumulating files could be exactly what slowed the computer in the first place, so doing that again immediately after a fresh install of the operating system might cause it to slow again.
I have only owned Windows laptops. I've never owned a Linux or an Apple laptop.
I have used other people's Mac laptops. My wife has a Mac. Macs seem to stay like new forever. They are always quick. They never slow down.
I'm not sure what makes Windows computers slow down over time, but I have spent a lot of time researching the problem and its potential fixes and have never found anything that works for very long. I don't have any allegiance to Windows. It has simply been the built in operating system on the computers I've owned.
People say that Windows is the operating system of the business world, but Macs have been grown in their ability to perform business tasks. They now have a native software productivity suite that is just as good as Microsoft Office. There is nothing I can think of that Macs can't do that I would need to have Windows for.
I have given Windows more than enough of a chance to improve their offering and performance, but they have failed me every time.
I have decided that I will be switching to a Mac the next time I buy a laptop. And unless I find something bad in that experience, I will be a Mac owner for life.
I just want a laptop that works and keeps on working. I want a laptop which works quickly every time I open it. If Mac is what provides that, then Mac is what I want.
Has every laptop you've ever owned eventually slowed down? How do you like Windows versus Macs? Do you know of a surefire way to speed up a lagging laptop? Do you know what causes laptops to become slow? Let me know in the comments!
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