Laptops are great, and they have changed the way people use computers and complete work. You would be hard-pressed to complete articles in a coffee shop with a desktop computer.
However, with laptops, a lot of things have been cut back, to make them lighter and easier to use. While, for most people, this is not an issue, if you use your laptop beyond its means, you may find that it begins to slow down, glitch, or even overheat and shut off altogether. Not good.
If you have tried cooling your laptop or using it within certain parameters and it is still slow, there may be some underlying issues. In this article, you will be guided through some of the common mistakes that laptop owners make that slow the machine down.
Not Looking at the RAM
The RAM, or random-access memory, is kind of like your laptop’s short-term memory. So, as so little of it gets converted to the long-term part of the machine, like the hard drive, if the RAM becomes full, it can cause the machine to slow down.
Luckily, you can upgrade your RAM with ease on some laptops, like the ones on https://www.lenovo.com/us/en/d/i7-laptops/, and this will allow your computer to operate more smoothly. Alternatively, you may need to simply upgrade your computer if there is nothing to delete from the machine.
Not Defragmenting the Hard Drive
The long-term memory part of your computer, or your hard drive, can slow it down too. So, to keep the entire system running, you will need to perform regular defragmenting operations.
In simple terms, if you have downloaded a small file to your computer, the code may have become scattered into other programs, causing the files that you need to run to slow down. By defragmenting the hard drive, all of these files are grouped and speed the machine up.
Not Deleting Background Programs
When you turn on your laptop, you may unknowingly be running lots of background programs at the same time, which will cause the entire laptop to slow down and be temperamental.
This is easily identified by you checking your task manager and closing or deleting the background programs. This will help your laptop to run faster and, if you delete the programs, it will also allow you to free up some space too.
Not Updating Anti-Virus Software
Viruses and malware can hide in the background of your device and cause it to slow down gradually. So, it is well worth updating your anti-virus software, and malware protection, to prevent the laptop from suffering from these issues, which can also cause the laptop to shut down irretrievably if they are not dealt with. Also, be sure to scan your laptop for viruses weekly.
Not Allowing the Laptop to Update
Updates can be a pain, especially when you are working, but it is worth allowing the system to update itself, as it can speed up the performance of the laptop. Just make sure there is adequate room on the laptop for the updates to occur.