I need your insights.
I feel like my laptop is “hanging”. These are the stats from the Taskbar
My current RAM is 8GB. The processor is
I am considering upgrading the RAM to 16GB instead of buying a new laptop…
Help with insights bana
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Following closely…
In my office I have zile laptops zilitumika na kina Silvester Stallion. Laptop Ina freeze ikitaka. I have three HP 8640p naona nizi format. Sina hesabu ya new ones juu employees huwa very careless.
A RAM upgrade might be cheaper…
Au ununue desktops
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Looking at your usage, 24 firefox tabs, 6 power BI windows, 16 chrome tabs…
8GB is definitely on the low side. 16GB will help if you do not have the budget for a new laptop. but look to upgrading your laptop in the next 6months. That processor is 6th generation and we are now on 14th gen so it is pretty old so not much beyond the ram you can do to help that laptop, upgrading components won’t yield much improvement in performance.
You should also should look into removing unnecessary processes example of Dropbox if you do not use it, turn off windows search etc.
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Desktop niko nayo but haitumiki sana vile.i prefer laptops juu ya stima kupotea msee anakosa ku save kazi yake. After elders wameleta maoni kwa hii thread. Mimi nadai advise on UPS na kama inaweza tumika msee akiwa na laptops.
I had plans to upgrade to a Lenovo, but I;ve had to put this on hold for now.
I will upgrade once support for Windows 1o ends (2025).
For now, let me upgrade the RAM to 16 Since I am also running software such as R Studio, Stata, SPSS etc
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Naona your disk usage iko chini but if you’re on hdd then switching to ssd should be your #1 priority. Utafeel ni kama umebuy comp mpya. 8gigs pia ni kiasi so I’d go for 16 minimum and 32 ideally (if you have the ability to do that on your laptop). That should be kitu 8k-ish in total. Those two upgrades should see you for a year or two while you save for a significant upgrade.
I have an SSD and HDD… SSD runs Windows and programs
Let me upgrade the ram and think of an upgrade 2026… If the Lord allows
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Develop a habit of closing tabs you are not using
Issue si RAM, maybe your hard disk umejaza lot of stuff, jaribu kureduce ifike 50%. The RAM can control itself. Kama hio lappy unafungua na bado inahang it means you just need a pc upgrade.
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@Wamathuruari you can also consider a swap in OS, Linux would greatly help you manage your hardware resources, Windows is obviously a hog for RAM and other performance resources.
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In this usecase I will wager you are not doing anything serious. That machine is useless for all these things you claim to be doing. Just go ahead and buy a new machine if you depend on it for work. If it’s for youtube tutorials, weka ram and stay put.
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Tough take but I will consider this
It is really difficult to give an advice that works without the laptop physically with me but here are a few general steps you and anyone else can follow.
First off, give your laptop a restart if it’s been a while. This might seem obvious, but a simple reboot can clear out background processes that might be dragging down performance.
Always check for Windows updates. Go to “Settings” > “Update & Security” > “Windows Update” and make sure everything is up to date. Sometimes performance issues can be fixed with a simple patch.
Next up, take a look at your startup programs. A lot of software tends to load when you boot up, even stuff you rarely use. Open “Task Manager” by pressing “Ctrl + Shift + Esc,” go to the “Startup” tab, and disable any unnecessary programs. This can speed up your boot time and free up resources.
A big performance hit can come from too many temporary files piling up. Windows tends to hoard a lot of unnecessary files over time. Use “Disk Cleanup” (search for it in the Start menu) to clear out temp files, system logs, and even old Windows installations if you recently upgraded.
Now, don’t forget about the registry. Over time, invalid or corrupt entries can pile up, and while manually editing the registry can be risky, using a trusted registry cleaner can help remove broken or unused keys that may be slowing down your system. Tafuta online for free registry cleaners.
One thing people often overlook is cleaning out dust from their laptop. Dust buildup inside the laptop can cause overheating, which in turn can throttle performance. If your fans are running loud or the laptop feels hot, this could be a sign. Use a can of compressed air to carefully blow out dust from the vents and fans.
It’s also worth checking your laptop for malware. Even with antivirus software, some sneaky stuff can still get through and cause serious slowdowns. Make sure your antivirus is updated and run a deep scan. You can also use malware-specific tools like Malwarebytes for a more thorough sweep.
Upgrading your RAM is one of the most cost-effective ways to boost performance.More RAM allows your laptop to run more programs smoothly without slowing down. For those who multitask heavily or use memory-intensive software, this upgrade can make a huge difference.I recommend 16gb for especially for windows 11
If your laptop is still running on a traditional hard drive (HDD), switching to a solid-state drive (SSD) is a game-changer. SSDs are much faster, and swapping out your old HDD for one will drastically reduce boot times and make apps load much quicker. It’s one of the best upgrades for overall system speed.
Don’t forget to check for background processes hogging resources. Open “Task Manager” again, but this time go to the “Processes” tab and sort by CPU or memory usage. If something you don’t recognize is using up a lot of resources, look into it—maybe it’s an app you can shut down, or in some cases, an unnecessary process you can uninstall.
Also, make sure your drivers are up to date. Old or corrupted drivers, especially for things like your graphics card or storage devices, can cause serious performance issues. Head to “Device Manager,” right-click on your hardware, and choose “Update driver.”
Lastly, if nothing seems to be working and the laptop is still sluggish, you can do a fresh install of Windows. This will completely wipe out any bloatware or software conflicts, giving you a clean slate to start fresh. Just be sure to back up your files beforehand.
Hii yote ikikosa kufunction take it to a reputable service shop might be a hardware issue causing the ram to run at slower clock speeds, ‘beaten up’ IC’s that need reballing, damaged bus pathways e.t.c a real service shop will test all hardware equipments are capable of running at full capacity under stress tests.
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