Upgrade or Not

16 years ago

I have a Dell Inspiron laptop with a 17" monitor. It has Windows Vista 32-bit with an AMD Turion 64 X2 Mobile Technology TL-58 1.9 GHz. processor. I've had it for 2 years now. Since day one this computer seemed slow to me, but I just put up with it. Recently my husband just got a new desktop Dell XPS and windows 64-bit and it is really fast. I am thinking of upgrading to a newer laptop with a Intel Core i7-720QM Processor (1.6 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 2.8 GHz. It has 4 GB DDR3 1066MHz (Mas 8 GB). It's a Toshiba which I've never had before, but what I was wondering, will this computer give me the speed comparable to a Dell XPS? Any help is appreciated. Thank you.

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Comments (6)

genes
16 years ago
Initially it will, but depends on how many programs you load on and how big your "startup file" gets, how often you "clean" it etc. Could be part and parcel of the problem with the existing laptop. It should not be slow
owbist
16 years ago
A big point to remember in my mind is "new" as in your husband's computer. Will it be that swift once all the programs are loaded? Seems to me that every new computer is blazing fast but seem to slow quickly as programs are loaded. Too many of these programs feel it is imperative they run in the background but in actual fact they simply slow a computer by hogging resources unnecessarily.

Try going through the link below for ten good suggestions and howtos to speed your machine.

Here is a link that might be useful: 10 ways to speed up a Vista computer
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maime
16 years ago
owbist, thanks for posting that link. My computer is slow at times, but I have the slower internet from Cox, so it's hard to be sure of the cause.
grandms
16 years ago
Supposedly Windows 7, which a new computer would have, boots faster than Vista, so it might be faster in that respect, also. But the suggestions given in the link provided by owbist will help your present one.
ravencajun Zone 8b TX
16 years ago
a good guide to follow for any pc
Help! My computer is slow!

one problem with Dell is they put a LOT of crud on their computers that is not needed have you removed all the excess baggage? What AV program are you using? if one like Norton or McAfee they are very large and can slow down a pc.
following that above guide and using a start up monitor to see what is starting up and limiting those items can help a lot.
The pcdecrapifier tool was specifically originally created for Dell products to help users get rid of the fluff.
PC Decrapifier

That AMD Turion processor should be plenty fast, I love AMD products they are excellent.
jane__ny
16 years ago
I have Dell computers, one is XPS. The XPS is the fastest of them all. It is 4 yrs old, I use it for work and can have multiple 'heavy' programs running all day without any slow down. I love that computer. I have two other Dells which are basic business machines, Optiplex and a Vostro laptop which have more memory, 3 gigs. Neither operates as fast as the XPS. I believe Dell built the XPS primarily for gaming. To me it is their best computer.

Jane

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genes

owbist

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