IT experts say that the average lifespan of a desktop PC is about 5-8 years, while the one of a laptop is even shorter. Typically, it serves for 3-5 years if used correctly. Although it may sound quite pessimistic, it’s not really a bad thing. Why so? Because this tendency fuels innovation that can make our life even easier. However, if you are worried about your investments, you can prolong the lifespan of your portable computer and learn how to make the most out of it. Keep reading the article to find the recommendations on enhancing the efficiency of your laptop.
1. Remove unnecessary resources
Once your laptop starts showing the signs of age, you should immediately use a file scanner. Analyzing files or folders that you haven’t accessed for a while is one of the most important steps to make. A file scanner helps users detect older documents and unnecessary data storage, such as cookies and temporary files. All these weigh down your PC and disrupt your user experience.
Today, several tools exist for this purpose but one of the most popular is CCleaner. This utility developed by Avast cleans all the potentially unwanted files. It also removes invalid Windows Registry entries from a computer. Although the app was attacked by cybercriminals in 2019 and hackers managed to inject some malware into victims’ devices, CCleaner still remains an incredibly useful and widespread tool. Avast claims that all the issues related to the cyberattack were addressed, so people can safely use the program.
2. Improve the cooling system
Probably, you have noticed how your laptop gets disturbingly warm and noisy during the hot summer days. These signs mean that it has reached its maximum safe temperature. In this case, the processors start suppressing their performance to reduce the heat output. Most laptops come with built-in cooling systems that prevent the processor’s temperature from escalating too much. But unfortunately, this is not sufficient to use the full potential of your processor’s capabilities. Therefore, you should consider some other options, like an external cooling pad that is placed underneath a laptop.
3. Get rid of malware
Nowadays, it’s so easy to pick up malware on the web if you are an active Internet user. People face this problem in various ways, including drive-by downloads and malicious email attachments. Students that buy assignment writing services from unreliable companies also become victims of cybercrime very often. But no matter what origin this problem has, you should do your best to remove malware from your computer. Unfortunately, it not only spies on your activities and steals data but also slows down your machine.
4. Limit the number of startup programs
Many programs are designed to start automatically as soon as the computer boots and to be run in the background, out of your sight. While it might be helpful for programs you use a lot, this is a waste of memory for rarely used applications. This feature acts as a drag on overall system speed and makes your machine much slower. In the setting menu, you can adjust what applications are allowed to run on startup. All you need is just to take a few simple actions and you will see a significant improvement in your laptop’s performance.
5. Disable all automatic updates
Since automatic software updates are the simplest way to keep your laptop safe from cyber attacks, it’s not generally recommended to disable them. In fact, turning the updates off may cause serious security issues. On the other hand, this action might be excusable in some cases. For example, the Steam and the Epic Games Store platforms frequently install large updates in the background, which is not really a necessity. By updating your programs only when you really need it, you can ensure that any downloads aren’t getting in the way when you are working on something important. But still, try to avoid disabling updates for critical software, such as Windows or antivirus.
6. Defrag your hard disk
Sadly, old hard drives often suffer from fragmentation, which slows the machine down. In this case, defragmentation or defragging is needed. This is actually restructuring of the disk so that all of the bits are grouped in the same physical area, which increases the speed of the hard drive. But before defragging a physical disc, you need to check whether it’s really essential. For this, you must open the optimization wizard and analyze the percentage of fragmentation for each of your computer’s drives. By defragging your drive, you can enjoy more stable machine performance.
Final thoughts
No matter what type of laptop you own, you can boost its efficiency. If you remove unnecessary resources and malware, improve the cooling system, defrag your disc, limit startup programs and disable automatic updates, you will bring your user experience to the next level. Hopefully, this article has contributed to your tech knowledge and inspired you to take some action.