Question My laptop keeps stuttering/lagging

[Noah E12]

I bought this new laptop, and sometimes it will have lag spikes where everything freezes for a second then go back to normal. If audio or sound is playing it'll stutter too. Ive tried updating it but that hasn't helped. Any advice?

 

[richiestang_78]

What laptop do you have exactly and where do you notice the stuttering? Also what are the thermals on the CPU and GPU?

 

[Noah E12]

What laptop do you have exactly and where do you notice the stuttering? Also what are the thermals on the CPU and GPU?

I have an Inspiron M5010. The lag happens literally everywhere other than the startup screen. I could be watching a video or just moving my mouse around, and it will lag for a second.
Also idk how to check the thermals and stuff, Im not really a computer guy :/

 

[lynx1021]

I must be new to you because the Dell Inspiron M5010 personal laptop was released in 2010 so it is a 9 year old laptop. Did you buy it refurbished or something? It only came with 2 GB of memory and but it can be upgraded to 8GB. You need 4GB of memory just to brouse the internet with all the ad's. How much memory does it have?
Here is some info with replacement guides for ram and hard drives.https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Dell_Inspiron_M5010

 

[Noah E12]

I must be new to you because the Dell Inspiron M5010 personal laptop was released in 2010 so it is a 9 year old laptop. Did you buy it refurbished or something? It only came with 2 GB of memory and but it can be upgraded to 8GB. You need 4GB of memory just to brouse the internet with all the ad's. How much memory does it have?
Here is some info with replacement guides for ram and hard drives.https://www.ifixit.com/Device/Dell_Inspiron_M5010

Yeah it only has 2 GB now. If that's the problem then I'll probably upgrade the memory. Thanks for the link to the guide

 

[lynx1021]

Need to max it out with 2-4GB sticks, I will look for some for your machine. Just because it is DDR3 laptop memory doesn't mean it will work, it has to say it will.

 

[lynx1021]

Here is some Crucial brand that is for you model https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-PC3-...on+M5010&qid=1563209335&s=electronics&sr=1-14

Are you in the US?

 

[lynx1021]

I have a Toshiba C55a with windows 8.1 laptop from 2013. It was a "Dog" but I maxed it out to 16Gb of memory but what really made the difference was I bought a $95 SSD , cloned the drive to the SSD and now it is like a 2019 model.

 

[mazooni]

You will definitely need more than 2gb of RAM in 2019 to even browse the webs. You can run a lightweight linux distro with a lightweight browser which could work without any hardware upgrades but not sure if you would want to do that. If you want a decent experience with Windows both an upgrade in memory and an SSD will make a giant difference like lynx has said. One thing I can add though is that you can get a budget SSD if capacity is not a big issue. For example an SSD like this one will work. Just go with a reliable brand and you can find a ton. https://www.amazon.com/ADATA-SU800-128GB-3D-NAND-ASU800SS-128GT-C/dp/B01K8A29BE/ref=sr_1_3?crid=ZAHJQQI0U3OU&keywords=adata+su800+128gb+ssd&qid=1563214395&s=gateway&sprefix=adata,aps,226&sr=8-3
Another thing to note. Older dell laptops tend to have a slight issue when upgrading to an SSD. It is actually quite an odd one. The SSD is thinner than the original 2.5" hard drive that is in there and that difference with the default bracket of the laptop will sometimes cause the SSD to miss the slight by the slightest amount and the SSD will not be recognized by the system. You can either get a bracket to solve this issue if you run into it or you can stick some rolled up duck tape underneath which will cause the SSD to rise enough to fit right into the slot. A bracket ships with many of the more expensive SSDs but usually will not come with budget SSDs like the one I linked above. If you have any issue with the SSD you are installing please post on this thread. Thanks!

Edit: Another thing to add is that you can use a lightweight adblocker in chrome or the browser of your choice to help minimize ram usage. This can help a ton with older computers in terms of browsing experience

 

[Noah E12]

You will definitely need more than 2gb of RAM in 2019 to even browse the webs. You can run a lightweight linux distro with a lightweight browser which could work without any hardware upgrades but not sure if you would want to do that. If you want a decent experience with Windows both an upgrade in memory and an SSD will make a giant difference like lynx has said. One thing I can add though is that you can get a budget SSD if capacity is not a big issue. For example an SSD like this one will work. Just go with a reliable brand and you can find a ton. https://www.amazon.com/ADATA-SU800-128GB-3D-NAND-ASU800SS-128GT-C/dp/B01K8A29BE/ref=sr_1_3?crid=ZAHJQQI0U3OU&keywords=adata+su800+128gb+ssd&qid=1563214395&s=gateway&sprefix=adata,aps,226&sr=8-3
Another thing to note. Older dell laptops tend to have a slight issue when upgrading to an SSD. It is actually quite an odd one. The SSD is thinner than the original 2.5" hard drive that is in there and that difference with the default bracket of the laptop will sometimes cause the SSD to miss the slight by the slightest amount and the SSD will not be recognized by the system. You can either get a bracket to solve this issue if you run into it or you can stick some rolled up duck tape underneath which will cause the SSD to rise enough to fit right into the slot. A bracket ships with many of the more expensive SSDs but usually will not come with budget SSDs like the one I linked above. If you have any issue with the SSD you are installing please post on this thread. Thanks!

Edit: Another thing to add is that you can use a lightweight adblocker in chrome or the browser of your choice to help minimize ram usage. This can help a ton with older computers in terms of browsing experience

Thank you and lynx for the help. I'll look into all these and see what I can do

 

[Noah E12]

Here is some Crucial brand that is for you model https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-PC3-...on+M5010&qid=1563209335&s=electronics&sr=1-14

Are you in the US?

also yes I am in the US, specifically Kentucky