Basic OS Operations Are S-L-O-W

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Daddyman

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I've always owned fairly powerful desktop computers, so I'm accustomed to having the operating system work quickly.

Last year I bought my son a laptop, which shipped with Windows 8 pre-installed. This computer is no slouch: It has a Intel Core i5-3317U processor and 6 GB of RAM. And yet, many basic OS operations have always been very slow. For example: opening a control panel applet, starting Task Manager (via CTRL+SHIFT+Esc) or starting an application can often take as much as 20 seconds. That doesn't seem right.

Several malware scanners haven't found a problem. Internet speed is fabulous (thanks to our speedy broadband connection). Hardly anything starts with Windows.

Often when Win8 acts this slow I open Task Manager and watch what's running. There's really nothing taking up CPU cycles or RAM.

Here's the kicker: The laptop exhibits this behavior even in Safe Mode.

Does this computer have a problem, or do I just have to accept that laptops run much slower than desktops?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
Daddyman said:
I've always owned fairly powerful desktop computers, so I'm accustomed to having the operating system work quickly.

Last year I bought my son a laptop, which shipped with Windows 8 pre-installed. This computer is no slouch: It has a Intel Core i5-3317U processor and 6 GB of RAM. And yet, many basic OS operations have always been very slow. For example: opening a control panel applet, starting Task Manager (via CTRL+SHIFT+Esc) or starting an application can often take as much as 20 seconds. That doesn't seem right.

Several malware scanners haven't found a problem. Internet speed is fabulous (thanks to our speedy broadband connection). Hardly anything starts with Windows.

Often when Win8 acts this slow I open Task Manager and watch what's running. There's really nothing taking up CPU cycles or RAM.

Here's the kicker: The laptop exhibits this behavior even in Safe Mode.

Does this computer have a problem, or do I just have to accept that laptops run much slower than desktops?
Click to expand...

Drive access speeds are likely the culprit. They put slow, power efficient drives In these. See if it will support an msata ssd
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, Kali
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP ENVY TouchSmart m6 Sleekbook
    CPU
    i5 4200 u
    Memory
    8gb DDR3 1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4400
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
Thanks for your help.

Once the warranty period is over, one of the first things I plan to do is upgrade to a SSD.

From searching the web I learned that many users have complained that Task Manager takes a long time to appear. After the first time, Task Manager appears much faster. That mirrors what I am experiencing. I have to do more research, but this apparently is a Windows 8 issue. I haven't come across a fix or workaround yet.

Still looking for reasons why certain OS operations are so slow on this computer.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
I have the same problems in my laptop. Everything will be low usage except hdd which is 100%. It's odd because it's around 5mb/s while a speed test will show much higher speeds.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, Kali
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP ENVY TouchSmart m6 Sleekbook
    CPU
    i5 4200 u
    Memory
    8gb DDR3 1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4400
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
starting Task Manager (via CTRL+SHIFT+Esc) or starting an application can often take as much as 20 seconds
Click to expand...
Certainly not normal. For comparison, got a W8 Tosh low spec laptop in front of me (using it for youtube streaming), Celeron & 5400 hd, small stuff like Task Manager opens in a blink of the eye.

Can't help with any diagnosis, but at least a confirmation that your problem is worth investigating.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    W8.1, W7
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP \ Toshiba \ Lenovo \ Dell E7440
    Browser
    FF
Hi daddyman,

You asked:
Does this computer have a problem?
Click to expand...
My answer is yes to that. Now, as 4wd stated, he has a lower performing laptop than yours and he does not have that issue. I'll also ad that I have a laptop using the lowly AMD 350 cpu and my task manager opens in a second or so.

IMHO, the only way you are going to attempt to resolve this issue is by trial and error. With that said, for starters, I would look into removing any unnecessary bloatware provide by the manufacturer. Next, I would disable the AV program for additional testing because Norton and McAfee are know to be resource hogs. And finally, I would suggest disabling all startup programs in task manager for an additional test. Yes, I know you commented on the inactivity there but it only takes a few minutes to do all this an you'll be no worse off for trying these isolation tactics. Good luck.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    Intel G2020
    Motherboard
    ASRock B75M-DGS R2.0
    Memory
    8GBs @ 1333 MHz
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 840 EVO
    PSU
    400w
    Internet Speed
    57/11
Thanks to everyone for your help.

I have read many complaints in other user forums that Task Manager is slow in Windows 8 - the first time you invoke it, at least. Subsequent tries it's much faster. Even so, I agree that Task Manager should open almost instantly. The problem is - this also happens in Safe Mode. Something to do with the UEFI?

Looks like I'm in for some extended trial-and-error testing.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
Did you find anything in your testing?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8, Kali
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP ENVY TouchSmart m6 Sleekbook
    CPU
    i5 4200 u
    Memory
    8gb DDR3 1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4400
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender
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