Is there any other way of speeding it up (any "special" ram chips I could use)?

JethroUK

I have Toshiba Equium A200-151 Laptop

Its a bit old but I'm reluctant to sell it because it was my Dads

Its getting a bit slow so I figured I would buy some extra memory for it

Properties suggest it has 2 gig installed

Toshiba web site suggsts it's maxxed out at 2 gig

1/ Is 2 gig the maximum I can install on this Tosh?

2/ Is there any other way of speeding it up (any "special" ram chips I could use)?

somersethillbilly

Follow the excellent guide here https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2436849

waddler_8

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows-vista/Optimize-Windows-Vista-for-better-performance

Lifeforms

If it's old, has it been cleaned out lately? Sometimes dustbugs inside can make it overheat so can slow things down, blow out the vents that you can see.

It does seem to only go upto 2GB ram, so you've pretty much reached the limit there. There is no super-ram, I'm afraid! DDR2, so you're pretty limited to what you have.

Have you factory reset any time recently? (Reinstalled/reformatted/cleaned it out program wise/checked to see what you're running in the background unnecessarily) etc.

It's old, it's probably not going to get that much better/faster than a reformat/restore and start again with stuff. (sorry!)

Is there any particular thing it struggles on, that you do with it, or is it just slooowww in general?

Notmyrealname

Back your data up, format and reinstall. Changing the HDD to a SSD would make it feel a lot quicker.

Leo2020

somersethillbilly wrote: »

Follow the excellent guide here https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2436849

As mentioned in the guide you can use ReadyBoost to help speed up your laptop.

You need a compatible USB memory stick or if you don't have one already you can buy memory sticks pretty cheap these days. In my experience this does help speed up your PC a little. It's not the same as adding more RAM which usually means you see a significant speed increase, however, as this is not an option for you then ReadyBoost is the next best thing.

I would try use ReadyBoost after you have cleaned up your laptop (deleted unwanted programs, performed a defrag etc).

closed

Where is it mentioned in the guide - in my experience readyboost is a complete waste of time.

2GB is plenty of ram, either post a hijackthis log, or reinstall windows after backing up data, and it should be back to like new speed

Johnmcl7

You can check task manager to see how much ram the machine is using although I'd be surprised if you're using over 2GB ram.

I agree with the recommendation above to replace the drive with an SSD and do a clean install, SSD's are not that pricey now and you'll get a noticeable boost in performance.

John

almillar

What's the processor? Onboard graphics? What OS? Disable loads of the Aero effects.
The advice to reinstall is good, and free. And don't install rubbish on it afterwards. Readyboost CAN help, if you've got 2GB or less, and have a decently fast USB stick. I had 2GB RAM and used a 4GB USB stick, and it was useful. USB stick sticking out of a laptop is just asking to get broken, so definitely buy a really low profile one.