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Question

Upgrades to speed up old laptop

Jan 3, 2015 11:01AM PST

I'm sure this question has been asked before but I'm looking for more info pertaining to my specific situation.

I have a Dell Inspiron 1520 that I got back in 2008. I'm using it as a desktop now and I've already gotten a new laptop. I'm thinking of getting a new desktop to replace the Dell, but I want to do what I can to upgrade it (if possible) before spending hundreds of dollars on a new computer.

It runs very slowly so I was thinking of adding some memory. Right now I have 2.99GB installed with an Intel Core 2 PM965. My peak memory is around 5GB, so I was thinking I should upgrade and add 2GB of RAM. However, Crucial.com says that my maximum memory is about 4.1GB.

I assume this means I can only add 1GB of RAM (from 3GB to 4GB). Will this help speed up my computer enough to make it worth it? Should I think of additional upgrades?

Or is it just best to give up the old gal and go for a new desktop? I rarely use the desktop (mainly for web browsing and burning DVDs) so I wouldn't need a top of the line computer. But right now this fossil is testing my patience.

EDIT - Crucial.com also says that my "storage" is 3GB. Does that mean anything? Is that in addition to the 3GB that's already installed, or the 4.1GB allowable?

Discussion is locked

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Answer
Is there a 32 bit OS?
Jan 3, 2015 11:55AM PST

If so adding more won't help. And even with more ram, it's the same "speed." The 32 bit limits are well done so I won't duplicate that here.

How about a SSD? For about 120 bucks we can find 240/256GB SSDs that can really make it feel like a new PC. Same speed however.
Bob

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32 bit OS
Jan 3, 2015 10:21PM PST

Yes, it's 32 bit.

So adding RAM won't help, but an SSD will help. Yet you say "same speed" - what difference will the SSD make? And what type of SSD should i look for or type in to search? Crucial lists upgrades as "2.5'' Internal SSD" - is that the type (aside from how many GB it'll have)?

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In a 32 bit OS
Jan 4, 2015 12:06AM PST

That is so well discussed but I don't want you to feel put off. In short you get 2.75 to 3.5GB RAM showing with 4 or more GB RAM. That's it. There are some folk that will chat up PAE but let's let them help folk they gave hope to. (I won't.)

Changing the HDD to SSD will improve boot time and load times of apps but the machine's processing power will be the same ... speed.
Bob

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Answer
do disk cleanup
Jan 3, 2015 12:12PM PST

personally I would not put any money into that computer - just too old. Increasing ram will not help since as previously stated, 32 bit is limited to a little over 3 gigs of ram. If your computer is slow, try doing a disk cleanup. You can go to start - accessories or you can use a utility such as ccleaner. get rid of any programs you don't need and go through your startup to make sure you actually need everything that runs in the background. Make sure you have at least 15-20 percent of your c drive free. after the cleanup, do a defrag. It will all help your computer.

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disk cleanup already done
Jan 3, 2015 10:18PM PST

I've already run disk cleanup and defrag multiple times. hasn't helped much. So aside from that, I hear you recommending a new computer.

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Get a new PC
Jan 3, 2015 11:39PM PST

The overall benefits of when that 1520 was hot has long been surpassed. If you wanted a reason to get new, now is the time. You have my blessing and get that new PC. Of course, that depends on your wallet, but you'll be rewarded with a PC that outshines you're old one, easily. Wink

tada -----Willy Shocked

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Just hang onto it
Jan 4, 2015 3:09AM PST

just for everyday surfing , guest computer or whatever . Vista was always slow anyway, maybe install a nice Linux distro , there's some pretty peppy ones out there

Digger

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True.
Jan 4, 2015 3:15AM PST

Stick a Linux distro on it and have fun. If you take the HDD out it will boot from the usb/optical drive anyway.
Dafydd

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yep
Jan 4, 2015 7:24AM PST

My old compaq laptop doesn't even have a hard drive in it. I just plug in a 16GB USB flashdrive and boot Linux from it, mostly when on the road. The flashdrive is encrypted, uses less energy than the hard drive did, fits on my keyring, and if I lose it on the road, no big deal since it's all encrypted anyway. Windows computers won't read the ext* partitions, and most likely anyone who finds the flashdrive will end up reformatting it for windows use. If someone is desperate enough to steal the old laptop, they have no hard drive in it to boot from.

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Answer
Dell 1520 laptop
Jan 4, 2015 2:25AM PST

What do you plan to use the computer for? We have a 1520 laptop that my wife uses as a desktop and it is plenty fast for the things she uses it for such as web surfing, playing games like Spider Solitaire and watching videos. Even when brand new that computer lacked the cpu and graphics power to play the latest games or do cpu/gpu intensive activities but it should still be fine for basic computing tasks. I wouldn't put any money into upgrading it. If your requirement is to do more than basic computing tasks then a new computer is in order.

There's no reason for it to be slow performing basic tasks. Have you made sure that there aren't a bunch of unneeded/unwanted processes running on the computer? Open a command prompt and enter msconfig then look at the Startup tab to see what all is being started when the computer boots. Open Task Manager and look at the Performance tab to see which processes may be using the most cpu %.

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Answer
hard drive replacement
Jan 4, 2015 5:31AM PST

Remove the unnecessary programs and you're good. If all else fails, maybe it's about time to replace the hard-drive.