HP laptop speed slow

I have a 3-year-old Windows 10 HP Pavilion laptop, which is very slow and often takes a long time to respond. Is there any way to speed it up?

If you have the same problem, don’t get too frustrated. Doing some proper optimization on your laptop can significantly speed it up. Now in this page, we will show you some of the most practical tips to speed up your Windows 10 HP Pavilion laptop.

1. Uninstall unneeded software

There may be a lot of software installed on your laptop, many of which may be software that you have never used or that you no longer need after using it only once, including pre-installed software and software installed yourself. Having plenty of software takes up large amounts of RAM and memory of your laptop’s hard drive, reducing the laptop speed performance. Therefore, uninstalling unwanted software has a positive effect on speeding up your HP Pavilion laptop.

Step 1: Right click on the Windows icon, and then select Apps and Features from the menu.

Step 2: On the Apps and features panel, scroll down and you can see all software programs installed on your laptop. Select the software you don’t need, and then click Uninstall to uninstall it.

2. Limit the number of startup programs

Many programs, once installed or updated, add themselves to the Windows startup process. This means that each time you turn on your HP laptop, many programs will load and run automatically as Windows 10 starts. This not only slows down the startup speed of your laptop, but also affects the running speed of your Windows 10 system. Therefore, limiting the number of startup programs is an essential step in speeding up your HP laptop.

Step 1: Press Ctrl + Shift + Esc to open the Task Manager in Windows 10.

Step 2: On the Task Manager, select the Startup tab, under which you can see all programs that run automatically when your laptop starts.

Step 3: Select the program that you don’t need to run automatically, and then click the Disable button to prevent it from running automatically when Windows starts. In particular, disable startup programs that have a high and medium impact on the laptop startup.

3. Clean up your hard disk

Insufficient disk space also greatly affects the laptop speed. When your laptop is running low on hard drive space, it isn’t able to load programs or files at the speed it used to.

You can utilize the Disk Cleanup app that comes with Windows 10 to clean up your hard disk to free up some space. But if you want to clean up your HP Pavilion laptop more deeply to boost its speed, using a professional third-party computer cleanup tool will be more effective.

Step 1: Download and install the iSumsoft System Refixer tool on your HP Pavilion laptop. After installation, launch this tool.

Tips: iSumsoft System Refixer is a clean and very tiny program, so you don’t have to worry about using this software tool will slow down your laptop performance.

Step 2: Select the Clean All option, and then click the Scan button to perform a full scan of your laptop.

Step 3: When the scan is complete, click the Clean button to clear all unnecessary files at once.

Step 4: After cleaning up, your HP Pavilion laptop has more available disk space and runs faster and smoother.

4. Change Power settings

Step 1: Open Control Panel, and then click System and Security > Power Options to open Power Options.

Step 2: On the Power Options panel, choose High performance. This should speed up your laptop performance, though may use more energy.

5. Use SSD as the main hard drive

If you have carried out all of the methods mentioned above and your HP Pavilion laptop speed has not been improved to your satisfaction, upgrading your hard drive to an SSD will be the best solution.

Although many new laptops today use SSDs by default, a HP Pavilion laptop you purchased 2 or 3 years ago may still use a traditional hard disk drive. You can easily check if your hard drive is SSD or HDD in Windows 10. Using an SSD as the main hard drive will greatly speed up your HP laptop, whether in terms of Windows startup speed or application loading speed.

Related Articles

Just as a computer, the HP laptop also runs slowly with time. Things go wrong when you have a new HP laptop, and it starts to lag or hang and then freezes. In this article, we will talk about all the possible reasons that cause an HP laptop to run slow, and we are sure that you will have some idea through this article.

Why is my HP Laptop Slow?

HP laptop can be slow because of junked files, unused applications, and other programs. These can be the symptoms of slowdown or lag in your laptop. There can be other reasons too, but it may vary. Some other common problems include Hardware issues such as low RAM, lack of storage, Software issues, etc. Now let us get to the point and know how to make HP laptops faster than before.

It may be difficult to determine why the laptop is running slow, but here we are providing some fixes that may work.

How to make HP laptop faster?

To make HP laptop faster, you need to do the following steps:

• Step 1: Update Windows 10

Most new HP notebooks come with a pre-installed windows 10 operating system. You need to update windows 10, which may take a bit longer to boot up.

• Step 2: Removing Auto-Run Programs

You need not get surprised here because all the laptops have pre-loaded programs by default. There are high chances that you may not need them, and what gets worse is that some run automatically when HP boots up. Computers that are free from third-party software usually tend to start faster and even shut down quickly.

It is a professional disk cleaning program and does not have a free version, but the free trial is available. Once the app is installed, you can use this program to remove the unwanted software from your lappy. This can also be a good option for your laptop to boost its speed. Even after doing all this, your lappy doesn’t get boosted; then there might be some hardware issues.

Let us also give some tips to you related to boosting the speed of your old HP Laptop –

• Step 4: Check Virus and Malware

Viruses and Malwares are no doubt the top concern related to performance issues. They can damage your laptop well and even crash it. It results in slowing down of the PC, data loss, etc. Our top recommendation for finding out the malware is “Bitdefender Antivirus Plus” software, one of the world’s best.

• Step 5: Cleaning up Hard Drive

Many people consider it a myth that cleaning a disk will speed the computer, but it works in reality. Giving a try to clean up the hard drive would not let anything go wrong. It can help the user to boost the speed and work efficiently.

Besides this, you should regularly get your system checked and also keep upgrading the RAM and SSD.

Final Words

You can use the above tricks to fix the slow problem of your HP Laptop. We are not sure what the results will be, but the result can be much better. If these tricks don’t work, you should better get your lappy checked to a store and look for hardware updation.

Like any computer, an HP laptop will run slowly over time — especially when it shows its age.

But if you are using a brand new HP laptop and it starts to lag or hang up, runs slow to boot up, freezes now and then, there’s definitely something wrong out there.

Actually, that just happened to a friend of mine, she bought a new HP notebook from a local store. Back to the apartment, she pressed the start button, guess what? It took her nearly 30 minutes to reach the desktop screen of Windows 10.

She brought it back to the store for advice. Well, it turned out that Windows 10 was the culprit — the annoying Windows Update took much longer to complete.

In this article, we are going to explore the possible reasons why HP laptops can run slow, and hopefully, you’ll walk away with a number of ideas on how to make your HP laptop faster AGAIN.

Note: we assume that you’ve already known and tried the “restart” solution, which is often the quick fix for many PC issues. So we’ll first go through the potential causes, followed by solutions and tips that would help speed up your computer.

The fixes and tips introduced in this post should apply to all HP laptop models such as Envy 13/15/17, Pavilion 15/17, Spectre, and Stream Notebook as long as it’s running Microsoft Windows 7, 8.1, or the latest Windows 10.

Why is My HP Laptop so Slow?

All Windows PCs can get clogged up with junk files, unused applications, and many other types of files and programs. All these may cause performance issues with a variety of symptoms such as slowdowns, hangs, lags, just to name a few.

Possible reasons for a slow laptop (HP included) vary from case to case, but they all should fall into three categories in general:

• Hardware issues: not enough RAM, hard drive failing, outdated CPU, lack of storage space, etc.
• Software issues: malware/adware infection, Windows registry errors, third-party applications that over demand system resources, etc.
• Improper using behaviors: opening too many programs at once, playing large video games, running heavy photo/video editing projects, using your laptop in bed, etc.

How to Make HP Laptop Faster

While it’s hard to figure out the real culprits without a thorough diagnosis, here are some general fixes (and tips) that should help you identify and fix the problem.

If You Are Using a New HP Laptop

Step 1: Wait until Windows 10 Update is Complete

Most new HP notebooks come pre-installed with Microsoft Windows 10 operating system. When Windows 10 is setting up the initial update, your laptop will take a bit longer to boot up. And there doesn’t seem to be an effective way to get around with this yet.

As Microsoft says:

“Windows 10 periodically checks for updates so you don’t have to. When an update is available, it’s automatically downloaded and installed, keeping your device up to date with the latest features.”

Step 2: Remove Auto-Run Programs or Services

Don’t be surprised! All new PCs are pre-loaded with bloatware, in other words, programs that have been installed by default. However, most likely you will never need them.

Even worse, some programs sneak into the startup list and run automatically when your HP boots up.

According to this finding from ComputerWorld on how much bloatware can slow down a PC, it says:

“Computers that are free of third-party software…on average, start up 104% faster, shut down 35% faster and have 28 minutes more battery life than the same laptops with bloatware.”

How to fix that? There are a lot of manual fixes out there, but they either require time or technical skills (or both) to implement properly. If you are a computer person, you’ll be able to sort that out on your own. If you are new to computers, I recommend using CleanMyPC to handle them for you.

CleanMyPC is a professional disk cleaning program. It’s not freeware but offers a free trial this is downloadable and usable without paying. When you launch the app, go to “Autorun” and switch those unneeded apps from “ON > OFF” (see the screenshot above) and you’re good to go.

Furthermore, you can use the program to uninstall the bloatware in batch, saving time doing so one by one.

That’s pretty much all you can do with a new laptop that’s running slow or freezing constantly.

If your HP still runs slow after taking these two steps, it’s probably due to hardware issues or improper using habits.

For example, your HP is loaded with a mechanical hard disk drive (rather than a faster SSD), or your RAM is inadequate to meet heavy work such as photo/video editing. The solution is also quite simple but a bit costly — upgrade hardware, scroll down to Fix #5 below for more.

Also, don’t forget to check out the Additional Tips section below to get more ideas about how to keep your laptop in good shape.

If You Are Using an Old HP Laptop

1. Check Virus And Malware

Viruses and malware are unsurprisingly the top concern when it comes to PC performance issues.

They can cause serious damage such as crashing your computer, as well as smaller ones, for example, slowing down PC performance, collecting private information, compromising security, data loss disaster, etc.

To find out whether your HP computer has been caught by a virus or malware, you have to run an antivirus scan. We recommend Bitdefender Antivirus Plus — one of the best antivirus software in the world. A good alternative is Malwarebytes.

Adware or spyware, on the other hand, can also bog down your system performance, especially when you are surfing the Internet via a web browser (Chrome, Firefox, or Safari).

Adware often injects flash ads or redirects search queries to spammy websites, often without your awareness or permission. To check and remove the malicious software, use Webroot Internet Security.

2. Clean up Hard Drive

Although it’s a myth that cleaning a disk will speed up a computer, it is our experience that having more disk space often makes a computer perform better, at least we feel so.

You can’t solve all performance problems just by using a magic utility, but cleaning up the hard drive won’t go wrong. Plus, a cleaner PC will help boost your personal productivity as that helps you be more organized and find wanted files faster.

There’s no better tool for cleaning up a hard drive than CleanMyPC — a tool, like its name indicates, is a program designed to clear up all kinds of junk and unnecessary files, optimize startup items, remove unneeded programs/plugins, and more.

How much free storage should you aim to get? According to HP Customer Support:

“Make sure there is at least 15% free space on the hard drive.”

3. Fix Windows Registry

You may have read somewhere that registry errors can occur, especially when you are used to installing and uninstalling third-party programs, some of the information is kept in the registry.

They may cause Windows issues like being unable to shut down the system, PC running slow, etc.

That’s why you need to check if your HP has Windows registry problems. Unfortunately, the process isn’t as easy as it may sound because it requires advanced tech knowledge.

Again, we suggest diagnosing and fixing this via the “Registry Maintenance” feature in CleanMyPC.

4. The “Annoying” Windows Updates

Yeah, I know. I also hate Windows updates. But they are super important if your HP computer is running on Windows 10. You should always keep the software you regularly use up-to-date, as this helps avoid application freezing issues.

Updating is often ignored by simply clicking “remind me later,” but it’s by no means a smart decision. To adjust that, you can check or enable auto-updates by going to This PC > Settings > Updates & Security.

Update settings in Windows 10

5. Upgrade Hardware (SSD, RAM)

This may seem a no-brainer option, but it’s probably the most effective way to speed up an old HP laptop, particularly when it has been used for several years.

The hard drive could corrupt any day, and the RAM might be the bottleneck to run large programs.

If so, consider adding more memory or replacing the old HDD (hard disk drive) with an SSD (solid-state drive). Yes, hardware upgrade means extra cost.

It’s still cheaper than buying a new PC, or switching to Mac if you’re tired of living in the Microsoft world. 🙂

For HP laptop-compatible SSD upgrades, HP SSD S700 2.5″ 500GB is the best option. You can also consider Samsung 860 EVO or Crucial MX500.

For HP laptop-compatible RAM (memory) upgrades, the Crucial 8GB Kit is a great choice. If you are short on budget, go for Kingston Technology 4GB.

Additional Tips

• Try not to multitask — always close applications you no longer use. While you are browsing the Internet, avoid opening too many tabs at once.
• Pay attention to those websites filled with flash ads as they tend to overuse your computer’s system resources and cause HP to warm up and overheat. You may want to use an ad blocker extension/plugin.
• Get a cooling pad for your laptop such as HAVIT HV-F2056 (Amazon). This helps prevent your HP laptop fan from running out wild and overheating.
• Most laptops are not designed for gaming or photo/video editing. It’s best that you get to know your computer’s limit before running any large third-party programs.
• Try not to use the laptop on your lap, in bed, or on any soft surfaces because that’s not good for the heat to vent. Consider elevating your machine with a laptop stand like Rain Design mStand. Or use a laptop stand for bed in particular.

Jessica is the co-founder and content manager here at AnySoftwareTools. She has been fascinated by the startup culture in Silicon Valley and she loves building things from zero to one. When she is not writing, she loves getting close to nature and shoot photos with her iPhone and Canon EOS 80D.