My HP dv5218nr is very slow. Suggestions

M

mustang1967c

New Member
Hi,

I have an HP dv5218nr laptop. I am still learning about computers and I was hoping I could get help. The laptop only has 512mb of memory and an Intel Celeron M Processor rated at 1.46ghz.

I am guessing the lack of memory is slowing down the computer. I installed virus software and I even had the computer flushed by circuit city for any viruses it may have. I am just curious if there is any other possible problem I am not looking at. Also if I purchase memory, are their general specs on which one I can get? I searched online and sites want $70 to $90 and this computer is not worth spending that much on. I was hoping to get it from best buy or circuit city when they have deals, but I dont know which ones are compatible and I am always trying to be upsold when I ask people there.

Thanks for all the help.
 
First of all you will have to open your laptop, check your ram and it should say something like

Brand name
PC____
512mb
DDR

or something like that on the sticker.
 
Hi Mustang
There are three things I'd look at before upgrading RAM.
First, do you remove temporary files regularily? These build up quite quickly. I use a free product called CCleaner.
Second, defrag your hard drive. I do mine weekly as install and uninstall a lot of programs. Normal users could defrag monthly.
Third, I'd look at which programs are starting when Windows starts. Many programs start automatically when you boot your computer, and unless you use the programs a lot this is a waste of resources.
Do the first two steps and post back if you need help with the start up entries. This requires caution.
Hope that helps
 
Thanks everyone for all the posts so far. I am going to download the ccleaner and see how that goes. I should have mentioned that when I am on the computer every now and then I get a warning in the bottom right corner which says that my virtual memory is low and that it is being increased. I will let everyone know how the ccleaner works. By the way, I do clear my browseing history and I have uninstalled most of the unused programs on my computer.
 
Your computer has PC4200 DDR 2 Ram. Thats all you need to know, number of pins and mhz and all that jazz doesn't matter. You should buy probably a 1gb stick, or 2 of them if you want to max out your computer. If you buy them online they are around 15 dollars. You'll have to put it in yourself, or if you know someone who knows their stuff about computers get them to do it, it takes literally about a minute. If you're adventurous, you can try it yourself. Google for a tutorial if you've never done it before, because even though it's rediculously simple it may be confusing at first. Avoid getting it done at circuit city or other similar places, they'll charge you up the ass to do it. This will give your computer room to breath with your programs. More ram is never a bad thing, especially because it's dirt cheap.

Other than adding more ram, just make sure your startup programs are not out of control. A tell tale sign is how many little icons there are on the bottom right of your screen. Click the arrow to see them all if necessary. How many are there?

Run Ccleaner as suggested, and do it maybe once a month or so.

Make sure your not using junk anti-virus either. What are you using?

Start with these basics and you'll notice a considerable difference.
 
Last edited:
Thanks speedy! I will probably buy some memory. I am using Norton. I know a lot of people don't like it, but when I got it I didn't think to come on a forum and ask.
 
mustang1967c said:
I am using Norton
Click to expand...

They hate it for good reason, it's inefficient, and costs money. Do yourself a favor, uninstall it from the control panel, and never waste money on it again. Make sure to restart as directed after its done. After that download and install avast from here:
http://avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html
When it asks you if you want to perform a full scan on next boot, click yes.
Also make sure to register so it updates, all you need is your e-mail, and the only message they will send you has your product key in it.

Doing this won't fix everything, but it will certainly help. Like I said, more ram and a clean computer will get it running its best
 
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