Laptop or PC running slow

Minutes to start, a spinning circle on every click, and a fan that never stops. Slow does not mean old: it usually means one specific thing is holding the machine back.

Likely causes

• Mechanical hard drive. The biggest single cause in laptops more than a few years old.
• Too little memory. 4 GB is no longer enough for a browser with several tabs.
• Failing drive. Slowness that arrived suddenly, sometimes with clicking.
• Malware or too many start-up programs. Software, not hardware.

Try this first

1. Restart properly: Start, Power, Restart.
2. Check free space; keep at least 10 to 15% of the drive free.
3. Work through our free Windows tips or Mac tips.

What it costs

A bench diagnostic is £54, deducted from the repair if you go ahead, and you get the price before any work starts. An SSD and extra memory cost far less than a new laptop and usually make a bigger difference. Send an enquiry, or see the price list.