As technology has advanced, smaller devices have become more powerful. And it's one reason why laptops have soared in popularity; leaving desktops facing an uncertain future. A modern laptop can now allow you to play next-gen games, trade the financial markets, run a business, and stream high-res movies. So, there are a lot of activities where performance is important.

Like all tech, however, you can find your laptop doesn't run as smoothly as it should. If a slow-running device is stopping you from doing things, here are some reasons why that might be:

Too many active programs running

It doesn't matter if you've logged onto your laptop to do one thing or many things. If you have a load of programs open, each one drains your memory and processing power. Some programs are more intensive than others too. If your laptop is running slow, then, first check what's open on your machine. Close all of the programs that aren't critical to what you're doing.

The same can also apply if you're doing some research and have opened multiple browser tabs.  

No more space on your hard drive

The longer you own your laptop, the more likely you'll end up filling up the hard drive with files, photographs, and applications. There can also be a mountain of temporary files you aren't even aware of. So, one obvious option is to purge the files you no longer need and free up space.

If that isn't actually an option, however, there is another solution. You can upgrade your laptop with compute modules that expand its memory and give you extra power in that department.

Been infected with a computer virus?

As more devices have the ability to connect to the internet, the chance of yours falling victim to a virus grows. There are many different forms of virus and malware out there – and each one is capable of causing real mayhem. In fact, millions of UK citizens suffer as a result of cyber crime each year. A slow-running laptop can be a tell-tale sign of something not being right.

Hardware or drivers require updating

Your programs and peripherals are all subject to periodic updates from the manufacturers. Most of these updates and patches can feel like an inconvenience. On one key level, however, they're intended to fix bugs and enhance security. But updating hardware and their drivers is important for keeping things running as you'd want it to be.

Power options not properly configured

With the myriad of keyboard and button shortcuts, it's entirely possible you might have set one up (or activated one) without realising. If one of these happens to be low power mode, then it's likely you'll see your laptop's performance dwindle as a result. Your device will be equipped with at least two different modes – so check to see if your power options are configured correctly.

Hopefully, with these tips and tricks, you'll have solved your slow computer problem and be back up and running again in no time!