MSI Global is one of the leading brands in the world of gaming. If you are looking for a new gaming computer, the odds are that you will find MSI in most reviews. Not to mention that if you were to talk to someone who knows their way around gaming laptops, you could expect them to drop this name as well.
Having said that, just because a brand does a great job at manufacturing quality devices, it does not mean that you can expect flawless performance from an MSI laptop, particularly if you have a somewhat outdated model.
So, the question is, what can you do to improve the performance? Similar to other computers, you usually seek answers to find out what’s slowing it down and how to solve the problem.
The purpose of this article is to give you some ideas on what you can do to optimize your MSI laptop’s performance.
Reinstall the OS
Let’s start with the obvious one. Many tech-savvy people will tell you that reinstalling the operating system is arguably the most efficient way to boost a computer’s performance.
Giving the device a clean slate means that you will remove unnecessary system junk and other system resource hogs.
Of course, it is necessary to note that you want to back up data, so you avoid losing important files.
As a side note, if you are reinstalling an operating system, make sure to use the latest version. There is a rule of thumb that says that missing the latest OS updates means missing out on the new features and overall performance upgrades.
Free Up Disk Space
Another common issue that leads to poor computer performance is when there is not enough free space. As someone who plays video games on a laptop, you will likely have multiple titles installed simultaneously.
Since video games, particularly new ones, require a lot of drive storage, it is easy to run out of disk space.
One of the best ways to approach this issue is to remove video games you are not playing. And as soon as you finish a video game and have no plans to replay it in the near future, you should delete it as well.
It does not help if you like to hoard large media files and other data on a computer. Try to find alternative approaches.
For music, movies, and TV shows, it is better to stick to streaming services. And for files you want to keep around still, external storage, such as cloud services and USB flash sticks or hard drives are great solutions.
Clean the Dust Inside
Over time, dust accumulation can run out of control if you are not careful. Cleaning inside a laptop is tricky because you might lack the necessary experience to take the device apart and put it back together. You will not remove the dust unless you bother taking the laptop apart.
Overheating and loud noises coming from the internal fans usually indicate that a laptop has a serious dust problem.
You might be tempted to get a cooling pad and get rid of the problem that way. Investing in this accessory is a worthwhile option, but you should still prioritize cleaning the dust inside.
Manage Background Processes
Check Task Manager to see what processes are running in the background. There are bound to be some redundant programs hogging system resources.
By eliminating unnecessary processes, you will free up memory and GPU, to name a couple of examples. And it should be a no-brainer that every resource helps, particularly when you are playing video games with high demands computer resource-wise.
Check for Malware
If you are smart and careful, then attracting unwanted malware on a computer is not something that should happen.
Nevertheless, given how rampant cybersecurity threats are these days, even tech-savvy computer users find themselves dealing with malware and other security-related problems.
As a precaution, you should have reliable antivirus software running in the background all the time. In addition, make sure to run custom disk scans on a regular basis to detect and eliminate corrupted files on the laptop.
Restart the Laptop Regularly
The suggestion to restart the laptop regularly might feel pretty obvious, but it is still something that not many people bother with.
By restarting the device, you stop memory leaks. Once the computer loads, you should notice how much better it runs after a restart.
Ideally, you should restart the laptop every few hours or so, but if you notice that the performance is dropping more frequently than expected, you will need to press the restart button even more often.
Of course, if the laptop’s performance reaches a point when regular restarts are not helping, you will need to seek professional help or consider buying a replacement computer.
