I need computer help and suggestions

I use my computer A LOT

My computer is a seven year old Dell PC.

It has become so slow that I get frustrated....

My questions:

How do you know when to replace vs repair?

I have searched and tried to find my passwords do that if I ever do replace, then I will have my passwords.... but I cannot do it.

Anyone know a computer tech they trust not to steal passwords when they work on computer?

If you want a fast computer, what is the spec that is most important?

I am in Mansfield, just South of Ft Worth near Arlington.

The last two I replaced, I just went to the Geek Squad at Best Buy. I had them transfer all hard drive data to the new PC, which was, at my request, the fastest they had, and with SST drives.

One of those previous computers ‘died’, after warning me it was about to happen, I didn’t get all data moved to another drive before it went toes down. The Geek Squad was able to retrieve all the data I had thought was gone forever.

But, can they be trusted? I had to trust them, but there really wasn’t anything super confidential on the computers, so risk was low.

What 603 said. Done this twice over 15 or so years. It’s nice to have some confidence it’s done right. And they stand behind their work.

While there are plenty of smaller businesses out there capable of the task, finding one thats reputable is a chore. If you’re in a metro area (which you are) I suggest BB as well. Make an appt. online and drag that box up there. Don’t take anything else. They won’t need it.

Clean out your temp files for starters. What is your version of windows are you on?

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us...ows-8a96ff42-5751-39ad-23d6-434b4d5b9a68

The cost of a new PC versus your time waiting for the current PC to do the work is very small.

Get a new mid level PC from BestBuy and have them move your data.

Less than $1000 and you will be set.

I am currently on a Dell desktop that's twice as old as yours, that I built and purchased from Dell back in 2010. I maxed out RAM (16GB) and got the fastest processor I could get at the time.

The only thing I've really done is replace the hard drive a couple of times, especially with the move from W7 to W10, and am currently on a 2TB SSD. I also installed a high quality power supply that provides clean and consistent power to the system.

I do clean out all the garbage temp and internet files from time to time too, and back up all personal files to an internal AND external hard drive.

It is as fast as the brand new HP work laptop that's sitting right beside it. Something to think about if you're not interested in buying a new PC or going to Windows 11. YMMV.

I have been thru many laptops, Done the Dell, HP, Fujitsu etc

I finally broke down and got Lenovo, they are lightweight, and well built

Lenova will put their ThinkPad Carbon X1 Carbon on sale next month for Black Friday if you can wait.

I have these in 14" and 16" and had them for a few years now, only had to replace battery since many places I travel I don't have access to electricty and need to use battery function which is quit impressive.

This one is Door Buster Special and priced well, it should be cheaper for Black Friday, they hold up well

Lenovo X1 ThinkPad Carbon

You forgot to mention the Chinese backdoor option.

https://thehackernews.com/search/label/Lenovo%20Backdoor%20Malware

They are the best bang for the money out there, I have went thru them all, been there done that.

What do you use your Laptop for?

I'm happy with my HP from Best Buy. I bought the biggest Geek Squad protection plan. I take it to them a couple times a year for a full debugging, refresh, etc.

Easy Peasy. They keep it 2-3 days.

For me, I use mine for everything.

I never buy any protection plans, I just buy a good top of the line laptop, I travel with mine as well and need something light but powerful.

If you are comfortable with using your computer you can free up a lot of space in a short time.You probably have third party tracking from some of the websites you visit.You also have many many Temp files that are no use but it taking up HD space and and causing your computer to run slow.
Getting rid of those files and programs will make your computer run a lot faster as I do mine every once in awhile.
If you were closer I think I could show you how to keep your pc running a lot better than it is now.

I left windows machines decades ago and went with Macbooks, best personal computer decision I ever made. JMHO

For passwords I use LastPass - it is very inexpensive and has worked well for me over the years - it stores all of your passwords in their vault - literally just click on the site you want in your vault and it logs in without you having to type in your username or password - it has a prompt verification code it texts to your phone for additional safety. I highly suggest checking into it

My 15 yr old Toshiba still works even though the battery is shot. With Linux, it's still pretty fast. Did OK with Win7 but after that I dumped Win. Best Buy is decent though.

What flavor of linux are you using?

Saving what you want to an external hard drive and reinstalling Windows does wonders.

This 100%! If you are comfortable switching platforms, MacBook is the way to go. I had a 2007 MacBook Pro that I swapped because I wanted the touch bar, I cant tell the difference in performance.


And are you talking about the saved password for websites and applications?

It's time to replace if it's 7 yrs old.

If you go with Dell get a Latitude/XPS laptop or Optiplex desktop, not Inspiron.

Lenovos are a great buy, stay away from HP.

Get a modern processor, I5 or I7 13th gen,14th gen, Ultra 7) with SSD and 16GB RAM.

Mojo has a great deal on a Dell Latitude laptop in classifieds.

Browsers store passwords in these locations: (just copy/paste in the respective browser)

Edge - edge://wallet/passwords?source=assetsSettingsPasswords
Chrome - chrome://password-manager/passwords
Firefox - about:logins

Since you said PC, I'm assuming you're using a desktop and not a laptop computer.

The last couple of computers I've gotten have been XPS models direct from Dell. They have a 1 year home service warranty. One of them had a bad USB port, so they sent out a technician who checked it out and replaced the motherboard for free.

I don't play graphic intense computer games, so I've gone with an Intel I-7 core. These days I'd go for at least 16GB of memory. Most seem to be built with a solid state drive for mass storage.

When bringing up a new computer, I just transfer all my documents, photos, videos, etc. to an external hard drive, then copy them back to the new computer. The real hassle is re-installing all the programs such as Word, Excel, a browser, email, and so forth.

I just stopped upgrading when Windows 8 was announced. I stayed on Windows 7 for many years until I finally switched to Linux. I like Ubuntu but I hear Mint is the easiest OS for Windows users to move to. If you mainly use your PC for internet cruising, you won't notice much difference. For every program on Windows you can usually find a similar program for Linux. Most software is free & you can try it. If you change your mind it can be COMPLETELY removed. The free LibreOffice suite is bundled with most Linux distributions & it has the all the same functionality to match Microsoft's Office suit.

Curious, why stay away from HP? I've heard this elsewhere but did not get an explanation.

If you are looking to buy get with Mojo72 on here. he usually has some great systems for even better prices.

I've been in IT for 40 years and deployed many desktop and laptops and have not had good luck with HP. At one time I had a stack of 30 dead laptops with the majority being HP. Their higher end business computers are better quality but dealing with updates and warranty are a pain. Some guys are pro HP but I've never found a reason to be.