The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    Laptop Slows Down While Charging

    Discussion in 'Dell' started by Manorakis, Jan 27, 2015.

  1. Manorakis

    Manorakis Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    2
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hello everyone,
    Recently I have found out an issue with my Dell laptop, been going on and on trying to find out what is going on and I only found the thing that causes the problem but I cannot fix it on my own. I have an i7 Intel processor 1.80 GHz, with turbo boost. The thing is when I have my laptop plugged in, the CPU seems to be not functioning the way it is supposed to. For example, I downloaded the Intel Turbo Boost Monitor and when my laptop is unplugged and only works with its own battery life, the meter shows up to 3.0 GHz, and immediately when I plug it in it drops in 1.80 GHz. This affects the performance of my laptop on everything I do, from opening a browser to playing a game. Here is a list of the things I have tried to far:

    - Updating my graphics card
    - Updating BIOS
    - Using a laptop cooler
    - Change my battery power settings to high performance

    None of the above managed to assist me with my issue. If you have any thoughts on how to fix this, how to let my CPU work on its full potential even when my laptop is plugged it would be much appreciated.

    Many thanks :)
     
    Manorakis, Jan 27, 2015
    #1
  2. alexhawker

    alexhawker Spent Gladiator

    Reputations:
    500
    Messages:
    2,540
    Likes Received:
    792
    Trophy Points:
    131
    Are you using the original power adapter, or one with adequate wattage?
     
    alexhawker, Jan 27, 2015
    #2
  3. SerratedAuto

    SerratedAuto Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    35
    Messages:
    155
    Likes Received:
    1
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Have you changed the power settings in Windows? Specifically, in the advanced power settings, there's an option for min and max processor state. I usually set that to 100% for both min and max when plugged in, and 5% min and 100% max for on battery.
     
    SerratedAuto, Jan 29, 2015
    #3
  4. tijo

    tijo Sacred Blame

    Reputations:
    7,588
    Messages:
    10,023
    Likes Received:
    1,077
    Trophy Points:
    581
    It does sound like the power plan when plugged in is set to power saving rather than balanced or performance.

    Alexhawker also has a good point, Dell power adapters have a chip that identifies them as genuine and also declares the power rating of the adapter. If you are using a non Dell power supply or one with lower wattage than the original, then it may very well be limiting performance. This is the case for the Dell Precision line for example. If you plug in a 120 W adapter in a M6700, you'll be limited performance wise (it comes with a 240 W by default).
     
    tijo, Feb 11, 2015
    #4