Unusual Problem

[Shoogar]

Hey guys, i've got two computers, both HP touch screen all-in-one units, with about a years difference in make.

Here's the problem:

The older one, which is an Ex-Demo model, is really slow on boot-up compared to the newer one, which is new out of the box. This has been a problem all throughout the computers life.

The old computer has been restored and reset, but no amount of explaining will convince my parents that it hasn't been '100%' reset.

The boot-up isn't the only problem, when we connect our pre-paid wifi-dongle to the old computer, we struggle to pull 2/6 bars, but when we connect it to the new computer, we pull 4-5/6 bars.

A breif over-view on the systems (If someone can tell me where I can view all the system-specs I will edit this and post them) are:

The old computer pulls a 5.0 Rating with;
4GB RAM
64-bit Operating system
AMD Anthlon II X4 600e Processor with 2.20 GHz

The New computer pulls a 4.4 Rating with;
AMD Anthlon II X2 245e Processor with 2.90Ghz
4GB RAM (3.75 Usable)
64-Bit Operating system
___________________________________________________
^ More to be added once I find out more specs.

Now, how come the newer computer boots-up faster than the older one? And how come it gets better signal compared to the old one? Even when they are in the exact same spot in the house.

They are also both HP Touch-Screen computers running Windows 7.

ALL HELP IS APPRECIATED!

Cheers guys.

 

[Submerged]

0.8Ghz difference is actually quite large difference in terms of processor speeds.

So this would be why the older one would be quite sluggish to use in comparison to the other, faster processor.

I have a processor that has been overclocked from 2.8Ghz to 3.4Ghz and the speed difference is noticeable by a large margin, from my perception of using it.

To get more information on the devices in the computer, you can go to Start -> My Computer/Computer and right click on it. Click on the option that says Properties. Then on the left top corner, click on "Device Manager" and you will get a list of all the items in the computer itself.

 

[bergauk]

0.8Ghz difference is actually quite large difference in terms of processor speeds.

So this would be why the older one would be quite sluggish to use in comparison to the other, faster processor.

I have a processor that has been overclocked from 2.8Ghz to 3.4Ghz and the speed difference is noticeable by a large margin, from my perception of using it.

To get more information on the devices in the computer, you can go to Start -> My Computer/Computer and right click on it. Click on the option that says Properties. Then on the left top corner, click on "Device Manager" and you will get a list of all the items in the computer itself.

The newer computer has a dual core though... The old one has a quad core in it.


I'm going to say that the old one starts up, and runs slow because whoever said that they cleaned it up did a really halfass job at it.

You're going to want to run something like CCleaner, and MalwareBytes to try and clean it up.

http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/tour/after-installation

This'll give you a good idea of how to run CCleaner.

As for MalwareBytes, I'd only run it after CCleaner if it didn't do anything. Though honestly it should.

 

[Submerged]

I wasn't able to confirm it at the AMD website, the older pc as it seemed to not be anywhere on their specifications section for that exact model number.

So I couldn't really assume if it was new quad or the older quad core processor

 

[Shoogar]

They are both most likely made up of older AMD parts.

Going to try CCleaner.
What exactly does it do?

 

[bergauk]

They are both most likely made up of older AMD parts.

Going to try CCleaner.
What exactly does it do?

Well the first part of it will clean up junk files on it. The registry cleaner will fix up registry errors, and the startup entries, assuming you do it just right. Will potentially make it boot up quicker.


And for the record. The 245e is on this page. http://shop.amd.com/US/All/Detail/Processor/AD245EHDGMBOX

And here is a Passmark benchmark for it.
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Athlon+II+X2+245e

The 600e is on this page. http://shop.amd.com/US/All/Detail/Processor/AD600EHDGIBOX

And here is the benchmark for the 600e
http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Athlon+II+X4+600e


For all intents and purposes. The 600e is the faster processor.

 

[tlowr4]

Have you just done a simple defrag? I used to have an old Ex-demo system, and just defragging it made all the differance in normal useage, and in boot times.

EDIT: Also, try a program called Speccy to view your system information and temps. I swear by it.

 

[DQuaN]

The best thing to do is a reformat and reinstall.

If it takes a long time to start up, type "msconfig" in the run menu and click the startup tab. Disable everything that doesn't need to be running.

 

[Shoogar]

I've just finished using the CCleaner program. It said it found 680MB of things it wanted to remove/clean. I've done that now. But should I be checking any other boxes other than the pre-checked ones that it offers?

And at Tlowr, we've defragged it multiple times. We did it when we first got the computer and since then we've done it once a month, just to see if it can fix anything.

EDIT: At Dunc, i'll give that a shot. Going to re-boot now and i'll let you guys know if there's any noticeable difference.

 

[TB]

Disable everything that doesn't need to be running.

Regarding this, if you're unsure as to what you can safely shut down, have a look at Black Viper's Windows 7 setup.

If you're still unsure what you can safely shut down, leave it at its default setting.

 

[Shoogar]

What i've disabled:
iTunes, HP Desktop Keyboard, HP Remote Solution, Fast User Switching (Only one user on the computer) and hpwuSchd Application (No idea what on earth that is)

I've noticed the boot-up time decrease! Which is good! Thank you everyone for your help! And hopefully this is the end of this problem.

One last thing though;
When the computer hits the desktop screen, all the icons load, then they become white boxes. Then after a few seconds they change back. Should I be worrying?

Once again guys, thanks for the help! And the internet issue is now a thing of the past.

 

[tlowr4]

...
One last thing though;
When the computer hits the desktop screen, all the icons load, then they become white boxes. Then after a few seconds they change back. Should I be worrying?
...

No, no. That's just the OS re-rendering the textures. As long as they change back to the icons, you're all good.

 

[Shoogar]

Alright. Thanks guys!
We compared the two computers and the newer one didn't have a graphics card temperature?

Also, what temp should a quad core computer run at? Cause it was hitting the low 40s. With the graphics card hitting 50s.

 

[Grayfox]

Those 3G connections are mobile phones, fluro lights, walls and other things will lower reception.

I am trying to picture how to upgrade those HP machines memory for you so i can explain it.

What model is it or even better what is its part number(will be a AB123PA or similar).

I take it you did the F11 restore the unit to factory default settings.

 

[Shoogar]

When we bought it they told us that they had reset the computer, but they probably just did, as you suggested, F11 system restore.

I feel like such a noob asking all these silly questions about information on the PC. I usually work with Mac computers.

I'll get you the number of the computer in a bit Grayfox. Gotta boot it up.

EDIT: The Model number of the computer is a HP TouchSmart 300 <-- Will do some digging to try and find a better explanation if that isn't good enough.

Core 0 is pulling these figures:

Core Speed 2194.5 MHz
Multiplier x 4.0
Bus Speed 199.5 MHz
Rated Bus Speed 1995.0 MHz
Temperature 32 °C

The RAM if needed is DDR3 4.0 GB (2 x 2GB sticks) at 665MHz

The Motherboard is a brand i've never heard of, EVER. It's a;
Manufacturer PEGATRON CORPORATION
Model JESSE ( CPU 1)
Chipset Vendor AMD
Chipset Model 780G
Chipset Revision 00
Southbridge Vendor AMD
Southbridge Model SB700
Southbridge Revision 00
System Temperature 31 °C

Sorry if there's too much information or what not. Still learning.

 

[Korza]

Those 3G connections are mobile phones, fluro lights, walls and other things will lower reception.

I am trying to picture how to upgrade those HP machines memory for you so i can explain it.

What model is it or even better what is its part number(will be a AB123PA or similar).

I take it you did the F11 restore the unit to factory default settings.

I recently did a ram upgrade on one. You have to remove the stands and the screws holding the back cover on. They take laptop ram as well.

 

[tlowr4]

When we bought it they told us that they had reset the computer, but they probably just did, as you suggested, F11 system restore.

I feel like such a noob asking all these silly questions about information on the PC. I usually work with Mac computers.

I'll get you the number of the computer in a bit Grayfox. Gotta boot it up.

EDIT: The Model number of the computer is a HP TouchSmart 300 <-- Will do some digging to try and find a better explanation if that isn't good enough.

Core 0 is pulling these figures:

Core Speed 2194.5 MHz
Multiplier x 4.0
Bus Speed 199.5 MHz
Rated Bus Speed 1995.0 MHz
Temperature 32 °C

The RAM if needed is DDR3 4.0 GB (2 x 2GB sticks) at 665MHz

The Motherboard is a brand i've never heard of, EVER. It's a;
Manufacturer PEGATRON CORPORATION
Model JESSE ( CPU 1)
Chipset Vendor AMD
Chipset Model 780G
Chipset Revision 00
Southbridge Vendor AMD
Southbridge Model SB700
Southbridge Revision 00
System Temperature 31 °C

Sorry if there's too much information or what not. Still learning.

Your temps look fine, but are you running any programs? Might want to just run a game or something in windowed mode and watch the temps. If anything gets over about 65C, then post here and we'll tell you what you can do.

Or if you want to go the extreme side, run programs such as Prime95, Furmark, Memtest etc. But I'd suggest not as I doubt you'd be stressing your computer out as much as these programs do.

 

[Shoogar]

Your temps look fine, but are you running any programs? Might want to just run a game or something in windowed mode and watch the temps. If anything gets over about 65C, then post here and we'll tell you what you can do.

Or if you want to go the extreme side, run programs such as Prime95, Furmark, Memtest etc. But I'd suggest not as I doubt you'd be stressing your computer out as much as these programs do.

I'll open Minecraft, max out the settings and see how it goes.

Managed to hit the 55's. With MC and Runescape running (Couldn't think of anything else )

The Graphics Card is hitting the 60's though.

 

[tlowr4]

^^ Yeah, you'll be right. Those are actually very good temps for an all-in-one. I generalised the "above 60C" thing, even though GPU's are able of handling higher temperatures.

 

[Grayfox]

When we bought it they told us that they had reset the computer, but they probably just did, as you suggested, F11 system restore.

That is your main issue right their, trusting the word of a salesman is never a good thing.

If this was a display unit they would have run the OOBE sysprep which will bring up the enter country window next time the machine is booted.

Salesman do not want to restore the machine because that involves them being 1: smart. 2: assist you and watch the machine for the whole restore rather than getting back on the floor and selling again. 3:being smart

Back up what you need and restart the machine, when you see the HP logo tap F11 until you get "Windows is loading files" on the bottom of the screen.

Then just follow the prompts to do a factory reset.

I recently did a ram upgrade on one. You have to remove the stands and the screws holding the back cover on. They take laptop ram as well.

At work I have a printed out book from HP about fully disassembling one of these machines(think it is for the IQ500's) and i mean fully as i remove every screw, every board and what not.

I could find a copy for the OPs units so he can replace the HDD, Video card, RAM, wifi card or any other thing.

Part numbers can normally be found in the BIOS.

Press F10 at the HP screen on POST to get into the BIOS.

Found a full disassembly guide for the HP Touchsmart 300 series PCs
Download

Ignore some things like the "Use a torque force of 5 +/-.5 as it make no sense of you do no know if it is ft/lb, inch/lb, newtons, or some other unit.
It was most likely in some asian language and was translated so things wont make much sense but you can still get the gist of it.