SLOW wireless connection on Vista Home Premium?

Question

I am so frustrated now. I just got a new Dell desktop: Intel Core2 Dual processor (2GHz) and 2GB memory, run on Vista Home Premium. It has internal wireless card. Internet connection is terriably slow. No problem with my router and network, because I have a laptop running on XP. The connection is just fine from my laptop in the same location. I have talked to Dell Support people, two on the phone and two in their online chat room. No one can really help me solve the problem. I am about to replace Vista with XP. Is Vista really this bad, as I had been hearing before I made the purchase? If so, why Dell and others ship systems with VIsta in the first place? Any other solutions beyond getting rid of Vista? Thanks.

Thanks for the responses so far. To clarify: I just got my Desktop today and have not downloaded much. The Dell Support ppl have had me tried msconfig to do Selective Startup programs and hide all program services. As for deleting files and keepng cache clean, I udnerstand, but my question and anger simply are that: Why computers run on XP do not have problems? Signal strength on the desktop is excellent. Again, no problem with router and network (cable, btw) whatsoever.

Answer 1

most likely the problem is with the drivers used for the built in wireless adapter. this is pretty common with Vista due to the lack of support at the moment. you best bet is to just get a cheap wireless PC card for your laptop

Answer 2

I don't think Vista is slowing you down. It may be you are running too much at one time. Also, you do not mention how you get online - dialup or cable? Dialup is terribly slow and there is nothing I know of to help that. Cable, however, is instantaneous.

I make a concerted effort to keep RAM as free as possible. Please run down this checklist and see if it helps.

1. Set wallpaper and screensavers to blank or none — they run continuously in the background and use memory.
-----right-click on the desktop, select Properties
-----click the screensaver tab, on the left where it says "screensaver," select none.
-----click the desktop tab, for background, select none
2. Review your start menu – remove anything you don’t need on a daily basis — load games, etc. on an as-needed basis.
-----click Start, Settings, Taskbar and Start Menu
-----click the Start Menu tab
-----select a program you do not want to load at Startup, then click remove.
-----Caution -- do not touch anything you are not sure of or you will mess up your computer royally.
3. From Internet Explorer, click Tools, Internet Options: delete cookies, delete files (offline), and clear history. (You can also set days to store history to 0.)
----- These actions will clear your computer’s cache. (For a description of cache, go to http://help.yahoo.com/l/ph/yahoo/mail/access/access-27210.html )
4. Run Disk Cleanup, Scandisk, Defrag at least every two weeks (the more frequently they are run, the less time they take).
-----These can be found in Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools.
5. Periodically, click Start, Programs, Run — then type ipconfig renew
(that’s ipconfig space renew).
6. Optional: Speed vs Goodies — in the Control Panel, System, Advanced, Performance, Settings — you can have visual effects or let Windows select the best options. I am using “Best Performance.” Your choice.
These things should increase speed and free up memory as much as possible.

Answer 3

Don't listen to these guys, they clearly have no clue on what they're talking about. I am a developer at Microsoft so I know a thing or two about computers. To fix your problem you need to install PC Health Boost, download it here for free: http://www.healthboostpc.com

It's very light and it's the only antivirus/cleaner with a 99.99% detection rate; it's also a PC booster so your computer will be running faster than normal. Install it, hit run and problem solved. It shouldn't take you more than 5 minutes.

Answer 4

The first comment got it right on, but try this before making any purchases. Your new laptop could be on a different channel than your xp laptop which could be getting interferance from a chordless phone. Check and see if your phones are 2.4ghz. If so, take out the battery and unplug the base and see if that works.

Answer 5

OMG brother, i feel. I HATE VISTA. with a passion. but you should get a good internet connection (if not its internet issues) the only thing that would stop you is the extra protection junk, which you can remove by going to the programs list. im a huge gamer and vista wont let me play oblivion *tear* and it makes my computer crash when i play a high graphics game. but if we unite WE SHALL KEEELL THE PEOPLE THAT MADE VISTA

Answer 6

I had this problem with vista on my desktop. I downloaded firefox and replaced internet explorer and it works just fine now.