Newbie questions about my used thinkpad T21, please help

[nominds]

Hi all...l just go my first laptop...i always had a home pc....anyways its a T21 p3 800 with 128mb of ram....just woundering y when its plugged in... y does it 80% of the time run at 644mhz...shouldn't it be the true 800...i can understand when its the battery running but not when its plugged in...anyone have any ideas ??......it also seems to be running sluggish...u think if i was to add more ram it would help ???....thanks guys...any ideas would be great..and remember i'm a newbie so as much info u can give would be great...thanks

[tfflivemb2]

Regarding the sluggishness, what OS are you running? XP works with 128MB, but 256MB or more makes XP more useful.

As for the 644Mhz processing speed, it is because of the SpeedStep. When you are running on, it drops the speed down by about 150mhz, to help save battery life.

[nominds]

i am running windows xp.......i understand what u r saying about saving the battery...but l'm talking about even when its plugged in ???

[nominds]

Nobody has any ideas on this ????

[PrincipalValiant]

I believe it kicks in while on ac because it also decreases heat. Same thing on my t23, doesn't appear to effect performance for me. I think there is a way to disable it, maybe in the bios if the windows settings don't work.

[tfflivemb2]

Are you using a program to test the speed of the processor, or are you using what Windows says?

[nominds]

I used aida to test and it shows the clock speed at 800......i use the windows one the most just to track....and windows does hit up to 794..most most of the time its at 644...thats with the power plugged in...i just think that it should be running at 800 most of the time. i fully understand y it clocks down when using the battery.

[tfflivemb2]

FWIW, if it works at 800mhz when you need it, what is the problem?

The processor does slow down even on AC power, until it is needed. It also saves on the life of the processor as well.

[nominds]

as i explained before l never had a laptop before and this is something i don't understand...and no its not at 800 when i need it.......when u read up....like i said its 644 80% of the time.

[jdhurst]

I think you are worrying about nothing. Whether on AC or Battery, while on ThinkPad default mode, the CPU will run at less than max. Get Mobile Meter (Google or search here) and run it "on top" and watch it. It will jump to Max for a split second while it needs it and fall right back down. If you run a CPU-bound process (Open a DOS window in VMware), it will peg at Max and stay then until the process is stopped.

If you must run at MAX, look for the setting "Always ON" in the Power Manager and set to that. That will run the CPU at MAX all the time, and generate more heat in the bargain.
... JD Hurst

[Guest]

as i explained before l never had a laptop before and this is something i don't understand...and no its not at 800 when i need it.......when u read up....like i said its 644 80% of the time.

If its running 644 80% of the time, then it's running at 800mhz 20% of the time. The cpu runs at slower speed UNLESS you are running a cpu-intensive app(like video). Do you have a battery installed when you are running on the wall charger? Most of the time, unless you have both(batt&charger) in at the same time, the cpu will run slower speeds.

D/L MobileMeter: http://www.geocities.co.jp/SiliconValley-Oakland/8259/ and have it run on Startup(put it in your Startup folder). It can be fixed on the top of your screen and show freq/temp all the time.

If your cpu doesnt run at 800mhz all the time, that is a GOOD thing.

TJ