If you have purchased a new Windows laptop and are looking to explore some setup tips, you are in the right place. Setting up your laptop is not a huge deal, but optimizing it for gaming requires several tweaks. You need to set up your computer in such a way that it offers the best gaming experience ever.
This article will give you in-depth information on making your computer gaming-ready. So, have a quick look at the points given below.
1. Set Macros and Hotkeys
Having a shortcut or two that you can set up on the computer itself and in different video game settings is one of the things to consider.
For instance, some games run better in full-screen mode, whereas others are better in the windowed mode. Having a full screen shortcut ready let’s you change the modes and test different variations for more optimal overall performance.
2. Adjust the ‘Update’ Options
Your laptop can shut down all of a sudden in the case it begins to download and apply the latest updates. This is simply irritating, especially when you are playing your favorite game. Therefore, in order to avoid this immediate shutdown of your laptop, it is advised that you adjust the Update option of your computer in such a way that it does not start downloading the latest updates and applying them automatically.
To do so, you need to open the Update & Security menu, press down Windows + Q keys, and type in updates. Next, choose the Windows Update option. There is an option to change the Active Hours so that any Windows updates are carried on outside those hours.
Alternatively, click on Advanced Options and choose Pause Updates so that updates are not applied automatically.
3. Update Outdated GPU Drivers
Windows laptops are shipped with a set of factory settings that takes their place when you boot the device for the first time. The graphic processing unit in your computer comes with standard drivers that you should update as the chances of them becoming outdated are fair.
You need to update the GPU drivers as the first few things to tweak your device for gaming. The reason is that if you play a game without updating the drivers, the GPU will not give the expected performance, and its productivity is much lower than it should be.
Check if you have AMD or NVidia graphics installed on your computer. Visit the manufacturer’s website and update graphics online.
4. Turn Mouse Acceleration Off
The next thing you should do to set up your computer for gaming is by turning mouse acceleration off. This is due to the reason that mouse acceleration on your laptop affects the sensitivity of the mouse in-game. To turn off mouse acceleration, press Window + Q keys simultaneously and type pointers.
Next, select Change the mouse pointer display or speed and uncheck the checkbox associated with Enhanced pointer precision. With this, it would be easy for you to alter the speed of the mouse movement while playing a game.
This procedure does not require any third-party settings that might impact the performance of the game. Although Windows OS is pre-optimized with many out-of-the-box features, applying these settings will take your gaming experience to the next level. Tweaking your computer settings is important because not all the features are apt for gaming, while they may be good for other work.
5. Switch Off Wi-Fi Sense
You have purchased a gaming laptop for a reason, and restricting it inside the house may not be the right thing to do. Enjoy the portability to the maximum extent by playing your favorite game while sitting in the park or at a nearby café.
Nonetheless, Windows 10 is empowered with a feature that tends to connect automatically to all available Wi-Fi signals or hotspots, whether they are secure or not. Connecting to those insecure networks puts your laptop at risk.
Disabling Wi-Fi Sense will prevent the laptop from automatically connecting to the public Wi-Fi networks. Press and hold down Window + I keys on your keyboard and choose Network & Internet. Next, select Wi-Fi and uncheck all the checkboxes available under Wi-Fi Sense to turn off the feature.
6. Turn Off Visual Effects
As stated above, the latest Windows OS version is empowered with many advanced features and functionalities, the visual effects being one among them. By default, these visual effects are enabled on your computer and consume a lot of processing power as well as battery life.
Since this feature is less useful for gaming and more responsible for draining the processing power, you should turn it off. Once you turn it off, you will be able to play seamlessly with speed and without dropping the frame rate.
To turn the feature off, press Window + Q keys, type in advanced settings, click on View Advanced System Settings, select Performance Options, tap Visual Effects, and then Custom. Further, uncheck all the checkboxes right from removing thumbnails to smoothing window edges.
The Conclusion
Optimize your gaming experience by trying the computer tweaks mentioned in this article. Do not forget to backup your computer before you make changes to any of the settings. Also, clear the hard drive regularly to make more space for new games and prevent lags while gaming.