I received a high-end-looking ThinkPad from my school with an Intel Core Ultra 5 processor, but it is extremely laggy and takes a very long time to load games. Even Bloons TD 6 runs poorly. I have tried using the charger and enabling performance mode. I know other students can run more demanding games on similar computers, so I'm not sure whether the problem is the specific processor, graphics hardware, RAM, storage, drivers, or school-installed software. I'm also new to PC troubleshooting. What should I check first?
1 Answer
“Core Ultra 5” is only a processor family name, not the complete model or a guarantee of gaming performance. Find the full CPU model in Windows by opening Settings and checking System > About, or searching for “About your PC.” Also check Task Manager’s Performance tab for the amount of RAM, the graphics processor, and whether the storage drive is nearly full. Most ThinkPads use integrated graphics rather than a dedicated gaming GPU, and different Core Ultra 5 models can perform very differently. Look up the exact model’s benchmarks before judging what games it should run.
I’ll check the complete processor and graphics model. I didn’t realize that two computers with the same Core Ultra 5 branding could perform so differently.