Dave Reid

Ok so I'm going to try and dedicated myself to keeping this site current every day or two, even if I have to make small entries. I need to keep writing to keep myself sane, as always. Here goes...

Since my computer is a laptop (Dell Inspiron 8600), I like to keep it running happy with a CPU clock speed control. Basically it helps keep my CPU at a managable/reasonable speed compared to the amount of work it needs to handle. For instance, when I'm on battery or when I'm really not doing much besides checking e-mail or surfing, I don't need my CPU to run at the full 1.8 GHz, it can calm down and not have to overexert itself (and make my lap really really hot). But when I'm playing games or doing intensive tasks, I need to be able to run at full speed, heat be damned. I've used three different clock speed control programs in the almost 3 years I've owned my laptop, and I've written a brief review for each one.

SpeedSwitch XP

Very small, simple program which has unfortunately not seen further development since August 2006. It was really recommended then, but not any more.

Notebook Hardware Control (NHC)

More features and more polished than SpeedSwitch XP, but recently its development has struggled as well. In my experience, it hasn't been the most stable and the latest couple of versions fail to run on my laptop at all (even the Dell bugfix version listed on the website). It has good potential, but I just cannot use it anymore.
Note: requires the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0

RightMark CPU Clock Speed Utility

RightMark is right on the money with this program. It doesn't have the polish and ease-of-use of NHC, but it works and performs darn well. It is updated frequently for wide support of CPUs old and new. It takes some time to get the options set, but it's rewarding when you do. There is a 'Pro' version for a $19.95 which has even more advanced features, but the free version is great already. If you have a laptop, I highly recommend it!