Why is my laptop so slow when using smartphone as a hotspot?

computers will always take longer to load pages then tablets or cellphones. teh format is different. and not as compressed. and usually not running some type of antivirus software in the background.

big difference in speed.

what is the phone you have??????

google instructions for MSCONFIG. i don't have windows 8 so i can't help you there. but the goal is to shut off everything next to your system clock. you don't need all that crap running in the background. it takes up your memory and slows things down. boot times will also be faster when it's not loading all that stuff up.

speedtest.net will give you your internet speed. it's a websight. and they also have an app for your phone.

what's your internet speed testing?

need to know specifics for people to help. most of us are having no problems. using our phone. truckstop wifi however, is worthless.

 

I've had a laptop (PC) a few years ago where the wifi radio driver would "hang up" and run extremely slow after going into suspend mode. (Buggy driver) The only way to regain speed was to reboot the computer or turn off the wifi, then turn it back on but (after numerous times of closing the lid the wifi speed would eventually become very slow)

 

Your download speed is dependent on the strength of signal and the bit rate of the download. If you have a poor cellphone signal your download rate will be slow. Also 3G is the slowest, 4G and LTE are faster.
But the main reason your laptop is slower than your Smartphone is the Operating system on your phone requires a far smaller bit package to operate on. Laptops have much larger Operating systems and require much bigger bit package to communicate the same information.
Tablet and Smartphone are designed to operate with a smaller data stream thus they perform better with cellular phone service. Your laptop probably running Windows uses a large operating system that requires far larger data stream such as stationary Wifi connection.

 

I don't allow my laptop to sleep. If I'm not using it, I shut it off to save battery power. Sleep mode can cause a variety of issues including not waking up period.
That said, the OP's problem could be any number of things and no one can diagnose it from here.

 

For some reason the broadcast wfi on most smartphones isnt that great or reliable. try physicaly plugging it into your computer and disable the computers wifi. I have an iphone 4s and it works way faster plugged in then just connected via wifi.

 

wire works faster then wireless. yes. but with todays internet speed. it don't really matter. and who wants to hook up a wire. install drivers and all that other crap.

turn the hot spot on. turn on laptop. wah lah

 

Your best bet is to use mifi and become your own hotspot. Then you can use it with the laptop and your phone data. Who is your provider and what plan do you have? You might of reached your maximum allowance and they have you throttled back.

As far as truck stop wifi I used that a lot driving mainly because it's cheaper. Trucks stops are a volatile atmosphere as the signal bounces off all the trucks. Many truckstops the wifi was so called broken and no one would put forth an effort to get it fixed. About 90% of the time I found the modem or router needed reset from a thunderstorm that come through. I talked and teached many managers into resetting their modem and router. They are clueless.

If you do use truckstop wifi then find the antenna and park as close to that sucker as possible. Most are on the roof or many Pilot's they are on the back side near the store dump area. With a clear view you won't suffer as much interference. You can't park in the back row and expect to get a good signal. The Flying J's use to have the best signal/service but I used Pilot a lot since I fueled there. Now that they merged either one would suffice. But for $20 a month it was worth it to put up with a few annoyances. I have a little wifi signal strength meter on my keychain. I would drive around the truck stop finding the best signal but you can't beat parking right in front of the antenna if one of them spots are open.

StraightTalk.com has a decent mifi package for $50 that works off Verizon towers. If you like downloading movies and gaming then that's not for you. But for everything else you'll have enough data allowance.

http://www.straighttalk.com/wps/por...ALyP1iMWQ_wYwbUueRcJmbwAuSrw2o!/#.U4I11fmuQ3k

Many drivers like their internet anywhere. Usually at a customer I was sleeping. I really only used it at a truck stop. On the road there are thousands of hotspots. Motels, restaurants, rest areas, coffee shops, libraries, trucking terminals, dealerships, etc. You just need to know how to find them. Apartments are a goldmine not to say I haven't borrowed one. Half the people in them don't know how to set up a secure network.

http://www.wififreespot.com/

There use to be another website, freewifihotspot.com but I believe that one shut down. Try that link above. It looks like the same thing.