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Why Is Firefox So Slow?

Created by Dave Hyatt and Blake Ross, Mozilla Firefox is one of the top internet browser contenders to date. Firefox was first released in November 2004 as Firefox 1.0. Over the years, it has undergone development and revision to the current version – Firefox 82, released on October 20, 2020.

There are numerous reasons why people love Firefox, some of which we shall look at below:

  • Firefox is faster and leaner than most browsers, including Chrome. Firefox fanatics can attest to noticing significant improvements after Firefox 57 (Firefox Quantum) was released in 2017.

  • Firefox is keen on safeguarding users’ privacy.

  • Unlike most browsers, Firefox allows users to customize the general browser appearance.

  • Firefox has numerous and unique extensions that are not available to Chrome users.

What Makes Firefox Browser Slow?

It is not a surprise that most tech-savvy people use more than one browser. Besides enjoying the different features available on each browser, people often shift between such software when they experience slowness or technical issues. Among the faulty issues that Mozilla Firefox has been accused of is slowness. So what makes Firefox so slow at times? In this article, we’ll delve into some of the circumstances when Firefox slows down and the solutions you can apply. Here are a collection of laptop user manuals to help you speed up the process of fixing the issue.

Firefox Browser Takes Long to Start

People often complain that the Firefox browser can, at times, take too long to start up. The situation is even more annoying when you compare it to other browsers like Edge and Chrome. If this is the challenge that you’re facing, don’t give up just yet. You’ve probably not set Firefox as your default browser. To correct this, go to ‘About: preferences’ and select ‘General.’

On the menu that appears, click on the ‘Always check if Firefox is your default browser’ option to uncheck. Doing so will set Firefox as your default browser, and the slowness should stop.

Firefox Browser Uses Too Much RAM

Your laptop’s performance is directly related to its RAM performance. RAM (Random Access Memory ) allows your device to perform everyday tasks like surfing the net, loading applications, editing a spreadsheet file, etc. So if Firefox uses too much RAM, then the rest of your applications and activities will inevitably slow down. People surfing the web also search for the same topic on different platforms simultaneously, which can also slow down the search process. When it comes to issues of interest, users tend to try and find the answers as accurately as possible to keep up on social media. These days Hollywood and reality TV is high on the list of searches. After a recent on-screen dilemma on Dragons Den UK, Deborah Meadens net worth became a topic of choice, with various searches looking into her background for more information. Investigations like this have millions of users curious, and slower internet platforms could send users from Foxfire to its competitors.

To change this, you can first restart Firefox in Safe Mode to determine the cause of the slowness. Click on the three dotted-line icon at the top-right hand side (also called Options), select Help (question mark icon), followed by Restart with Add-ons Disabled. When Firefox restarts, you’ll see two options: Start in Safe Mode and Refresh Firefox. Select the former. If you notice that Firefox is operating faster than before, it means that one of the plugins or add-ons is problematic. You can proceed to enable one add-on at a time until you find the culprit.

However, if restarting Firefox on safe mode doesn’t yield any improvement, then the problem could be with your tabs. Try bookmarking your tabs rather than leaving them open.

If you are having continued IT problems and you’re running a business, then you need to look into IT services. Learn more about It support in Leicester and how they can support your business to avoid problems such as this!

Firefox Is Slow Even With New Hardware

There are times when your laptop is relatively new, say less than six months old, but the Firefox browser keeps getting slower by the day. If this is what you’re currently going through, Firefox is probably playing a little too conservative. To boost your browser, go to About: preferences and select General followed by Performance. Go ahead and uncheck the box next to Use recommended performance settings. Instead, check the box next to Use hardware acceleration when available.

These changes you make will ensure that Firefox used your laptop’s graphics card rather than the processor, which supports visual activities. You’ll immediately notice that you can enjoy watching YouTube videos without any buffering or interference. Don’t forget to visit enablejavascript.io to enjoy interactive elements like animations and audio.

Firefox – Your Trusted Browsing Companion

If all these suggestions fail, you can always refresh Firefox. The process will only take you a couple of minutes. What’s even better is that your personal information (all your bookmarked pages, cookies, passwords, and dictionary) stay safe. As long as you stay informed, using Firefox is as easy as ABC.



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