Windows 11 isn't snappy: Annoying sub-second delay when opening anything

Question

Hello everyone, Iam having a sub-second delay when opening anything, for example, Brave Browser and a similar hesitation when opening Discord or Youtube tabs. While it’s a second or two, it doesn’t feel snappy and it doesn’t feel right.

Here is the weird history of this issue:

Windows 11 23H2: After a fresh install, everything was lightning fast for about 3 days, then the delay suddenly started.

Windows 11 24H2: I upgraded to 24H2, and it was fixed immediately. However, after only 1 day, the delay returned.

Windows 11 25H2: I did an in-place upgrade to 25H2 today, but the issue is still there.

Iam using a Dell Precision 7550 Laptop

Specs:

CPU: Intel Core i7-10875H.

RAM: 16GB.

512 SSD storage

BIOS/Drivers: All updated to the latest 2026 versions.

I will post screenshots of my CPU and RAM usage (they are usually very low, around 3% CPU).

Is this behavior normal for these specs, or is there something hidden causing this consistent hesitation? Any help would be appreciated.

Answer 1

Hi Mo Ftre

Welcome to the Microsoft Q&A Forum!

I understand how irritating these small delays can feel, especially on hardware that should be performing smoothly. You can give these a try:

Disable Windows 11’s built‑in startup delay

Windows 11 includes a feature that intentionally waits for the system to reach an “idle state” before allowing certain apps to launch, which can create the hesitation you’re seeing. You can turn this off using the following registry method:

1. Press Windows + R, type regedit, and press Enter.
2. Navigate to: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer
3. Right‑click Explorer and select New > Key, then name it Serialize.
4. Right‑click inside Serialize, select New > DWORD (32‑bit) Value, name it WaitForIdleState, and set it to 0.
5. Create another DWORD named StartupDelayInMSec and set it to 0.
6. Restart your PC for the changes to take effect.

Disable hardware acceleration in Brave and Discord

Hardware acceleration is known to cause subtle delays, freezes, and sluggish behavior in both Brave and Discord. Disabling it often resolves launch hesitation and UI delays.

For Brave:

1. Open Brave and go to Settings.
2. Open the System section.
3. Turn off “Use hardware acceleration when available” and restart the browser.

For Discord:

1. Open Discord and go to User Settings.
2. Select Advanced.
3. Turn off Hardware Acceleration and restart Discord.

I hope these steps help restore the snappy responsiveness you expect from your system. If the issue continues, I’m here to help you troubleshoot further.

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