A simple-to-use Vista Sidebar gadget that shows on the screen CPU clock speed and utilization information, suitable for power users.
- CPU Mhz Speed Meter
- Version :1.0.2
- License :Freeware
- OS :Windows All
- Publisher :Miky Blue
CPU Mhz Speed Meter Description
Hardware components determine the functioning state of computer applications and games. Usually, the more buffed a PC is, the smoother everything runs. Your CPU is the one responsible for sending all commands fast, and there are various utilities, just like CPU Mhz Speed Meter that let you keep an eye on it.
A gadget engine is required
Before you go off installing it, note that the gadget system has been disabled starting with Windows 8, but these can still be installed if a compatible engine is found on the computer. For instance, Thoosje Sidebar is a suitable program that can help you in this regard. It’s pretty lightweight, and you can even keep it stored along with your entire gadget collection on a USB flash drive.
Upon launch, a pretty compact display shows up, instantly monitoring and showing what it’s supposed to. A gauge is used to clearly show the amount of CPU currently being used by your computer, with an additional field that displays the value in Mhz. Just like any gadget, it can easily be moved around, made transparent, or left on top of everything else, coming in handy for testing different scenarios.
Leaves more to be desired
Unfortunately, CPU Mhz Speed Meter doesn’t come with a custom set of options, so you only get to use the small gadget put at your disposal. In case the visual design doesn’t quite tickle your fancy, there’s little you can do about it, except look for alternatives.
There aren’t even any size options, nor the possibility to resize by dragging the edges around. However, the biggest impact on practicality is the poor implementation into the gadget system, which makes it update at a disappointingly high rate, meaning the result isn’t quite shown in real time. Moreover, it tends to freeze most of the times, in which case you might be tempted to stick to the default resource monitor gadget.
To sum it up
All in all, constantly looking on how your CPU behaves is not going to encourage it to move any better, but some test scenarios require constant attention, which is exactly what CPU Mhz Speed Meter wanted to achieve. Unfortunately, it comes with a poor set of features, even for a simple gadget, while practicality is almost entirely lost because of the refresh rate.