Intel Working To Fix GPU Driver Bug That Bogs Down Browsers On Alder Lake PCs
Well, apparently not for some users running Intel's 12th-gen Alder Lake CPUs with their integrated graphics. Due to what is apparently a bug in the drivers, systems using those processors' Intel UHD Graphics will suffer "severe lag" in Edge, Chrome, and related browsers. Intel says that "click response delay is 2 seconds, and scrolling is severely delayed and choppy."
Intel's message about the error seems to indicate that the problem is only present on systems using mechanical hard drives, and as part of the resolution steps, Intel recommends that users switch from a mechanical hard drive to an SSD. That's good advice no matter what, but we have to wonder if moving to an SSD solves the problem or simply hides it.
After all, based on the description of the problem, it sounds like an issue with GPU memory management while browser hardware acceleration is enabled is causing intense disk writes, likely due to excessive usage of the page file. Switching to an SSD could certainly alleviate the symptoms given the drastic improvement in performance that SSDs offer. Still, that raises a different concern altogether: excess writes on your SSD.
Apparently the issue can also be resolved by updating your browser, operating system, or Intel graphics driver to the latest version. If all else fails, you'll need to disable hardware acceleration in your browser, so hopefully one of those steps fixes it if you're afflicted. You can see Intel's article about the issue over at the company's support site.
