turbo button

Overclock switch, retro

A turbo button was a switch on personal computers from the late 1980s and early 1990s that toggled processor speed.

Counterintuitively, pressing it usually *slowed* the computer down—necessary because older software ran too fast on newer hardware.

Hit the turbo button so this game runs at the right speed.

The feature disappeared as software became better at handling variable clock speeds.

Related

speed boost · retro · computing · speed · MHz · CPU · slowdown · DOS · gaming · compatibility · beige · case · front panel · front · panel · click · toggle · hardware

Opposites
speed/performance mode

turbo buttonslow mode

Messaging rate limiter

compatibility mode · eco mode · underclock · sleep mode · battery saver

technological era

turbo buttonsolid-state drive

Flash-based persistent storage

USB-C · NVMe · Thunderbolt

power/resource management philosophy

turbo buttonquiet mode

Setting that mutes alerts

sleep mode · hibernate

Family

turbo, button, turbos, buttons, buttoned, buttoning, turbocharge, turbocharged, turbocharger

Familiarity
Top 500,000
Profile
Used worldwide · Concrete · Rated G