Acer Aspire E5-575G

A browser should not take 60 seconds to open. This may indicate a problem such as another app using a lot of CPU cycles or even some sort of malware  at work. In addition to my regular AV I always run Malwarebytes which offers additional layers of excellent protection. You can try the full version (real-time scanning) for free for 2 weeks after which it reverts to the free version (manual scans only). Even the manual scanning method is very helpful if you do it regularly.

Next, open Task Manager (right-click on taskbar>>Task Manager), then click <More details>, then click the 'Details' tab. One column is titled 'CPU'. Click the title header (CPU) until it is sorting by highest usage first. This list shows you what is using your CPU cycles. 'System Idle Process' should be first and be at 90+ unless some software is busy using the computer. If your System Idle Process is down to 50%-60% something is hogging your resources and you would notice a slowdown.

You can also explore the other Task Manager tabs and you may learn more. If you think you may be having some other type of problem it wouldn't hurt to check the Event Manager for clues.

At 4 GB your RAM is the minimum recommended. You can avoid overtaxing it by not running multiple apps at the same time or by opening a lot of tabs in your browser at the same time. If you follow that you can live with 4 GB but bumping up to 8 GB would be better eventually. Ideally you want two perfectly matched sticks of RAM so that hopefully they will run in 'dual-channel' mode (slightly faster).

As for an SSD, that is a solid-state hard drive that reads and writes way faster than a mechanical hard drive. You would definitely notice your machine loading programs and files faster which makes the whole machine feel faster. The problem is you want your OS installed on the SSD which means you need to reinstall your OS and programs. That's actually a good thing as there are few things, other than upgrading to an SSD, that perk up your system better than a fresh OS install.

SSD's are more expensive than regular HD's but it's worth it. If you have room for just on SSD (or HD) then you want the biggest one you budget allows. A 250 GB SSD goes around $90. to $110. 500 GB drives about 50%-75% more than that. A 1 TB drive is closer to $350.- $400. My new lappy has a 250 GB SSD which is marginal but I use it mostly for browsing so it's OK.

Find out if your laptop has the M.2 slot (mine is an E5-575G and has an M.2 SSD). If so you can install an M.2 SSD which means you can leave your current HD in place, use it as a second HD, and avoid the usual hassles of moving all your data files and pictures. That would also enable you to buy the smaller 250 GB SSD while using the old HD for data and file storage.