PCMag Review of Avira Premium Security Suite 8

WOW. Only recently came to these boards so when I initially posted the link to the review I had no idea of the emotion that it would generate. Quite funny actually reading all the responses.

Anyway, my $.02, I use APSS 8 on my three systems. I run it along side ThreatFire and I feel secure and it runs great on all of my machines. I knew when I bought it that cleaning was average at best but my ultimate goal is protection and from all that I have read Avira is top notch there. As for cleaning, I have SAS and Dr. Web CureIt as on-demand scanners that will I hope will pick up the slack. But for protection/detection I cannot see myself using another.

 

Well welcome aboard jad,as you can see there is emotion when it comes to peoples beloved security apps,especialy AV apps,thats one reason for No A vs B policy here,It tends to lead to heated discussions.That said I do not think thats the case here,most of in here seen reviews such as this before where pcmag has, should I say politly under rated very good securiy prodcuts.

 

Agreed. Why let a magazine tell you what is worthy, when active users know 100 times more. Most products here are worthy of 4 stars at least in any report.

 

That’s where the problems start cropping up. We’re all fans of products and don’t mind overlooking some flaws, as long as the product’s strength satisfies our needs. Unfortunately reviewers writing articles for widely-circulated magazines can’t afford to think that way. They need to write honest reports that deliver a balanced review on the strengths and weaknesses alike of the product they inspect, no matter how much emotion it may rouse among the fan(atic)s.

 

Problem is PCMag's balance is always inclined to Symantec

 

PCMag made a few changes with their staff and how they do business in the last several months. I'm sure they would rather review the bigger software/hardware companies than the little guys.

Neil J. Rubenking seemed to like the way Antivir blocked the computer threats from a clean machine though. I think that matters the most. I could always use Eset Online Scanner or House Call for a second opinion.

 

If you take the time to read reviews about other products, all security products, 2 things are apparent.

1. They test with a very small malware bed, which we all know is really not legit.

2. Most ratings for other products go totally against the grain of what you read here.

So, it is up to the reader, or in my case, the non-reader to decide the legitamacy.

 

Yeah, well, after reading both the PCMag review and user posts like post #14 in this thread, it's not that difficult to decide.

 

Then AVG will work well for you. Cheers.

 

no matter what they or anyone say's we all know that Avira rocks.
And that's the truth of today,

 

No offence to you or Avira, trjam, as you're one of the best contributors around here. It's just that I want to see the review's worth being based on facts, not how much the readers like or hate the product being reviewed and the grade it gets. Dismissing a review just because of what a bunch of people say on an internet forum, without trying to investigate which side holds the facts, just seems childish to me.

 

I never said Avira was perfect. There is always room for improvement. The one thing in the article that lost it for me in all honesty was the rating of antispam. This is one area I honestly feel the suite excels in. So that is my take and no hard feelings taken, my friend. Just some good debating.

 

Hahaha.

I like the way there's a symantec ad on every page of the PCmag website.

Also did anyone see this review for Norton 360? "For most PC Magazine readers, a hands-on security suite like Norton Internet Security 2008 is the best fit. But when you go to set up Granny's computer, choose Norton 360 version 2.0 instead."

I wonder when Symantec started advertising in PCMag, because since 2007 PCMag have awarded Symantec products an average of 4 1/2 stars every time whereas their readers have awarded 2 stars.

Compare that to Kaspersky (haven't seen an ad for them on PC Mag yet) - Editor's ratings 3 1/2 stars, readers' ratings 4 1/2 or 5.

Jdenton, any connection to PC MAg by any chance?

 

It's as popular for the self-proclaimed "techies" to bash Symantec as it is for them to kiss the rear end of other security products. I don't blindly follow the crowd and do what others think is "cool", I like to read the reviews and see how well they correlate to the facts. If that makes me a PCMag fanboy then so be it, the way I see it it's heaps better than being a Wilders fanboy.

 

Symantec is a great product, no matter what some think. All of these products are very good. That is where the facts end, and the loyal hearts start to take over.

As far as the magazine, it is and should be, used as just one more tool in how you go about evaluating products. I say again, I globally look at all tests and publications before making a purchase. So PC Mag is no better or worse then say, AV-Comparitives. Both are useful tools at your disposal to assist you, as this forum is. There are no right or wrongs here, just informed and uninformed. Aviras rating is what it is. Some will agree, some wont.

As for fanboys, I really feel that label should be vanished even though I can see the reason for it. The reality is, folks like me, are paid license holders, just as any other silent voice is. Avatars, signatures are nothing more then symbols of a license holders pride in their product or products. We can debate this to the end, but everyone is entitled to poke their chest out if they wish. But take the time to assist in helping others also, about the colors you so proudly wear.

 

Thank you trjam.

As you've noticed I'm an AVG user. AVG only got 2.5 marks out of five from PCMag, but I can see where that's coming from because its heuristics really isn't the best and its firewall isn't up to par with the other top contenders, as the reviewer correctly noted. You don't see me kicking up a fuss about it, because they were very valid observations, so I don't understand why other people need to complain and throw shady insinuations around when PCMag finds out that their pet product isn't perfect (gasp!). It doesn't really help improve other people's opinions of their product at all, nor of their character.

 

No problem, but lets leave it at that point, so we can hopefully keep this thread alive.

 

I think the reason PC Mag consistently favors Symantec products is because they recommend products for average users, I think also because Symantec has such a huge user base you see more complaints from their users ...

Far as Avira I personally use Avira Premium, I trialed the
AV and I trialed the suite and did not care for the firewall,
did think their anti spam module was good though but I
ended up purchasing a license to Avira Premium based
on what worked best on my computer.

I do not take magazine reviews to heart, nor would they
influence my decision to purchase, same for reviews made
in forums I try what appeals to me and make a decision
from there.

Wake

 

HI jdenton.I was currently using Avira and know using AVG 8 afterwards who knows.I like to play with the goodies so to speak.I think AVG deserves 4 stars 1.Effort 2.For user friendly3.For lightness4.Free W/option to buy.

 

PC Magazine did give Avast Home 4.8 a very very good review. So I would think maybe their not so one sided.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2282699,00.asp

 

If they reduce the memory footprint some more then I will be happy. 8.0 isn't being as light for me as 7.5 was.

 

Yes there Is a noticeable difference, may be due to the spyware added not sure though.

 

I think even if its not the best at cleaning viruses, it better be the best or near the top at preventing/stopping a virus from getting on the PC. And we all know we dont use just an AV app for Internet security. I can safely say I havent had a virus or spyware in about 3 years. And I use IE. And I dont even use Avira. (yet. I came here for some info b4 I installed it today.) And I hang out in some of the darkest corners of the net...

As far as bashing security appz, if I have continuous problems with certain components of that app, then its not good. Whether the network part of it doesnt connect me to my home network correctly, the malware part of it picks n chooses when to protect me, parts of it crash with other security appz, components hang during shutdown and/or startup, some of these security appz need to be bashed. And I hate to say it but out of what I just mentioned u could apply Norton to almost every problem I typed, followed by Zone Alarm, BitDefender, Spyware Doctor. Even tho with the Doc I might have to overlook its problems. Its the best anti-spyware app thats set-it-n-forget-it IMO. And lets not even get into memory, cpu usage with some of these security appz......

 

hi pykko

can you please test kaspersky 8.0.0.454 2009 the latest if you can ??

 

Pc Mag has no idea of what security is. It's saying that Spyware Doctor is detecting more malware than Kaspersky and Avira. That's not possible in any way, shape or form. And according to them, the 2 best security apps are Spyware Doctor and Symantec. I'd like to know how much they get paid to say this.