Trying to Choose Between KAV6 and NOD32

Hello all.

First, I am not looking to start a "Mine is better than yours" thread here. Not at all.

I have three PCs and I am looking for a new AV for two of them - my main desktop presently has Kaspersky AV6. While KAV6 is certainly OK, I have some time to shop for my other two PCs' AV.

I installed a trial of NOD32 on my notebook but it was unfortunately cut short.

(Quick explanation - battery is dying in the notebook and I had to remove it, both to check which replacement I need to order and to check the serial to see if it's being recalled by Dell - it's not. When I replaced the battery the system clock was reset to August 30, 2004 -date OS was originally installed. I reset it - and of course the NOD32 trial now said I was 695 days expired on the trial!!)

I had been somewhat confused with the setup before I lost the trial and didn't have the time to work it out. The GUI is different enough from other AVs I have used that I was unsure how to do certain things. Many modules and not enough explanation as to what each does. I noticed that there did not seem to be a viewable scheduled scan. I ahd been trying to learn the interface and find out how to set up a scheduled scan when the battery thing interrupted me. So now I cannot investigate it any further without purchasing the software. Which I would do if I had confidence that it and I would get along OK.

I wrote Eset and asked about the purpose of the various modules and the somewhat dificult to follow interface in general. I also asked about setting up scheduled scans. I wasn't overly thrilled with either response. On the interface questions I was told basically that I cold just use the simple mode and not worry about all of that. (Well, gee thanks!) As for the scheduled scans, I was told about setting up the background scan, which would not alert me to anything unless there was a problem - I had alreadt mentioned that I didn't really like that option; I like to see what is going on. Plus the support tech gave me about two solid paged of command line options that I would have to input at the command prompt in order to have s scheduled scan that is not hidden in the background. It was more than a bit tedious looking, IMO.

BTW, Eset would not allow me to reinstall the trial, but said I would have to purchase it to see anymore.

Also I had complained that the only logs I had found were .DAT files that were in binary format. When I converted that code to try to read it I found that the logs are all in Slovak. The tech agreed and said the logs were for them - not for users to read. (Excuse me!)

While I am not particularly fond of Kaspersky's interface, I'm not certain that I know enough about NOD32's to like or dislike it. But what I did see og NOD32's UI I wasn't entirely comfortable with at all.

Any insight on NOD32's somewhat odd interface?

Thank you.

 

It does take slighty longer to master it's interface, but once you've figured it out and know where all the cool stuff is at, it's actually one of the best interfaces ever made. There's no unnecessary icons or blinking graphics etc.

Anywho, you might wanna take a look at this tutorial: https://www.wilderssecurity.com/showthread.php?t=37509
Plenty of screenshots too

 

You've come to the right place for impartial advice (lol)
joking apart they are both superb AV's (amongst the very best!:erhaps the two best!)so you won't go wrong with either,unless you happen to get a conflict with some other app on your PC

 

Well I've used KIS.
I don't speak english so I hope you can understand me.
Kis ( kav plus antihacker, antispam and something more) is a very, very good antivirus.
The problem is that when the time pass, in my case, my pc began to stay very heavy. I don't know why but it happens.
You can see a good forum in
http://forum.kaspersky.com/

Y you make a search you can see my posts.
Ok by the other hand, Nod is a very, very good antivirus too.
Perhaps a little better by it's unequalable heuristic. It's light and at this time I haven't any problem.
Perhaps the only problem, a little problem, are the updates.
KIS/KAV has light updates an several along the day, and it's servers always are ready.
Nod has generally one or two, sometimes three updates along the day and it's servers have had problems a month ago.


I think that the best thing you can do is to run a trial of both, not togheter.

 

Thanks for this, Brian. I had seen it but wanted to try NOD32 firsthand.

I'll give tutorial a better going over now.

 

I knew that I would most likely see mostly two types of posts here:

1. Long time users who like to frequent forums, and...
   
   
2. Users here to post about their problems with the product.

That's how most user forums are usually populated! But there are always some folks with good knowledge who like to share and help. All you need to find is one or two.

Thanks for that. I'm not a complete know-nothing regarding PCs - takes years to get that way! I do want some input to the software, and some feedback as to what it is doing, and how. At the same time, I am not necessarily a CMD line lover either - I only use the command line inputs when absolutely necessary. I feel that I did my time looking at ugly DOS screens in years past!

I want to know enough to dig in and see if my AV or AS, etc. is causing my home network to choke, or if I have a network problem. I like logs and alerts. I need to know if any anti-malware application is ever blocking anything at all on my machines. I don't want the old, original NAV-style of "Don't you worry about any of this... We'll handle it for you." type of interface. At the same time, I like the ability to configure which parts of a UI I see often and which that I don't.

I guess that's it then: Configurability. That, besides being a good, solid AV, is what I am hoping to find.

Thanks to all for your great input.

 

NOD32 v3 will have leaps forward in ease of configurability - that said, v2.5 has MASSIVE amounts of configurability, even if it's interface is being "improved" for the v3 launch when it eventually happens.

You also need to consider whether your other choice includes major version upgrades for free during your license/update period - Eset does. I can't speak for your other choice, having no experience of them - but MOST other software vendors require an upgrade fee to get the latest major release - not so here!

hth

Greg

 

As this is the Nod32 Support Forum there will not be any "Mine is better than yours". However....if you desire to also have a discussion concerning other AV's....this is not the forum for your thread.

Having said that....as long as the questions\discussion concern Nod32 only....we'll continue where we are....otherwise....

Bubba

 

Hi ... Whats there to think about ? Buy NOD32 and use Kas free online scanner , you can't go wrong , Now can you ?

BYW Just the renewal itself should tell you which way to go

 

Thanks Greg. Maybe it does have great configurability - I don't think that I was able to use the trial long enough to be able to find that out to my satisfaction, though.

And the support email that I received asking about scheduled scans pretty much pushed the command line solution, rather than offering any help with the interface. He basically said that I should just install using the "Typical" selection and that I don't really need to see the interface after that. I don't agree with that, though. Also, he pointed out that the only scheduled scan available via the interface will only run in the background and has no way to pause or stop the scan. He didn't get into whether or not I could even change the schedule via the UI. Then he just pushed the command line method, which I really don't wish to do.

It seems that he, probably like most here, are still thinking that I can take a look at this or that part of the program right now - but I can't since I lost the trial after only a few days. I'd have to purchase it just to take a lokk at this point. And I'm reluctant to do that, because if I do purchase it, I'll be buying two licenses because of the discount. If I bought one just o be able to try it again, I'd have to pay the full, single license price, and then pay it again for the other PC if I do like it.

So I'm trying to rely on the responses here.

Thanks again!

 

Something I said??

I tried to word the thread title carefully to make sure that I did not draw any fire, as that is not my intention.

And I stated what I did in the first line of the first post - the one you quoted - just to make that as clear as I possibly could.

Both products are new to me, and both are highly rated everywhere I have read about them. I could run ahead blindly and rely solely on the reviews in the larger PC sites. But then again, they are still touting Norton and McAfee as their "choices", so I don't feel that I can put much faith in those reviews! The best way to get a feel for them, and find out the good and not-so-good about them is to ask the users - I'm certain that most here, as well as in other forums, have used more than one AV product and so might have a good point of reference regarding both products.

So what made you think that you needed to issue the mild warning anyway?

Sorry if I somehow intruded in your space.

 

Hey, I guess that's one way to look at it!

Thanks Snooker.

 

guilijan,

Sorry that I missed replying to your post. It wasn't intentional - I just plain missed it.

As for your English skills, they are just fine. Much better than my ability to post in your language, I'm sure.

You make some very good points. I appreciate the opinion of someone who has used both.

Thanks for your opinion!

 

Hi J-Mac,

Recently I bought NOD32 for my second PC and while the interface was a bit awkward at the beginning, I got used to it. It needs a bit of configuration at first, following Blackspear's setting, but once over that you're pretty well setup.

Only thing I find annoying that once you've to reinstall, you lose the setup, so you've to start over again. I agree, I haven't started to read about all the command line options available, which makes it a bit more complicated.
However if I don't get it wrong, a new upgrade will allow you to export/import your setup.

Anyhow it's a very good AV where you can't go wrong.

 

I guess my question would be...why do you want change? You won't get better detection than Kaspersky anyway, are you experiencing any problems with it?

As for the usual "Nod is lighter" fanfare, i don't see anything between them on my pc, if you set it up after blackspears guide.

 

Your "carefully" worded thread title in itself was enough to question if the Nod32 Support was the best possible forum for proper assistance and biased comments. As for the "mild warning"....that was more of a To All type comment made to assure your thread does not turn into a comparison type thread as the title suggests and to assure it stays strictly Nod32 related so there would be no need to consider moving it to a more appropriate forum.

I have no space to intrude and was simply laying ground work for a thread that was posted in a product specific support forum that dealt with AV comparison. Let's just say based on past threads of this type(title\thread placement)....a "mild warning" in our opinion goes a log way in assuring the thread starter receives proper assistance.

So as not to take this thread off topic un-necessarily concerning my actions....Please do PM myself or an Admin if you wish to discuss this further.

Thanks,
Bubba

 

why could'nt they just make nod32 pretty darn it or in a suite? ....lol and all will be well........ Kaspersky was to slow for me.....

 

Don,

As with any assessment of performance, understanding where and why bottlenecks occur is an extremely critical step. The ability to discern performance differences between any of these products is heightened with any or all of: (1) a slow machine, (2) that is lean on RAM, (3) with a high process load, (4) a slow HDD subsystem, and (5) a fast internet connection. By the same token, the converse is also true with (a) a fast machine, (b) with 1+ GB RAM, (c) a low process load, (d) a fast HDD subsystem, and (e) a slow internet connection all combine to suppress any observable differences in the products. This comment goes beyond comparing this pair of AV's.

The important point for a potential purchaser to understand, particularly in dealing with anecdotal comments and legacy threads here and elsewhere is that the point where a user will start to feel the pain of a performance drain for head-to-head comparisons is a moving target and it's unique to each user.

That said, version 6 of KAV/KIS has effectively made a step change for the better in this regard. There are combinations of factors in which I will still see differentiation in the performance of NOD32 and KAV/KIS, however, I really have to be loading my system for that state to be achieved. It is also partially tied to the type of connection I have...

http://www.speedtest.net/result/41333971.png

It is not generally apparent in my routine use, yet there's even elasticity in that comment as my connection speed ramps up due to local competition between providers while my PC remains constant.

The best advice one can give is to trial, trial, trial...., and stress test during the trials, but don't stress-out over the choices finally made. Most major offerings are fine.

With respect to J-Mac and what to do...., unless I have an overriding reason to have specific solutions per PC, I always recommend going with a unified approach. If KAV works, and you feel more comfortable with it, stick with it. Although it's only 3 licenses, there are multi-license discounts available even at this level as long as they're synchronized. Do the math, it may be worthwhile.

If there is a specific point of pain in your use of KAV, select a product that remedies that pain. It may be NOD32, it may be another vendor. Also, this is not a lifetime committment. If, down the road, you feel you've made an unfortunate choice, that can always be remedied a year from now..

Blue

 

To be honest , the first time I installed NOD32 , I was also confused because it is different from others but if you use it you'll soon get used to it , it is easy to use

NOD32 does have schduled tasks option.

Information about absolutely everything can be found in the built-in help file . You can also read tutorials and user guides in the ESET's site (www.eset.com) or ask in NOD32's forum here at Wilders

I'll try to explain the modules for you.

NOD32 has 5 protection modules:

• AMON
• DMON
• EMON
• IMON
• NOD32 on-demand scanner

AMON is the Antivirus Monitor . It is most important protection which performs on-create , on-access and on-execute scans . By default scans all kind of files.

DMON is the Document Monitor . This scans API interface -MS Office document files and IE components such as ActiveX

EMON is the Email Monitor . This takes care for MS Office Outlook application

IMON is the Internet Monotor . This works in Winsock , early Windows level , and thus scans traffic before it even reaches your hard drive . It scans POP3 and HTTP , application independant so it protects all kind of POP3 mails and web-browsers

I don't understand correctly that but if you setup a scheduled scan you can see its details . The best would be to make NOD32 automatically eliminates malicious software and at the end show details . This can be seen in the Blackspear's tutorial

I realize your battery issue. There is a way you can try NOD32 before you buy it . You have to contact local ESET representer/ NOD32 reseller , explain them the situation and ask for NFR (not for resale) license . This is like a regular license but valid for limited time , example 15 days or 30 days . You can install the paid version of NOD32 using the user/pass of the NFR license and use it X days and then decide .

If you decide to ask for NFR , read 1 and 2

You are welcome Hope I can help

 

Don,

KAV6 is on one PC; I have two more on which I am running Zone Alarm Security Suite - and I am losing that by choice. I've had enough of ZA.

Both KAV and NOD32 are very highly rated in every place I've read about them. So primarily it's the interface that makes them different. Their underlying AV engines are equally regarded, for the most part.

KAV6, IMO, doesn't have the cleanest interface; it tends to intrude more than I would like. Apparently there is a firewall-like module built-in, which I guess is nice if you're looking for that. But I prefer to run a separate firewall and then only configure FW-controlled items once.

So I figured I would take a look at NOD32, but unfortunately I did not get a good look at it i the short trial I had.

So I decided to ask here. That's it in a nutshell!

 

The whole "Kaspersky detects all" fanfare should just be ignored.

 

Absolutely the most helpful response I received here.

Thank you HiTech_boy. Excellent post, IMO!

 

Thank you Blue.

Very helpful, and very much appreciated!

 

I just want to thank everyone who helped me here.

As for the slight bit of concern that my thread would get a bit "hot", I will just say that I moderate at two separate forums, both handheld device related, and I administer one of my own. It's pretty easy to sniff out posters whose only intention is to start fires.

If that was my intent - and it certainly was not - there are certainly much better ways to go about it.

With that, I'll take my leave. I've been blessed with some very helpful responses so far, and I am sure that they will help me to make my decision.

I am very appreciative of those who replied!

 

No AV can detect everything, besides it also depends on what you do on your computer. Practice safe hex and you'll probably never get as much as a warning.

Maybe it did on your PC, but it sure doesn't on mine.
Could be you had a conflict with some other software installed or else some leftovers from a previous antivirus

It really runs light and I don't experience any significant slowdowns. For me version 6 is the best version, compared to previous one, which I liked too.

I decided to give NOD32 a try and from what I've experienced it runs light too, but you need to get used to the interface. Having used several others before, it does give you a scare at first sight, however you get over it and learn to understand it.

Mind you, I've seen much worse interfaces with some trials.

Also you buy it for one year, so if I want to install another after that period, I just do. That doesn't mean I won't stay with KAV and NOD32, but it's after all my choice if I want a change.