Which antivirus is better?

Hey guys;

I am using Kaspersky Antivirus at the moment. I haven't had any problems with it. However, it takes long time to do a manual scan. Is there better antivirus than Kaspersky out there? I heard NOD32 is good. How is it compared to kaspersky? Kaspersky, also, seems to use lot of resources. What antivirus you guys recommend?

 

Kaspersky is THE most powerful AV. NOD32 is quite good and lighter on resources.

 

Best antivirus?
Common Sense Antivirus v7.03

 

Cool name. Can you provide me a link, google comes up with nothing.

 

Stick with it then

Why the rush? KAV takes longer than most AV's because it is carrying out a thorough scan, particularly if you have lots of packed files. If you are using KAV 5, you can increase the scan speed by moving the slider down in the on-demand scanner settings to "High Speed". However, I would not advise using this setting all the time. Further, if you have enabled the iStreams and iChecker technologies, these should also help in improving scan speed.

Not for overall malware detection.

NOD is good. Both have strengths and weaknesses. Your choice.

Have you an older computer? KAV 5 probably uses more memory/resources than the real lightweight AV's such as NOD and Dr Web, but it runs very light here on an old 400MHz, 192MB RAM computer. If you decide to stay with KAV, purchasing more RAM may be a good decision.

The one that suits you and your system. Overall it is a very personal choice. Any of the ones listed here will give you good protection; http://www.av-comparatives.org/ and http://www.wilders.org/anti_viruses.htm

 

Tru_Snoop,

If use Kaspersky AntiVirus and you're happy with it, then keep using it. A manual scan takes a long time on Kaspersky Antivirus because Kaspersky does a thourough scan which scans multiple archive/packed files. Considering that Kaspersky AntiVirus supports over 700 packers, the scan would definitely take some time.

There is no better AntiVirus out there for overall malware detection, except maybe F-Secure.

NOD32 is very good, very light on the system and excellent heuristics. However, its signature database is relatively small compared to Kaspersky.

Kaspersky does use quite a bit of RAM, no denying. But this is only really apparent if you use the old KAV 4.x and less than 96MB of RAM. KAV uses more than Dr.Web or NOD32, but KAV5 runs well on 500MHz PCs with 160MB RAM (tested on friend's PC).

As for recommendation, stick to what Blackcat says.

Regards,
Firecat

 

Hi Tru_Snoop,

exists some very good AV's out there and you can test them to see what is better for your needs and system...

However, I can recommend Kaspersky if you want the best detection rate, the NOD32 to a great detection rate and very low resources, and the avast! (free or pay version) that it's a very good AV and is growing very well

Regards

 

Well you could give a try to NOD but not during the week ends

 

Why not during the weekends?

 

LOL, they are working on it, though it does take time to train up new staff as they expand Other than that minor detail, they are always on the ball as to updates...

Cheers

 

Tru_Snoop,

The time for a manual scan really shouldn't be a decision factor IMHO. Perform that scan in off-hours while you're sleeping or away and whether it takes 20 minutes or 6 hours is really of no practical consequence.

KAV is the most comprehensive AV option out there, but that degree of coverage comes with a price.

To determine whether KAV, NOD32, or one of the many other options out there is best for you, you need to firmly define what "better" means to you, list target attributes in order of importance to you, then weigh your options against that ordered list.

If better means "most comprehensive detection option available", KAV is your answer. If other attributes come into play, your preferred soluton may change. KAV does use a lot of resources, but the key question is do you notice it and are there configuration options available to minimize it.

Blue

 

Hi

Followed the link to w3.av-comparatives... First things that struck me is that AntiVir is not listed.

Two points if I may...

I currently don't run any AV myself, but I tested many just for the fun of it a couple of months ago, and one thing I'm sure of is that AntiVir is a darn good AV. Very small footprint, very low on CPU usage, does a wonderful job at real-time protecting (the viruses I've been sent over the years - which I kept - I threw at it, and it defended with much ease), heuristics, also detectes dialing programs, etc. And... free for personal use at www.free-av.com

If such a widely used and appreciated AV as AntiVir is not listed, what kind of comparative list is this? One is now forced to ask oneself, 'which other AV did they leave off' ?

 

... and WHY they did leave this one (these ones?!) out.

 

Sorry

I have to make a publicapology.

AntiVir IS listed (Professional)

Sorry, especially to the testers and av-comparatives site developers.

 

Over at av-comparatives, apart from a minimum zoo detection rate by the on-demand scanner and 100% detection rate of ITW samples, other factors have to be taken into account for inclusion of a particular AV.

But if you take part in their survey, you may find your favourite scanner, which at present is not being tested, may be sometime in the future; http://www.av-comparatives.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=102

 

You obviously practise safe hex

But not recommended for all, particularly newbies or those visiting high-risk sites.

 

KAV is definately the most powerful of the two, but NOD32 is the lightest on resources, has way better tech support too. IMO use NOD32 out of the two and a good AT, like TDS3, or if you can't afford it like me, then Ewido which is free to take care of your trojan needs since NOD32 doesen't specialize in trojans, but KAV detects them pretty well, but tends to be more of a resource hog.

 

I agree...
I suppressed many of the at-risk components of XP (XPLite), use on-line webmail, and got the Partitioning/Imaging processes down to a science... All that does the trick for me, while allowing me not to bother with defrags and other operations I don't like. Besides, I like to know exactly what's on my pc when I turn it on, so I restore daily to get the precise configuration I built up previously.
Had I to make a choice, I'd alternate between Nod32 and AntiVirPersonal.

Cheers

 

Were you joking about tech support?I didnt renew my NOD licence due to the lack of support,most time you were lucky to get any answer/acknowledgement at all to emails so either things have improved dramatically at Eset or you are being sarcastic!

 

... and speaking of tech support, or should I say lack of, I had to remove KAV from my system because of a problem, emailed tech support on Jan. 30th ... still waiting ...

Acadia

 

Nope, I didn't have too much luck with either in the tech support area, just was better at least for me with NOD32 than KAV

 

this mirrors my experiance with them also. It's going on 5 days now for me and it was not even a tech support call. I called their reseller support to ask about reselling the product and when I got no responce I posted in the forums and got nothing there either.


here is the link to thier forums.

http://forums.useice.com/cgi-bin/ikonboard.cgi?;act=ST;f=1;t=1858

I really am sorry for the customers there because the only thing they have are each other. It's really kind of sad to pay as much as they do for a top notch product only to have to put up with that kind of customer support.

 

I can't say about others but I can say as for the reseller support at nod I dont get an answering machine like I did with kaspersky. Every time I call I get a real person that is more than willing to help.

I never have liked email supprt from a company. If I dont have a phone number to call and a person on the other end they usaully dont get my business. I do settle for a good forum though since it is usally at least half way in between email and live phone support but thats only if people from the company actually respond to my posts.

 

There really is no right answer to this question. KAV and NOD32 are both top notch AV’s IMO (I use NOD32) and are two of the best out there. Which one is better for you depends, there really is no arguing that KAV has bigger definitions and is better at detecting Trojans than NOD, but NOD has better heuristics that are more prone to catch a virus even if it does not have a definition yet, NOD is also lighter on resources. I chose NOD because I wanted a light AV, am not a high risk user (use safe browsing habits) and plan on adding an anti Trojan in the future to supplement NOD, which IMO will make it just as/more powerful than KAV at detection. If you do not care about resource usage and do not want to add an anti Trojan to your setup than you will probably be better off with KAV, but its up to you, maybe trial NOD and see if you like it better.