Best/fastest anti-virus for Vista use?

I just got a notebook and it comes with trial McAfee preloaded onto it. I've heard both Mcafee and Norton are resource hogs. Along with Vista being a resource hog, this leads to slow performance. Does anyone have a suggestion for a FASTER, efficient and reliable virus/spyware/etc. program (also inexpensive would be nice too be not necessary)

 

NOD32 is reported to be the fastest, but not free. AVG Free and Avast are also very good, and they are free.

 

My friend also recommends NOD32. It uses only 8 MB of memory and does a full scan is 10 minutes, according to my friend though.

 

Hell that's way better then Mcafee and Norton isnt it? Those programs use like tons of RAM don't they?

 

I recommend Avast if you're looking for free. It outperforms a lot of commercial offerings like Norton & McAfee.

 

Damn, I just read a review/comparison of AV apps last night but can't remember at which site. NOD, Kaspersky and TrendMicro all did well. I don't remember which free apps were tested, but Avast and AVG have been recommended many times by folks here and several other sites I visit.

Not too long ago, in PC World I believe, even Norton AV was given a great write-up. Apparently, the lastest version has been slimmed down and works very well, though with its long history and reputation for being bloated, I'll go with Kaspersky if I return to Windows.

 

There are so many threads on this subject but I use AVG for antivirus and anti-spyware. Both are free, fast, and resource efficient.

 

ive tried avg and avast..used avg..switched to avast to see if it was any better...slowed down my computer significantly...with a t7300 and 3gb ram..so went back to avg..love it..and have used it for the past 2 years or so without any problems

 

As vaio said there are tons of thread on this but...i use AVG, and Avast. I also recommend NOD32 like the others.

 

Avast user right here .

If you're looking for commercial-ware, look no further than NOD32. 3rd party tests have shown it to be the fastest and most accurate Anti-virus program around .

 

Nod32!

 

Norton NIS 2007 here. Please dont shoot!

It works inobtrusively in Vista. No complain whatsoever.

 

Although McAfee is still a resource hog, Norton has gotten better with NIS 2007 and 2008 if you do a quick search for some reviews. It's not that I actually use Norton, but wanted to inform you on this.

 

But i say why use norton when you could use free alternatives? Maybe if they started to charge for the good freebies, they could pay for advertising and drive the bad ones out of business and go free again.

 

Why not use Norton if it suits a person's needs, and that user happens to prefer the app over those which are free?

 

They can use it, as long as it's personal preference they are after but if they want speed, light foot print, performance. Then they should take a look at the freebies. They don't have to, but if they want something different they can.

 

I'm gonna say Norton 2008.

 

A/V is 3rd on my list.

#1 is Firewall
#2 is AntiSpyWare
#3 is AntiVirus

 

I have used AVG free in the past, but got slammed by a virus with it 'watching and scanning' and now use NOD32...I think it's 19 bux/year to renew. Many people recommend AVG, I'm just 'jaded' by AVG You pays your money and you takes your chances But hey, AVG is free!

 

@theZoid:

That's why I suggest Avast. I've installed Avast on systems that Norton and AVG were watching, but that got infected anyway, and Avast was actually able to clean them up, and they haven't been reinfected since then (these are machines used by people who don't know the meaning of "Internet Security").

 

hmm no one said kaspersky , also not free but to me its one of the best next to nod32.
avast fails to detect trojans on my pc for some odd reason ..
and i had many issues with norton on previous systems so im not going back to it .

 

Strange...I used Avast's boot-time scan on the infected systems I mentioned, and it picked up and killed about 50 different trojans without a problem.

 

So it seems NOD32 is the most recommended and will slow down my computer the least? If it really does not take up tons of system resoucres, and works well w/ spywear, antivirus, and all that unwanted crap, I'd gladly pay for it. As long as it's an efficient "cover all" so to speak

 

so you are saying that u got a virus with avg, in which, avast found?

 

nod32 is def the best standalone av. however the ess security suite is well okay.. the firewall is decent at best, also you can try avira antivir, f-secure, and a program called look n stop for vista firewall that is super light

^^ avg's detections rates were only decent at the last av comparatives test. it did not do as well as most others did

 

Does nod32 also have all the other suite features? spyware/firewall/etc?

 

kaspersky 7.0 internet security right here, runs great and stopped a lot of those random website Trojan and what not. Its active scan works better imo than symantec, it detects infected files when you d/l it and prompts for solution. Also includes spyware and firewall. You can look to pick it up for free after rebates from various dealers, i got mine from staples 2 months ago for 70 dollars + 70 dollar rebate.

 

Is Kaspersky fast-working and doesn't bog things down? Another one I heard good things about is Zone Alarm suite. I want the full security suite that won't slow down my internet or computer as much as possoble. Not just antivirus, but anti-spyware,spam,adware,etc.

 

Zone Alarm firewall, when I last used it, a year ago, hogged a lot of resources, and my Internet was very slow as well. So I removed it.

I don't have a firewall, and I don't see a reason for it to be honest. If you have a really good anti-virus (NOD32 in my case), with Windows Defender running in the background, and two more Adware + Spyware removers for weekly cleanup, all of them updated, I don't think you have anything worry about.

 

Hmm well is there a singular program that'd do anti-virus, adware, and spyware and is quick and won't bog the computer down? I'm bad with upkeep and multiple programs to maintain/download prolly won't work well for me lol. I know I'm lazy!

 

I used to use Kaspersky but it was giving me problems with Steam apps so I uninstalled it and replaced with Avast, which works very well and silently in the background. very nice especially since it's free.

 

I think I might go with Kaspersky. If I were to buy the Kaspersky suite, that'd have me covered right? Antivirus/spyware/adware, and everything? And it runs real fast and doesnt bog down system resources?

 

does anyone else feel that avast uses more resources and slows ure comp down more than avg?

 

@eyecon82:

It's been a while since I've used a system that DOESN'T have Avast on it, but I've not found it to be a resource hog.

 

I have Avast and i have not had a virus/trojans etc...for over 2 years now and I feel no slow down in performance at all. And I use a pentium M 1.8ghz laptop.

 

I honestly don't usa an antivirus program. I run the Kaspersky online virus scanner regularly though. It's free, and it found some stuff that AVG never did.

 

anti virus only programs though dont protect against spyware n stuff does it?

 

what do you guys think is the best anti-ad program? i use ad aware for a weekly scan; but what is best to prevent these programs from even downloading on our system? thanks..i may switch to avast from avg; i have had no problems and i switched back for a few days to avast and noticed way more hd activity than with avg

 

@eyecon82:

I suggest Spybot to prevent infection from spy/adware. As long as you keep it up to date and use the immunize feature regularly, you should be as safe as an application can make you.

 

The company I work for installs F-Secure Suite on all desktops and laptops. I have been using my company issued laptop with F-Secure for the past 3 1/2 years and have NEVER had any Spyware, Worms, Trojans, Rootkits, Malware or Viruses. I started using F-Secure on my home computers about a year and a half ago and have not had any issues since. It doesn't seem to use alot of system resources either. F-Secure isn't exactly cheap at $60 US but it is an all in one package that includes A/V, anti-spyware, firewall, spamblocker, and parental controls. For me it's been way worth the money...

 

I do on boot times, but when its all loaded things run fine... thats why i use AVG; although im still looking for other AV programs. I may even give Avast another go!

 

Yes, if I have to choose a free one, it would definitely be Avast for me, IMHO

 

I currently use Avast, however, I do have a question. Why is free AntiVir not recommended more often? The premium version appears to do well on the http://www.av-comparatives.org/ tests, especially compared to Avast. Is the free version crippled somehow?

 

I use Nod 32. It works like a charm. It auto-updates every single day and runs on a minuscule amount of RAM and CPU cycles.

It scans every active file, email, web file, etc. It also has an on-demand scanner and a scheduler.

I believe it is the best/lightest Anti-Virus around.

Only issue I've ever had with it involves streaming large audio files in .aiff format in iTunes over my network while running Nod32. The files take forever to play. For some reason the issue doesn't occur with other filetypes. Anyway, when I'm playing a bunch of .aiff songs over my network, I disable active scanning in Nod32...but otherwise it is a treat.

 

So if we were limiting it to free options for a security suite, which would everyone recommend? AVS or Avast? I'm talking spyware blocking, adware blocker, and anti-virus? Or is windows defender on Vista good enough by itself? Cuz from what i hear windows defender takes up a lot of resources in and of itself

 

well I read some reviews online; avast is just SLIGHTLY better than avg...therefore I am sticking with avg since it is less of a resource hog and a better interface

 

As documented on my website, my recommendations are all currently free ones:

• Firewall - PCTools Firewall Plus (V2, not V3)
• Anti-SpyWare - PCTools SpyWare Doctor
• Anti-Virus - Avast!
• Additional:
  • SpyBot Search and Destroy

 

will avg/avast protect against spyware/adware or just viruses?

 

I have the same set up with the Windows firewall and a Linksys router. I think I'm covered.

 

i do know that the free avg does not protect against adware; use ad aware for that