antivirus

Norton Antivirus 2009 3User [OLD VERSION]
$69.99
NAV 2009 works as advertised. I have installed on two systems with XP home and Vista without difficulty.

Vipre AntiVirus + AntiSpyware
$49.99
Vipre AntiVirus + AntiSpyware I purchased this item after extensive research and reading that it is completely compatible with Windows 7. It is not. I must go to the vipre website every day, manually download new definitions and then go through a whole process of installing the updates.
And there is no softare update. I have automatic update checking and I have received the messages since day one- Vipre was unable to complete the check for threat definitions- Vipre was unable to complete the check for software updates.
There is no support for this software. When searching for support I found a website that shows these severe problems have been in place now for over a year without correction. Sunbelt states they will get to it, (again that was over a year ago!) and another explanation given by Sunbelt is they keep their servers turned off most of the time, because, it would cause downloads to be to slow if everyone was getting automatic updates.
I wrote to them and was told to go to the website and manually download the updates.
I am extremely disappointed and frustrated with the poor performance of this product and would not recommend it to anyone.

McAfee AntiVirus Plus 1User 2010
$39.99
I tend to go back and forth between security products from time to time...like many, I have multiple computers, and somehow I think it's safer to use a mix of security products rather than standardize on the same product everywhere. I haven't used McAfee for a few years, but I decided to give it a try this time as it came preinstalled on my new laptop.

Compared to Norton and most of the others, the basic features are very similar. The product detects and removes viruses (more than 200,000 types, according to the vendor) and spyware, while also including anti-phishing and identity theft protection. One unique feature of McAfee is that it periodically makes copies of key system configuration files, enabling you to restore your system to a known good status should something bad happen. Another unique feature I liked was that the product evaluates the security of web links as they are displayed, highlighting suspicious links before you're tempted to follow them.

I also found the administration and policies more useful than the competing products - very much appreciated. It can be a little complex at first, but if you like to have fine-grained control of security policy, this is the best product I've seen.

I personally found a few of the features less useful, for instance, home network security. I tend to secure my system at my router (which acts as a firewall), and I generally leave the network inside my home relatively open. McAfee's home network protection didn't impress me as adding anything worthwhile to this mix.

The product installs easily on my Windows Vista system and I was up and running in under ten minutes.

Compared to the Norton (Symantec) product (which I run on another computer), McAfee seems slower overall, but less "spikey". The Norton product tends to be faster overall, but when it does something resource-intensive (like download signatures), it tends to be more noticeable. McAfee is sort of the opposite - it's slower generally, but performance seems more even and consistent. Still, the only time I'd say it was objectionable were times when I'd have a huge amount of incoming email, especially email with lots of attachments. These conditions slow down my PC, and a quick visit to Windows Task Manager reveals McAfee as the culprit.

Still, overall this is a fine product that's stable and capable of providing top quality security protection.

McAfee AntiVirus Plus 3User 2010
$59.99
McAfee Antivirus Plus 2010 is overall a good product.
The installation went smooth both on my XP and Vista systems.
The integration is well polish and the user interface intuitive.
I have been using it for a month now and have nothing to complain about.