BitDefender Total Security 2012 - Review

Back on the 17th of this month I took a look at the beta version of BitDefender Total Security 2012 and I have to say that I wasn’t impressed at all. There were a few reasons for this but the main one by far was the fact that the program reduced my laptop to a crawl. Or should I say complete and utter standstill.

The Good:

• Massive improvement over the beta version
• Auto-pilot feature requires less input from the user
• Large range of features

The Bad:

• Large amount of RAM required
• Interface: white text on a black background is a personal no-no
• Some people have reported that installation can be slow

Still, I said at the time that I do like BitDefender products and that I thought they would come good in the end. So today I am taking another look, this time at the final retail version.

Now I’m not going to run through everything again as all the features, system requirements and positive and negative points are all covered in my previous review. Instead I’m just going to look at the big area that concerned me previously, namely the resource usage.

Well, as I thought there might, there has been a huge turnaround. With the beta the CPU usage was constantly between around 25% and 80% with the higher figure being more typical. As you can see above, it is much, much lower now which leads to a far more pleasant experience!
With this final retail version of BitDefender running on my laptop I can actually do other things whilst a scan is in progress. I don’t know why the beta was so poor on my machine. Sure, betas are not expected to be perfect but all the others I have tried in the past have been fairly close to the final versions, albeit with a few minor bugs that needed to be discovered.
The BitDefender Total Security 2012 beta was poor indeed on my machine, for whatever reason, but the final build doesn’t suffer from that at all. The plus points I mentioned in the previous outing still stand and the negative points have ceased to be an issue.

Conclusion
Whilst there was no way on earth I would have recommended trying out the beta version of this product I am glad to say that the final retail version is as good as previous versions and lives up to what I would expect to see from this security vendor. I’m happier now and actually looking forward to reviewing BitDefender’s 2012 antivirus program shortly
Do you want to see what the other vendors are offering this year? If so, read my other 2012 Internet Security reviews.

Read More

Review Of BitDefender Total Security 2012 (beta)

In my continuing series of reviews of 2012 internet security software I have already looked at the latest products from Kaspersky Labs and F-Secure. Today I will be looking at a new product from BitDefender: BitDefender Total Security 2012.

The Good:

• Auto-pilot feature requires less input from the user
• Large range of features
• Not much else I’m afraid

The Bad:

• Shocking performance
• Large amount of RAM required
• Interface: white text on a black background is a personal no-no

Like my last review, of F-Secure Internet Security 2012, this too is a beta version of the software I am looking at so the final product may have some minor changes/improvements upon it’s release.

Installation and first impression
Being the epic reader of all things security that I am I have seen some commentary across the web which suggests that BitDefender Total Security 2012 is slow to install. Now I don’t know why others have found that as I had no such issues (other than the limiting factor of my internet connection which was downloading Fallout: New Vegas at the same time {from a legitimate source}). The program does scan for viruses on your system as part of the installation process though so maybe that is what some people perceive as a problem?
Once installed, you are presented with the interface for the first time. My first impression was painful – white text on a black background doesn’t track well with my eyes – but you may like it.

Features
The program, as you should expect, has the tradition core components of any good internet security program:

• antivirus
• firewall
• antispam

Other features found directly from the dashboard include:

• parental control
• privacy feature
• safebox
• tune-up
• network map
• safego

Its just a small point but of the features listed above, 4 can be onscreen at a time (as seen in the picture above) and you can drag and drop these so that your most-used functions are on the ‘home screen’. Nice touch.
From each of those main heading areas I mentioned above you can delve deeper. For example, the antivirus heading expands into further areas as shown below -

Some new features worth mentioning are Auto-pilot which, when switched on, prevents any alerts from being generated whilst the program goes about fixing any issues in the background. Also noteworthy is the Scan Dispatcher which aims to run scans in slices of time when your computer is not otherwise engaged with other tasks.
System Requirements
The minimum system requirements for BitDefender Total Security 2012 are as follows -

• Windows XP SP3, Windows Vista SP2, Windows 7 SP1
• 1 GB RAM < seems as absolute minimum as I got a low warning message on my 1 GB laptop
• 800 Mhz processor
• 1.8 GB of hard drive space

Effectiveness
A quick test of the program against a collection of dodgy links I have came back with 20 out of 20 being detected as a threat so that would seem to indicate a good detection rate at this early stage.
+ Plus Points
Here is what I perceived to be the good points of BitDefender Total Security 2012 at this time -

• quick installation
• auto-pilot essentially removes the user from the decision making process (but maybe thats a bad point too?)
• good detection rate
• large range of features

- Minus Points
With the negative points it should be remembered that the program is still in beta so many, or all, of these may be ironed out before the retail version appears -

• some features weren’t available at the time of testing
• the interface looks garish (my opinion)
• resource usage was high and made multitasking impossible whilst a scan was running, in spite of the way Scan Dispatcher should work

Conclusion
At this point in time the negative points I noted above outweigh the positives for me and so this beta version of BitDefender Internet Security didn’t get to stay on my laptop for very long at all.
Having said that, it does show potential and previous BitDefender products I’ve looked at have been excellent. The version I looked at today is only a beta and I believe the company will get this right with the retail release and I’m looking forward to taking a look at that when it is available.
UPDATE: As predicted, the final retail version is much improved – read the new review of BitDefender Total Security 2012 now.
Do you want to see what the other vendors are offering this year? If so, read my other 2012 Internet Security reviews.

Read More

Review Of BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2012

Today’s 2012 antivirus review features BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2012. (see my review of BitDefender Total Security 2012 if you would prefer a more robust protection suite)

Key Benefits:

• Scores very well in independent testing
• Autopilot mode will be a great benefit to those who prefer hands off security
• Strong anti-phishing protection

BitDefender have recently reinvented themselves with a new corporate brand and their new ethos extends to their improved security products too. BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2012 is packed full of features, many of which you would usually only expect to see in the more expensive full security suites.
This antivirus program 2012 is highly effective yet, at the same time, requires minimal effort from the user to keep it running and securing their PC.

System Requirements
The minimum system requirements as per the BitDefender website are as follows:

• 800 MHz or faster CPU
• 1 GB or more of RAM
• Windows XP SP3 32-bit / Vista SP2 / Windows 7 SP1

though in my opinion it won’t run too well if you are close to those minimums.

The recommended system requirements would equal the lowest spec machine I would want to install this on:

• 1.66 Ghz Dual Core
• 1.5 GB RAM
• Windows XP SP3 32-bit / Vista SP2 / 7 SP1

Installation and first impression
Installing BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2012 took quite a bit longer than any of the other antivirus programs I’ve looked at this year so far but that is, perhaps, understandable when you consider that it is more feature packed than most of the competition.
Also, a virus scan is run as part of the installation procedure and as soon as the program is ready to run you’ll find that it is fully up to date (see image below) and no further updates need to be downloaded before you can get going.

Features
BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2012 has the usual features that you would expect to find in an antivirus program along with some nice surprises that you would normally only find in a full internet security suite:

• Antivirus
• Autopilot means user input is rarely required
• BitDefender Safego (available seperately) enhances social networking security
• Excellent identity theft protection
• Network map (manage BitDefender installations on other networked PCs in your location)
• Strong privacy protection
• Virtualized browsing
• Vulnerability scanner

Effectiveness
BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2012 scores exceptionally well in independent tests. Check out the likes of AV-Test or AV-Comparitives and others and you will see that it is at, or near, the top of their charts for detecting and neutralising malware.
But this antivirus program is so much more than that as well.
During installation I mentioned that the program will initiate its first scan. If it detects any issues it will try to remove them immediately. If that fails it then reboots your computer in BitDefender Rescue Mode which is much like running a rescue CD only without the hassle of having to burn a disc. Nice touch.
The program is also highly effective when it comes to protecting you from phishing sites and has strong privacy protection, both features usually reserved for full internet security suites.
Plus and minus points
+ Excellent detection of malware
+ Experts aside, the Autopilot feature will delight those who just want an antivirus program that quietly gets on with the job its supposed to do
+ Very strong anti-phishing protection will protect you from suspicious web sites
+ Strong privacy protection
- System requirements are higher than most of the competition if you want to run the program without slowdown but if you can match the required processor speed, RAM, etc then you will be very pleased indeed with this antivirus program

Compare BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2012 with BitDefender Total Security 2012.
US Store PDP. BitDefender Antivirus Plus 2012 – Buy Now from authorised BitDefender Store, from only $39.95! Click Here
Do you want to see what the other vendors are offering this year? If so, read my other 2012 Antivirus reviews, Best Free Antivirus 2012

Read More