• 0

Definitive Best *Paid* Antivirus 2012

Asked by goretsky,

 Share

Favorite Paid AV 2012  

231 members have voted

  1. 1. Your Choice? (also see Continued, below)

    • Agnitum Anti Virus/Outpost
      3
    • Alwil Avast! Pro/Internet Security
      10
    • AVG Antivirus PRO/Internet Security
      0
    • Avira Antivirus Premium/Pro/Endpoint
      15
    • Beijing Rising Anti Virus/Internet Security
      1
    • Bullguard Anti Virus/Internet Security
      0
    • CheckPoint Anti Virus/Internet Security
      0
    • Commtouch Command Anti Virus`
      0
    • Comodo Endpoint Security/Internet Security Pro
      2
    • Dr. Web (Dialogue Science) Anti Virus/Security Space
      0
    • Emsisoft Anti-Malware/Internet Security
      2
    • ESET NOD32/Smart Security
      89
    • F-Secure Anti Virus/Internet Security
      1
    • Frisk F-PROT
      0
    • G Data Anti Virus/Interet Security/Total Security
      2
    • GFI (formerly Sunbelt Software) VIPRE Anti Virus
      0
    • ** Not on this list, see below **
      106

  2. 2. Your Choice? [Continued]

    • Hauri ViRobot/Internet Security
      0
    • IKARUS virus.utilities
      0
    • Kaspersky Anti Virus/Internet Security/Pure
      52
    • MalwareBytes Anti Malware PRO
      13
    • McAfee Anti Virus/Internet Security/Total Protection
      4
    • Microsoft Forefront
      8
    • MWTI eScan Anti Virus/Internet Security
      1
    • Norman Anti Virus/Security Suite
      2
    • Panda Anti Virus/Internet Security
      1
    • Softwin BitDefender Anti Virus/Internet Security/Total Security
      7
    • Sophos Endpoint
      3
    • SUPERAntiSpyware
      6
    • Symantec/PC Tools/Norton
      36
    • Total Defense (formerly CA) Anti Virus/Internet Security
      0
    • Trend Micro Anti Virus/Internet Security
      2
    • VirusBlokAda VBA32
      0
    • Other (please specify)
      5
    • ** Not on this list, see above **
      91

Question

Grand Master

goretsky Supervisor

Posted
  • Supervisor
Posted

Hello,

In the preceding Definitive Best Antivirus 2011 message thread, there were requests to seperate the commercial and free antivirus products. For 2012, I have created two separate polls. This is the poll for the commercial (paid-for) antivirus programs. For free antivirus, please see the Definitive Best Free Antivirus 2012 message thread.

Questions or comments? Post them here in the message thread.

Regards,

Aryeh Goretsky

Link to comment
https://www.neowin.net/forum/topic/1048481-definitive-best-paid-antivirus-2012/
Share on other sites

99 answers to this question

Recommended Posts

  • 0
Grand Master

Seizure1990

Posted
Posted

I keep a locked down VM if I ever need to access anything from an unsavory source, I verify its clean, take out of the VM and reset the VM back to default image. I run MSE on my system just to be sure. Saying you don't run an antivirus and don't have any viruses, is like saying you don't have cancer because you don't feel like you have cancer (at least on Windows anyways).

But if you get occasional cancer tests (virus scans) and they all turn up negative, then you know. :)

  • 0
Grand Master

+Warwagon MVC

Posted
  • MVC
Posted
avast and it's annoying setting of screaming in the middle of the night"YOUR VIRUS DEFINITIONS HAVE BEEN UPDATED!!!!" or "THERE IS AN UPDATE FOR YOUR SOFTWARE" seriously... they should have not made it do that by default!!!

Which is why I disable sounds 10 seconds after installation on all the avast installs I do

  • 0
Grand Master

remixedcat

Posted
Posted

Which is why I disable sounds 10 seconds after installation on all the avast installs I do

yeah but sometimes when I update it the sounds come back on!!! :pinch:

  • 0
Explorer

fanel89

Posted
Posted

In truth, this is my FAVORITE AV but I can't really recommend it to the average user, since it's a bit more advanced as far as configuration and maintenance goes.

Having said that, it's a rare occasion for something to get past it.

That is true and while it's usually meant for more advanced users and corporations, when I uninstall I just leave on the default settings and won't fiddle around with it. Once it's running, scanning is very straightforward but most of the time, you don't even have to do a manual scan... it does its own thing in the background.

  • 0
Grand Master

+Warwagon MVC

Posted
  • MVC
Posted

In truth, this is my FAVORITE AV but I can't really recommend it to the average user, since it's a bit more advanced as far as configuration and maintenance goes.

Having said that, it's a rare occasion for something to get past it.

Does Rtscan or what ever that process name is still chug 90% cpu on boot and 5 mins after boot or just a **** ton of CPU in general.

  • 0
Collaborator

Wyrdstorm

Posted
Posted

I have used Microsoft Security Essencials since i heard about it, and i have never had an issue, i use it with the comps/laptops i sell too as its very user friendly....i hated Symantec AV as it was such a performance knock it was unreal!

  • 0
Grand Master

+Mirumir Subscriber¹

Posted
  • Subscriber¹
Posted
Anyway the best antivirus will always be the user and his/her judgement.

Exactly!

I don't run any AV program on a constant basis. However, once in a blue moon, I let KAV and Ad-aware scan my PC for that 100% certainty that I'm clean. I usually do this when I perform backups or if I start to suspect something.

I catch no more than 2-3 malwares a year.

  • 0
Grand Master

TEX4S

Posted
Posted

Guys, I really think you all need to check out the new webroot Secure Anywhere.

I could fill up an entire page of all the greatness I have witnessed, but I think a little googling would convince you.

Highest rated AV ever - PCWord

MaximumPC - 9/10 Kick Ass Award

It has removed infection upon installation that even malwarebytes didnt catch

It installs in about 10 seconds, and the scans take about 20 seconds on an SSD

Its cloud-based and has the lightest footprint of any AV pkg.

I didnt even use an AV for 6 months - I know what to click on and what not to - and if I get an infection, I can clean it.

But once I did some research for options up @ work - I checked out webroot, and have since told about 15 people to drop what they're using and switch - all 15 are happy.

  • 0
Veteran

nabz0r Veteran

Posted
  • Veteran
Posted

I have been using both Symantec Endpoint Protection and ESET NOD32 and I absolutely in love with both. There might have been some down times for both AV but I still wouldn't use something else while these two are in the market.

  • 0
Grand Master

devnulllore

Posted
Posted

Norton 360 v.6 and the upcoming 2013 version covers ALL the bases and is better than all those I see listed in the voting sections, although, another malware scanner is suggested to monitor web sites a bit better such as Malwarebytes. Also use Norton's DNS servers.

Thanks!

This topic is now closed to further replies.
 Share
Go to question listing

  • Posts

    • Bypassed Windows 11 shows surprising stability on ancient, completely unsupported hardware

      By hellowalkman · Posted

      Bypassed Windows 11 shows surprising stability on ancient, completely unsupported hardware by Sayan Sen When Windows 11 was first released, one of the most complained-about issues with the new desktop Microsoft OS was its higher system requirements, which pushed many relatively modern and powerful processors and devices onto the officially unsupported list. Thankfully, they have not been updated again for the base OS, though systems require four times the memory and storage if they want to run AI-powered apps and features. As such, Windows 11 technically runs on 4GB of memory, and there is no imposed restriction on the generation of memory it supports. Speaking of memory, prices are extremely high nowadays for hardware, especially DDR5 and DDR4 kits due to the current silicon shortage, and there are also reports of it affecting DDR2 as well, and it might only be a matter of time before even DDR1 gets affected. Before that could happen, an enthusiast took an ancient DDR1-based system and decided to try out Windows 11 on it to see how well the modern OS would fare on such hardware. The system runs an outdated graphics card interface standard based on AGP, or Advanced Graphics Port, called AGP 3.0 or AGP8x. AGP was essentially succeeded by the modern PCI Express (PCIe) bus standard. The user behind the experiment is retro hardware enthusiast Omores, who built the system around an ASRock ConRoe865PE motherboard based on Intel's i865PE chipset from way back in 2003, around the time when AGP was still in fashion. What made this board special back in the day was its unusual support for newer Core 2 Duo and even Core 2 Quad processors while still retaining older DDR1 memory support and an AGP8X graphics slot, making it an ideal bridge or link between two vastly different generations. Powering the machine was Intel's Core 2 Quad Q6600 alongside 3GB of DDR1 RAM and an ATI Radeon HD 4650 AGP graphics card, one of the final and most capable GPUs released for the aging AGP interface. While installing Windows 11 itself was relatively easy by bypassing Microsoft's hardware checks, getting the graphics card fully functional proved to be some challenge. Microsoft had quietly dropped native AGP support after the earliest releases of Windows 10, meaning newer versions of Windows no longer include the necessary Graphics Address Remapping Table (GART) drivers required for proper AGP acceleration. Without them, AGP graphics cards typically boot up, though with limited functionality, and can often throw a Code 43 error in Device Manager. To work around the limitation, Omores extracted Intel's legacy AGP440 SYS driver from an early Windows 10 release and paired it with a modified INF file so Windows 11 would correctly recognize the chipset. Following this and combined with AMD's final 64-bit Catalyst AGP drivers from 2012, the Radeon HD 4650 was able to operate with full AGP 8X acceleration intact. The result was said to be surprisingly usable for hardware that is over two decades old. Hardware-accelerated H.264 video playback worked correctly and benefited apps like Firefox, while legacy applications and games ran without major graphical issues. The system also successfully completed the 3DMark 2001 benchmark, although performance naturally lagged behind what the same hardware achieves under Windows 7, which is significantly lighter than Windows 11. There was, however, one unavoidable limitation as Microsoft's Windows 11 version 24H2 introduces a mandatory SSE4.2 CPU instruction requirement that cannot be bypassed through installer modifications or registry tweaks. Since no AGP-era processor supports SSE4.2, Windows 11 version 23H2 effectively becomes the final release capable of running on such systems. Regardless, it is still a very cool feat and quite fascinating to see just how stable Windows 11 turned out to be on such unfamiliar hardware. Source: Omores (Patreon) via O_MORES (Reddit)
    • Meta is reusing old DDR4 RAM in its servers instead of buying new hardware

      By +Good Bot, Bad Bot · Posted

      That will only really help other players that are also responsible for creating the problem.
    • Meta is reusing old DDR4 RAM in its servers instead of buying new hardware

      By Nick H. · Posted

      Well, it's good to know that they have found a workaround to a problem that they helped create, I guess...
    • Meta is reusing old DDR4 RAM in its servers instead of buying new hardware

      By Ivan Jenic · Posted

      Meta is reusing old DDR4 RAM in its servers instead of buying new hardware by Ivan Jenic Image: Meta The global hardware shortage isn’t exactly news, as the entire world has been struggling with rising component prices for quite some time now. And while big companies certainly aren’t as affected as the average consumer, even they aren’t opposed to the idea of saving a few (million) bucks. Meta appears to have found a way to spend less on new hardware while also putting its outdated infrastructure to use, essentially killing two birds with one stone. The company has built a custom chip that lets it reuse memory from retired servers rather than buying new hardware. The chip is called Vistara and allows for connecting old DDR4 RAM from obsolete servers into new servers that rely on DDR5. The problem Vistara solves goes back to a basic mismatch in how long hardware lasts. Meta replaces its servers every three to five years, but the memory modules inside them are good for seven to ten. When a server gets decommissioned, perfectly usable DDR4 RAM goes with it. Meta is presenting the new method at today’s ISCA symposium, but The Register has got hold of a paper that explains how Vistara works. It's a custom ASIC that bridges DDR4 memory to newer processors via aCXL 2.0/1.1 interface over PCIe Gen5 x16. Meta pulls DDR4 sticks from old machines and installs them in dedicated units it calls MemServers, each of which pairs 768GB of DDR5 with 256GB of recovered DDR4. The operating system sees the DDR4 as an additional memory node and draws from it when the primary DDR5 is running low. Off-the-shelf CXL hardware couldn't do this, so Meta built its own. Existing interfaces bundle their own memory with the controller, which makes reusing old RAM sticks impossible. But Vistara separates the controller from the memory entirely, so Meta can plug in whatever DDR4 sticks it has on hand. Meta plans to deploy the new architecture in hyperscale infrastructure with millions of servers, which should mean that Meta’s AI datacenters will now be more efficient. The company is investing heavily in AI infrastructure, especially with its new AI model, Muse Spark, now widely available. All of this doesn't mean that Meta will exclusively rely on "recycled" RAM, but the company is still looking at considerable savings at scale.
    • Save up to 87% on ChatPlayground AI lifetime subscriptions

      By News Staff · Posted

      Save up to 87% on ChatPlayground AI lifetime subscriptions by Steven Parker Today's highlighted deal comes via our Apps + Software section of the Neowin Deals store, where for only a limited time, you can save up to 87% on ChatPlayground AI: lifetime subscriptions. ChatPlayground AI puts the world’s top AI models in one powerful interface, letting you enter a single prompt and instantly compare outputs from multiple models to choose the perfect response for your needs. Boost productivity and creativity with access to the latest AI giants like GPT-4o, Claude Sonnet 4, Gemini 1.5 Flash, DeepSeek V3, and dozens more — all in one window. Whether you’re chatting, coding, generating images, or refining prompts, ChatPlayground AI equips you with advanced tools like prompt engineering, image/PDF chat, saved conversations, and AI image creation, plus priority support to keep your workflow seamless. Access the world’s best AI models Side-by-Side Comparisons: Enter one prompt & instantly view results from multiple AI models to find the best output for your needs 40+ AI Models: Includes GPT-4o, Claude Sonnet 4, Gemini 1.5 Flash, DeepSeek V3, Llama, Perplexity, and many more Multi-Function Platform: Access AI for chat, image generation & coding all within a single interface Web Browser Extension: Offers a Chrome extension to seamlessly integrate the platform into your browsing workflow Boost productivity with powerful features ChatPlayground Interface: Designed for seamless AI model comparison in one window Prompt Engineering: Refine & optimize your prompts for better, more accurate responses Chat with Images & PDFs: Upload visuals and documents to get context-aware answers Saved Chat History: Keep track of past conversations for reference & ongoing projects AI Image Generation: Create high-quality visuals powered by top AI image models Priority Customer Support: Get faster assistance whenever you need it What you'll get with the Unlimited Plan Includes unlimited messages/month Built for prompt engineers, startups, and teams who run experiments nonstop Includes priority access to new features and future models Good to know Length of access: lifetime Redemption deadline: redeem your code within 30 days of purchase Access options: Desktop Max number of device(s): Unlimited Available to both NEW & Existing users Updates included A lifetime subscription to ChatPlayground AI (Unlimited Plan) normally costs $619, but you can pick it up for just $79 for a limited time - that represents a saving of $530 (87% off). Click the link below for more details, always check terms and specifications before making a purchase. Get this ChatPlayground AI (Unlimited) for $79 (was $619) There are also two other discounted plans to choose from. Although priced in U.S. dollars, this deal is available for digital purchase worldwide. Support queries If you have queries or need support for any of the Neowin Deals, please use the contact form here. Neowin Deals are managed and sold by StackCommerce who represent Neowin on an affiliate basis. Why we post these deals We post these because we earn commission on each sale so as not to rely solely on advertising, which many of our readers block. It all helps toward paying staff reporters, servers and hosting costs. So for those that keep moaning and complaining, be thankful we're still online for you to even do that. Other ways to support Neowin Whitelist Neowin by not blocking our ads Create a free member account to see fewer ads Make a donation to support our day to day running costs Subscribe to Neowin - for $14 a year, or $28 a year for an ad-free experience Disclosure: Neowin benefits from revenue of each sale made through our branded deals site powered by StackCommerce.

  • Recent Achievements

    • Reacting Well
      NovaEdgeX earned a badge
      Reacting Well
    • Week One Done
      NovaEdgeX earned a badge
      Week One Done
    • One Year In
      BA the Curmudgeon earned a badge
      One Year In
    • Conversation Starter
      rosiecharles earned a badge
      Conversation Starter
    • First Post
      KMilenkoski1202 earned a badge
      First Post

  • Popular Contributors

    1. 1
      +primortal
      539
    2. 2
      +Edouard
      266
    3. 3
      PsYcHoKiLLa
      151
    4. 4
      Steven P.
      98
    5. 5
      macoman
      66
    Show More

  • Tell a friend

    Love Neowin? Tell a friend!