Security Suite battle comparison ! Its here!

Today's computer and Internet surfing has changed dramatically from the past few years. There are both benefits and disadvantages. The pros are that it is more powerful, flexible, resourceful, faster and you can basically do anything from chats and blogs to researching about a particular topic. But the issue, SECURITY has been raised. Computers can be easily hacked, infected with viruses and spy which could steal your confidential information or cause problems to your computer such as deleting your hard drive, etc. Although this may sound scary, it is actually very easy to protect your computer from these nasty infections and trouble. In the next paragraph we will discuss what you need to do to protect your computer and which is the best option.

Choosing an Security Suite can be quite tricky due to the vast choice we have. Also, operating systems can largely affect which security suite you buy.

Below is a chart comparison: (There is a newer version of this comparison HERE)

* Not included in Overall test results.

^Top Score

	Bitdefender V10 NO.1	Mcafee 2007 NO.2	Norton 2007 NO.3	Panda 2007 NO.4
Overall Rating	8.5/10	8.5/10	8.5/10	8/10
AntiVirus	9.5/10	9/10	8/10	8.5/10
AntiSpy	9/10	8/10	8.5/10	8/10
Firewall	9/10	9/10	8.5/10	6.5/10
Easy of use	8/10	9/10	8.5/10	8.5/10
Other Features	9/10	8.5/10	8/10	8/10
Price/Value	8/10	7.5/10	8.10	8/10
Use and integration with Vista*	7/10	7/10	7/10	7.5/10
Use and integration with XP*	8.5/10	8/10	8/10	8/10

Continued from Table Result 1

	Kaspersky 6 NO.5	CA 2007 No.6	F-Secure No.7	Zone Alarm No.8
Overall Rating	7.5/10	7.5/10	7/10	7/10
AntiVirus	9.9/10^	8.5/10	7/10	7.5/10
AntiSpy	7/10	7.5/10	8/10	7/10
Firewall	6/10	7/10	7/10	7/10
Easy of use	8.5/10	7/10	7/10	7/10
Other Features	8/10	7/10	6.5/10	6.5/10
Price/Value	7.5/10	7.5/10	7/10	7.5/10
Use and integration with Vista*	8/10	7.5/10	7.5/10	6/10
Use and integration with XP*	9/10	8/10	8/10	8/10

Bitdefender

Bitdefender offers the most comprehensive security in this comparison. It does extremely well in all areas especially when it comes to protecting your PC against viruses and spy. The scan speed is quite fast and it does not eat up too much of your system's memory. However, the user interface is not as good as some of the other available options. But again, that is not the most important issue here.

WINNER!

Mcafee

Mcafee comes second in this comparison. It too, has excellent anti-virus and spy protection. However, Mcafee does slow does your computer a lot and it is among the most expensive suites here. But apart from those flaws, the suite is quite good. It has a better user interface than Bitdefender.

Norton

Norton takes the third place. Like Mcafee, it takes up a lot of your PC's memory and slows your computer down. Another flaw is that Norton can be very annoying. For example, you uninstall the program, but some components of Norton suite can still be in your PC in the background. You will never know. Another issue is that it can cause heaps of incompatibility problems if you want to install any other software. But apart from those flaws, Norton does achieve well in the basic virus and spy protection.

Panda

Panda is a security suite that gave me quite a surprise. The software is mostly average rated in other reviews. But after I tried it, I found that it was actually pretty good. Although it does not offer the super-strong and unbreakable anti-virus protection like Bitdefender does, it does offer quite a strong and flexible protection. Panda does not slow down your computer very much. After testing it more 30 days, I am very happy with it. For people who run Vista on their PC, Panda offers more than enough protection.

Kaspersky

Kaspersky is a security suite that I like a lot. It offers possibly the best anti virus protection and is very easy to use. However, it does not do a very good job in spyware and firewall. Another flaw is that it takes ages to scan my computer. Apart from from those two flaws, it is quite good. It automatically scans, do health checks and updates. In addition, it does not take very much of your memory. My suggestion is that you should run another free anti spyware program on your computer. Kaspersky is quite compatible and flexible with other softwares. Spyware Doctor starter edition and ad-ware free are good examples. For, I think it is the best combination of security. But again, I cannot judge Kaspersky with the additional help pf another program. That is why is ends up at 5th place. But with the help of any other spyware program, it would deserve at least 3rd place.

My final thoughts and suggestions.

Generally, you should stick with the comparison list. But not all people need all that extensive protection. For a simple user who just reads emails, view photos and read some articles, a simple and light security suite will do. Another important point is that you should always consider which operating system you use. For any Window that is 2000 or older, you should get the top suites for good protection. Windows XP is quite safe but not as safe a Vista. For XP, I recommend using Kaspersky with another free anti spyware program. However, in Widows Vista, you do not need all that extensive protection. All you need is something like Windows Live OneCare(Read my review in the previous posts), or perhaps something even simpler such as the free edition of AVG anti virus with another free anti spyware program But that depends on what the user intends to do.