Avira AntiVir Premium Version 10 Download:

VERSION:  Windows 7 / Vista / XP / 2000, Single User PRICE:  $19.50 [Buy Download] Other Versions:  Avira Premium Security Suite 10 download Rating: Fair

Avira Video Review

Review of Avira AntiVir Premium 10.0:   Video Review Avira is a German company that offers one of the more popular free antivirus programs with over 100 million users worldwide. But how does it stack up against the other major commercial antivirus programs on the market? Let's take a closer look... UPDATE: The new Avira 2012 Beta has been released. Read our review to see what's new for 2012. 1) Installation:  4.5/5 Avira AntiVir Premium Version 10 was the fastest installing antivirus program that we tested this year - installing in a mere 33 seconds and requiring no system reboots. Also, after the installation Avira performs a quick scan to make sure your computer is virus free. (See Installation Time Comparison Graph) 2) Features & Ease of Use:  5.5/10 Despite a few minor tweaks to Avira Version 10, such as a drop-down menu display, the user-interface remains relatively unchanged. After years of little change, Avira now looks like one of the most outdated antivirus programs on the market. Its main menu screen provides little information besides a few green "check marks" - letting you know everything is okay. An antivirus program probably doesn't need all the bells & whistles that some have these days, but Avira's user-interface is plain and not very user-friendly. We hope a major overhaul is in the works for next year's version. Avira v10 Dashboard: View Larger Avira Screenshots Besides the usual features, other Avira technologies include: AHeADTechnology (detects unknown viruses by their profiles), WebGuard (protects against malicious websites), RescueSystem (creates a bootable rescue CD), and MailGuard (email protection). New Features:     • AntiVir ProActiv - detects new, unknown viruses by their behavior patterns     • GenericRepair - repairs damage caused by viruses & malware Editor's Note: Version 10 was effectively Avira's 2010 software release. In a recent email from Avira they mentioned that they won't be releasing a Version 11 this year, and will only be offering a minor Service Pack 2 update in Q2 of 2011 which "will bring among others the WebGuard feature to the free version." However, Avira does expect to release Version 12 in Q3 of 2011. So, due to "some major developments" within the company, Avira has skipped Version 11 altogether. (Source: Email correspondence with Avira's marketing department on March 16, 2011.) 3) Virus Scanner:  3/5 Avira has 10 scanning options including: Quick system scan, Complete system scan, Active Processes, Rootkits and active Malware, and Manual Selection. Avira's scanning engine, appropriately named Luke Filewalker, is a little confusing to use with its poorly labelled buttons, plus the 10 different scanning options could definitely be trimmed down to a more manageable level - isn't that what the catchall Custom Scan is for after all? Avira Virus Scanner: View Larger Avira Screenshots Our testing found Avira's Virus Scanner to scan at a pace of 35.7 MB/s, which was the second fastest virus scanner we tested - just behind NOD32 Antivirus. Despite Avira's fast virus scanner, its Quick Scan option didn't live up to its name - taking over 23 minutes to scan our computer, which was one of the slowest "Quick Scan" we've seen this year. (See Scan Speed Comparison Graph) Updates: Avira updates are performed 5 times per day on average, placing it 8th in our testing of 15 programs this year - well behind Norton's 200+ updates per day. (See Updates Per Day Comparison Graph) 4) Performance Testing:  7.5/10 A good Antivirus program should not only protect your computer from Viruses but also not slow down the Performance of your computer too much by using up your computer's resources. We run each Antivirus program through a set of Performance Tests to see the impact it has on the computer. View the results below of our Antivirus testing for Avira Version 10: • Memory Use: Avira Version 10 uses 22.9 MB of system memory. #8 ranked program of the 15 Antivirus programs we tested. • Reboot Time: Avira added 13.1 seconds to our test computer's reboot time. #4 ranked program. • Installation Size: Avira AntiVir Premium takes 276 MB of hard-drive space for installation. #4 ranked program. • Initial Scan Speed: Avira scans files the first time at a speed of 35.7 MB/s. #2 ranked program. • Subsequent Scan Speed: Avira performs subsequent scans at a speed of 35.8 MB/s. #11 ranked program. • Initial Application Launch: Avira added 0.173s to launch a web browser for the first time after a reboot. #5 ranked program. • Subsequent Application Launch: Avira added only 0.076s on average for subsequent web browser launches. #2 ranked program. • File Conversion Time: Avira added 0.62s on average to convert a MP3 file to four other file types. #12 ranked program. • System Impact Score: The "System Impact Score" is a comparative score tallied from the above 8 Antivirus tests. Avira Version 10 scored a total of 80 out of 120 points when compared to the other Antivirus programs. This placed Avira as the 3rd best Antivirus program we tested this year in our Performance testing. Last year, Avira also finished 3rd overall, so it's definitely consistent! • View graphs of the above Antivirus Performance Tests. 5) Effectiveness: (Virus/Malware Detection)  13.5/15 The most important function of an Antivirus program is to keep your computer free from Viruses and other Malware. Below we'll take a look at some of the industry's top Virus/Malware Detection testing and certification. a) AV Comparatives has 2 major Virus/Malware tests each year. In the most recent test in May, the Proactive Test, Avira received 3 out of 3 Stars and was one of the top programs in Malware detection. In the 2nd test, the On Demand Detection Test, Avira again received top marks with a 3-Star rating. Overall, Avira performed very well in these critical Virus/Malware tests, and it has been among the top Antivirus programs for several years now, and was infact the "Product of the Year" for 2008. (*AV Comparatives is an independent Antivirus testing lab in Austria providing some of the most trusted Virus detection tests in the industry.) b) ICSA Labs Certified. ICSA is an independent organization that sets standards for security products and certifies anti-virus software. c) Virus Bulletin's VB 100% Certified. Avira passed the most recent VB100 test (June, 2010), and has passed all 4 tests this year so far. The VB 100% award is given to antivirus software that detects all viruses "in the wild." d) NOT West Coast Labs certified. Avira was not tested this year. WCL specializes in functionality testing, performance validation and Checkmark Certification of security products. 6) Help & Support:  3/5 New this year Avira finally offers its North American users toll-free support. Although, it does seem Avira is trying to hide this toll-free support phone number, requiring you to click several links and enter your billing email/or activation code before the number is revealed. But with millions of free users, one can't blame them for not making their premium support too obvious. Other support options for Avira include its Knowledge Base which addresses many common problems, and an Online Forum which has nearly 500,000 posts. Email support is offered for billing and order issues, but technical support is pushed towards Avira's Forum, Knowledgebase, or Toll-Free Support. Better in-program Help Files, as well as Email Support for technical issues would be welcome additions to Avira's support system. CONCLUSION: Avira AntiVir has been one of the most effective antivirus programs over the last few years at keeping viruses and malware from infecting computer systems - it was even ranked "best" by AV-Comparatives.org in their effectiveness testing in 2008. However, Avira's user-interface has not significantly changed in 3 years now leaving it badly outdated, as well as not very user-friendly. If Avira can redesign their program next year, then Avira could be one of the best antivirus programs on the market. But for now, if you're able to ignore Avira's outdated interface, then it still offers some of the best protection available against viruses and malware. Overall Rating: Good    (Total Score: 37 / 50 = 3.5 Stars) Misc Info:     • Version Tested: 10.0.0.603     • Release Date:     • Review Date:     • Last Updated: May 12, 2011     • Previous Version: Avira AntiVir Premium Version 9     • Other Avira Software: Avira Premium Security Suite 10, Free Avira AntiVir Personal 10 Useful Articles:     • Summary of the Best Antivirus Software of 2011     • What is a Computer Virus?     • Antivirus vs. Internet Security software - Which is right for me?     • Differences between Viruses, Trojans, Worms & Spyware     • More Articles... Top 5 Antivirus Programs: 1) Norton AntiVirus 2012 Review 2) NOD32 AntiVirus 5 Review 3) Kaspersky AntiVirus 2012 Review 4) Avast! AntiVirus Pro 6 Review 5) Avira AntiVir Version 10 Review  - Rating:   Excellent  - Rating:   Excellent  - Rating:   Very Good  - Rating:   Very Good  - Rating:   Good << Top of Page

Avira AntiVir Premium Screenshots

Avira System Requirements:

• Operating Systems: Microsoft Windows 7 (32 and 64-bit editions), Windows Vista SP1 (32 and 64-bit), Windows XP SP2 (32 and 64-bit), Windows 2000 (SP4 and Update Rollup 1)
  
  
• Memory: Minimum 1024 MB RAM for Windows 7 & Windows Vista, or 256 MB RAM for Windows XP & 2000
  
  
• Hard-Drive Space: Minimum 300MB + quarantine space