Why Avira Free is the best free AV and why I don't need the Premium versions

[safeguy]

This thread is all about Avira. I'm the Avira fanboy in this forum...and I've been using the Free version of Avira for nearly 2 years now.

The point of this thread is to make users realize a misconception that I have noticed often among some Avira users...that using Avira Antivir Personal (free) is not as good as using the paid versions.

Most people think that they are getting less protection by using Avira Personal Edition Classic instead of the paid versions but that is only one side of the coin. Why do I say that?

Here's why - I don't even need Avira Antivir Premium or Avira Security Suite Premium as I can find better alternatives to add and replace the 'missing' additional security modules.

Comparison among various versions:

Let's begin with comparing Avira Antivir Personal (free) and Avira AntiVir Premium...

Avira Antivir Personal that has almost all the features included in Avira AntiVir Premium except for these:

WebGuard protection against malicious websites
AntiDrive-by stops malware downloads while surfing
RescueSystem creates a bootable rescue CD
Enhanced email protection for POP3 and SMTP
Fast Premium update server

And as you know by now, these are easily replaceable with these:

WebGuard = WOT
AntiDrive-By = Files are scanned anyway by the real time AnVir Guard when finished downloading
RescueSystem = Can be downloaded manually from Avira’s website
Enhanced Email Protection = Don’t need it if you are not using a POP3 email client

Quoted from here: Avira AntiVir V9 Review – Best Free Antivirus (Raymond.cc/blog)

Now let's compare Avira Antivir Premium with Avira Security Suite Premium...

Avira Security Suite Premium has even more functions/protection modules in addition to Avira AntiVir Premium:

AntiSpam filters out unwanted and phishing emails
FireWall protection against hackers
GameMode uninterrupted game play
Backup-System saves your important data
AntiBot prevents dangerous bot networks 
ParentalControl blocks websites unsuitable for children

But then again, these are easily replaceable with tons of free apps that are available on the web...and in fact those freeware alternatives usually prove to work better and are more reliable...

For example, you can replace them with these:

AntiSpam = Best Free Spam Filter for the Average User (Gizmo)
FireWall = Best Free Firewall (Gizmo)
GameMode = Do you really need this? If you're not playing online, you can just disconnect from the internet and turn off your AV for a moment while you are playing the game.
Backup = Best Free Backup Program (Gizmo)
AntiBot = Do you really need this if you are just a home user? If you really want, you can Google on how to prevent bot networks
ParentalControl = Best Free Parental Filter (Gizmo)

If you want, you can see for yourself the original comparison chart between Avira AntiVir Personal, Avira AntiVir Premium, and Avira Security Suite Premium. Simply go to this page:

http://www.free-av.com/en/download/1...antivirus.html

Annoyances & Fixes

Some people who are using Avira Personal Edition Classic (free) complain about the updates but you don't have to worry no more as:

Antivir Maker Avira Changes Update System (Ghacks)

If you are one of those people still having problems with updates, I suggest you read this article here by Raymond:

Avira AntiVir Personal Edition Update Hang and Timeout Problem (Raymond.cc/blog)

Another annoyance that comes with Avira Personal Edition Classic (free) is the nag screen that pops up after updates but you need not worry no more as you can easily 'fix' it by reading this article:

How to: Remove the popups in Avira AntiVir Personal/Free (dotTech.org)

My opinion and conclusion:

I hope everyone here now knows why I don't need Avira AntiVir Premium or Avira Security Suite Premium now. There are promotions going on to get free license keys for a period of 3 months or more but I personally find it easier to just stick to using the free version.

In addition to not having to worry about license expiry, the free version - Avira Personal Edition Classic, is extremely light as mentioned here:

Which FREE Antivirus is the Lightest on System Memory Usage?

In conclusion, Avira Personal Edition Classic (free) is all that's needed by me and most other home users. If anyone needs more features, he or she can simply choose to install other free software that I have mentioned earlier to get the benefits. It's that simple.

Additional info:

Most experts agree that Avira is the best free antivirus. See these articles here:

Avira AntiVir V9 Review – Best Free Antivirus (Raymond.cc/blog)
Best Free Antivirus Software (Gizmo)
The best free antivirus: a comparison (FreewareGenius)
Free Antivirus Software (PCWorld)
And the best free Anti-Virus program is...(ITWorld)
What is the best free antivirus software of 2009?

And this is a must-read for those of you guys who have been thinking which one is the best among the "3 A Brothers"..namely Avira, Avast and AVG:

Free Antivirus Shootout: AVG vs AntiVir vs Avast! – Part 1 (BrightHub)
Free Antivirus Shootout: AVG vs AntiVir vs Avast! – Part 2 (BrightHub)
Free Antivirus Shootout: AVG vs AntiVir vs Avast! – Part 3 (BrightHub)

Lazy to read? Just see this:

The Bottom Line

While all 3 programs have strengths and weaknesses, AntiVir's detection capabilities, speedy scan times and overall ease of use make it a clear winner.

Hope this is useful for everyone here. Next time, whenever someone asks for a free AV or says that using Avira Free is not as good as using the paid versions, please point the person to this post. You can also point this post to users who ask for Avira Premium keys.

[saturn]

Nice read safeguy

[keypees2005]

Indeed a useful thread. Well done safeguy.

[muaan]

yes really useful to newbies
also useful to me about the pop ups
I am also a avira fan boy
Also i have one thing too add.if you want to have a gaming mode u can use http://majorgeeks.com/Game_Booster_d6148.html to temporary disable unecesary services while ur playing games

[safeguy]

@muaan

Yeah...I remembered about Game Booster when I was posting this article but then since Game Booster is from Iobit, I didn't want Iobit 'haters' to come and bash me here...

[muaan]

i dont understand iobit haters lol....they may hate iobit security programs which copied the database from malwrebytes but their game booster and smart defrag wasnt copied from somewhere else and theyre really useful...just because of 1 mistake of another program in the same company doesnt mean other programs are bad....
Like my mother said to me...learn from others good points,dont learn from bad points.
So if iobit did a good job on that program dont ditch it jsut because of 1 incident from iobit..

[bivas600]

@muaan
i really agreed with you.i am using asc and smart defrag over 18 months and i am very very happy because my pc still works like new.
@safeguy
thanks for writing such a nice article. it will be very very helpful for those who spread rumors that avira free is not as good as the paid one. i am also a very big fan of avira and i also tried to stop this misconception about their so called av(e.g. nis2010,kis2010 and many more)
actually our bad habit of surfing, searching the porn site and downloading clippings, serials and cracks are the worst enemy of our computer.
concept of safe search should encourage in this forum and only then we could able to break the tyranny of the big av vendors.

[mrm52858]

That was quite a good article Safeguy. I am one always looking for Avira Premium keys that you talk about because I am an Avira fan also. This past few weeks I have tried F-secure internet security 2010, BitDefender Internet Security 2010, Kaspersky Internet Security 2010 , Panda Internet security 2010 and now trying Norton Internet Security 2010. I believe Norton has been the best as far as not slowing my computer down so much but after reading about Avira free it might just be the one for me. Thanks again for the info and I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

[safeguy]

@bivas600

You're right...all that we need is a simple AV to backup with our common sense. If you rely too much on your AV but lack the use of brains, it's pointless...

@mrm52858

So among the 5 Internet Security Suites you've tried so far, Norton seemed the friendliest in terms of resource usage? Thanks for that info...I'm planning to try Norton one day (I've tried NAV 2009 but 2010 not yet)...

@bivas600

You're right...all that we need is a simple AV to backup with our common sense. If you rely too much on your AV but lack the use of brains, it's pointless...

@mrm52858

So among the 5 Internet Security Suites you've tried so far, Norton seemed the friendliest in terms of resource usage? Thanks for that info...I'm planning to try Norton one day (I've tried NAV 2009 but 2010 not yet)...

[Amature Programmer]

Nice read Safeguy myself im not a fan of avira never tried it actually but i like Avast still good read.