Deciding which Security Suite

I've been using Trend Micro for the last 6-7 years and I'm starting to review new suites and find the Trend Micro is not ranking very good or not being reviewed at all, which is a bad sign. Plus the auto renewal is a bit violating, but anyway I'm in search of a new Anti-virus suite for 4 computers with a mix of Win XP pro and Win 7 Pro. I've been looking at Norton, but there are so many conflicting points of views I have no idea how I'm supposed to make an informed decision. Whether the info comes from an independent lab or individuals there's always one who says it's the greatest and another who says it's the biggest piece of whatever expletive. AV-comparatives says G data, Panda, Avira seem to rank high but, then there was another report from Matousec.com that ranks them down low or in the middle. This is one of the most irritating research subjects I've had in a while. And then I think many people who had an issue with an AV suite probably had some configuration issue or software conflict, but blame it on the AV suite. Most opinions aren't really objective just basing it on there own experience on their one machine. For example I've read many horror stories or frustrating scenarios with Trend Micro, but I haven't had any real issues with it. I've never used Norton but I see the same type of discussion where it's just based on that individual experience rather than finding the root cause of the issue. I'm wanting to get rid of Trend not because of a bad experience, but that many reviews are stating that it's not as effective as other suites at detecting or preventing viruses/malware. That's my primary concern an AV Suites effectiveness. And with that like I mentioned earlier there are many conflicting views, opinions, stats. How is one supposed to make an informed decision with all this garbage information out there mixed with trusted information?

Jonathan_King said:

Here you go: What's the Best Anti-virus?

I read that and a number of other threads on here before posting my rant/question. I just want a good source for disseminating all this information. Like I said there's too many conflicting views and stats for the same software. What's the truth?

I like Kaspersky best. All people like different things. I used to prefer ESET until their latest version. You might be ok with Microsoft Security Essentials(free), Windows built in Firewall and Malwarebytes AntiMalware(free edition). If you really want to pay for one Norton is very good and has a very high detection rate, but it is slower than others. They have gotten better in this area in the past couple years. ESET is very light and unintrusive and has very good protection, Most power users and gamers prefer ESET Nod 32. I have a subscription to MaximumPC Magazine and they just had their antivirus review and the new Macafee scored very high(and it was one of the lowest last year). You can create a nice suite for free, but you will be using three different products. As for free Antivirus I personally recommend Microsoft Security Essentials or Avast 5 Free.

tw33k said:

The best way to decide is to trial a few products. Most vendors offer 30 day trial periods. Try a few different programs then choose the one that suits you best. Nobody can answer this question for you. You have to decide for yourself.

You're right, I was really venting my frustration with all the conflicting view points and stats regarding the effectiveness of these AV suites. I'm going to download the Norton trial on my laptop and see how it goes.

A good place to start... I've been quite pleased with Norton products the past few years.

steve-pressman said:

Highy recommend Kaspersky Internet Suite 2010
Does what is says on the box easy to set up, easy to run and you will never know it's there until it kicks in. Best security I have ever used and I have been through them all over the years

Internet Security Software 2010 for Home Computer Security - Kaspersky Lab United States

Steve

Well, if Norton doesn't pan out I'll definitely give KIS a try. That suite has also had too many conflicting reviews. Anecdotally, people and some magazine reviews say great things, but then you get an indy lab that says otherwise. I guess it boil down to faith in the product and how it affects your particular machine. On a completely different note why do so many spell checkers in these forums get correctly spelled words wrong. "anecdotally" is correctly spelled. Is that the grammar police at work?