Mix & Match Protection

[Qwynn]

New to the forums here (and Malwarebytes itself), so I'll start with saying 'hello!'

With that done, I have a few questions and am hoping to find some opinions.

I've been a user of AVG's IS for a few years now, but their recent 2013 edition is causing some wariness for one reason or another. Considering myself as something of a 'semi-advanced' user, I'm considering dropping AVG products altogether, and have thus been looking at other suites to fill the gap (namely Bitdefender and Kaspersky).

Now, while I'd love some opinions on those, I'm more interested in just dropping the suites (and all their useless extras) altogether, and going with a more layered, mix and match style of protection that's a little slimmer, and only really has what I actually need.

So I guess the question is, what would you, more longtime users of Malwarebytes suggest for that approach?

I understand both avast! and Avira are highly recommended (and high scoring) AV programs, and work well with Malwarebytes. How about firewalls? I've read a bit about Comodo, but what are the (stronger, if any) alternates to that, and how do they fair?

Antispyware? Spybot? Hitman Pro? Any other security recommendations for a solid, stable experience?

As a bonus, I would love software which also provides tablet protection, as I plan on gifting myself a new Android tablet this year over the holidays (and I'd just prefer to have the same software both on my PC and my tablet).

As a final note, the products in question don't need to be free. I'm more than willing to pay for some solid software (such as Malwarebytes Pro, which I already picked up) and support the developers.

Thanks in advance!

[noknojon]

Hello and Welcome -

You are not the first person that is not happy with the current version of AVG (there are quite a few) - Even Microsofts MVPs have downgraded the latest version of AVG due to the recent changes. The free versions of a few programs are even more suitable today -

I can't tell you which one is the best because determining that is generally not feasible; however, I can give you my strong recommendations for programs that I have tested and that I trust. All of the following are excellent free (not free trials of) antiviruses.

Be sure to only install one.

Microsoft Security Essentials (what I currently use)

Avira AntiVir

avast!

If you prefer only paid versions then, ESET / Kaspersky / Comodo, and even the latest paid version of Norton, now seem to all excede the once very good AVG program, in performance and detection -

Just my personal recent findings and opinions -

Thank You -

Extra - If you do choose to remove AVG, be sure to visit their site and use the correct Uninstaller program -

[CWB]

yep ... "what is the best ..." has been brought up many times at these forums and has been pretty much relegated to the "kicking a dead horse" area .

my post is not to say which program is better than another one but more of a comment on the trend of "good products goin' bad" .

as mentioned , getting an absolute "best" is a matter of personal conjecture .

however ... as mentioned by noknojon ... avg apparently decided that adding all kinds of bells , whistles , toolbars and hawking their other products from within their main products is a good idea .

myself , i am sort of a purist ... i do not need or want "clutter" . and oft times this clutter gets to the point of "bloatware" .

what i do want is an efficiently written program that does the job well .

i used avg (paid and free) for many years and stopped when there was "too much junk" in the road .

for about 1.5 years i have used eset smart security (paid for) and i am pleased with the protection/function .

it does the job and does not nag me to death .

[Qwynn]

Yes, 'best' always comes down to a matter of preference, which is why I didn't mention it. Was simply looking for opinions and recommendations and it's nice to see that avast! was noted.

As to AVG, yeah. I built a new PC a few weekends ago, and when I went to reinstall their 2012 edition, it kept insisting on giving me the 2013 instead. Now after using it, something about it is just rubbing me the wrong way, hence my desire to switch.

I'm definitely considering a combination of avast! AV, Comodo Firewall, and MBAM, which appears to be a pretty solid, layered approach.

What of the two Spyware software I mentioned, any opinions or those?

[noknojon]

This Pinned Topic has enough links to keep you reading for quite a while.

It offers many choices, along with links to others versions on Layered Protection, which is your best way to go -

Thank You -