Stories by Nick Mediati

Comodo Internet Security Premium 5.0

Comodo Internet Security Premium did a very good job at blocking brand-new malware in our tests. Its detection of known malware was less impressive, though.

Avast Pro Antivirus 5

Avast Pro Antivirus 5 ($US40 for a single-PC, one-year license as of 11/23/2010) ranks third in our roundup of 2011 paid antivirus products. When PCWorld last looked at Avast's paid antivirus offering, our reviewer wasn't particularly impressed with ...

Avast Free Antivirus 5: Good all-around option

Avast Free Antivirus 5 took the top spot in our late 2010 roundup of free antivirus software. It provides good, all-around malware detection in a speedy, well-designed package. We liked its easy installation process, smooth interface design, and mini...

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2011

Kaspersky Anti-Virus 2011 takes fifth place in our roundup of 2011 antivirus software, closely trailing fourth-place finisher G-Data AntiVirus 2011. It did a great job at stopping brand new malware attacks, and a reasonable -- though not top-notch --...

Avira AntiVir Personal: Great malware protection

Avira AntiVir Personal ranked second in our late 2010 roundup of free antivirus products. AntiVir has strength where it counts most: It did a great job at detecting and blocking malware. That said, its interface needs some improvement.

Norton Antivirus 2011

Norton Antivirus has been a strong performer in recent years, and this year is no exception. Norton Antivirus 2011 ($US40 for a one-year, single-PC license as of 11/23/2010) comes in first in our roundup of 2011 paid antivirus products. It does a ver...

Panda Cloud Antivirus 1.0

Panda Cloud Antivirus is a unique entry in the free antivirus race. Most free antivirus products still rely on signature updates to detect new malware, but Panda's program instead uses fresh data about malware direct from Panda's servers. As a result...

G-Data AntiVirus 2011

G-Data AntiVirus 2011 (US$30 for a single-PC, one-year license as of 11/23/2010) placed fourth -- albeit a close fourth -- in our roundup of 2011 antivirus products. G-Data continues its recent trend of strong malware detection, blocking, and removal...

Microsoft Security Essentials 1.0

When we looked at the beta of Microsoft Security Essentials in 2009, we were impressed with its clean, easy-to-use interface, but less so with its sluggish scan speed. This still holds true for Microsoft Security Essentials 1.0; also, it hasn't kept ...

Comodo Internet Security Premium

Comodo Internet Security Premium came in fifth in our late 2010 roundup of free antivirus products. Although it was last among the products we tested, it did a very good job at blocking brand-new malware. Its detection of known malware lagged behind ...

BitDefender Antivirus Pro 2011

BitDefender Antivirus Pro 2011 ($US40 for a one-year, three-PC license as of 11/23/2010) ranks second in our roundup of 2011 paid antivirus software. In our tests, it did a good job at detecting malware, and was the top performer at removing infectio...

HP Windows 7 Slate video surfaces

Ah yes, the on-again, off-again HP Slate running Windows 7. Before CES, it was a buzz-worthy expected product, but its brief appearance in Steve Ballmer's CES keynote left some rather disappointed. But a new video making the rounds on YouTube shows w...

Internet Explorer 9: A visual tour

IE 9's main browser window takes minimalism to a new level.

Internet Explorer 9 beta

Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 -- now in public beta -- is the newest version of Microsoft's browser. Compared with IE 8, it's faster, with a streamlined interface. But it's also still A beta, and unsurprisingly, some areas still need refinement.