MCafee vs Windows Defender?

mikeytg

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I am currently using Windows Defender in both of my home PCs. My ISP (Cablevision aka Optimum Online) now offers the full McAfee AV suite for free.

Looking at some test data, McAfee is not the greatest, but it has a better protection rates than WD. It is also said to use more system resources than other AV suites.

Any experiences, opinions, or advice will be appreciated!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 consumer 64 bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Aspire M5 481PT-6644
    CPU
    Intel Core I5
    Memory
    6 GB
    Hard Drives
    Spinning/SSD hybrid 500GB/20GB
    Mouse
    ELAN Trackpad
    Internet Speed
    18mbs/5mbs
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
My PC came with McAfee so I used it for a year, it worked well but was quite a RAM hog and slowed the machine down a bit at times (mainly if it was doing a scan)

When the year came up I didn't want to renew at the price of it so thought I would try Windows Defender (been using it now for 3 months), I am getting better performance now using this and so far it has not cuased me any issues
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 3521
    CPU
    i5
    Memory
    4 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    AMD Radeon
    Browser
    IE
Windows Defender is an antivirus that came with Windows,So,It's take a low Res,And Windows Defender has a lot of speed - scanning ........ Now if u installed McAfee antivirus ,You will notic that your PC go so slow :( , I hope you understand.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    7,8

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
I would rather not use anything than use McAfee. It is inefficient and ineffective. Almost every infected PC I clean up has McAfee, Avast or AVG on them and it obviously didn't prevent these infections. I know that no product is 100% effective, but these products aren't even close. I test AV and manage AV and endpoint security for 200k devices in a corporate environment for a living, so I'm not an expert but I've seen a lot....
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 10 Pro 64bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home built Intel i7-3770k-based system
    CPU
    Intel i7-3770k, Overclocked to 4.6GHz (46x100) with Corsair H110i GT cooler
    Motherboard
    ASRock Z77 OC Formula 2.30 BIOS
    Memory
    32GB DDR3 2133 Corsair Vengeance Pro
    Graphics Card(s)
    GeForce GTX 980ti SC ACS 6GB DDR5 by EVGA
    Sound Card
    Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium HD, Corsair SP2500 speakers and subwoofer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    LG 27EA33 [Monitor] (27.2"vis) HDMI
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 850 EVO 250GB (system drive)
    WD 6TB Red NAS hard drives x 2 in Storage Spaces (redundancy)
    PSU
    Corsair 750ax fully modular power supply with sleeved cables
    Case
    Corsair Air 540 with 7 x 140mm fans on front, rear and top panels
    Cooling
    Corsair H110i GT liquid cooled CPU with 4 x 140" Corsair SP "push-pull" and 3 x 140mm fans
    Keyboard
    Thermaltake Poseidon Z illuminated keyboard
    Mouse
    Corsair M65 wired
    Internet Speed
    85MBps DSL
    Browser
    Chrome and Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender, MalwareBytes Pro and CCleaner Pro
    Other Info
    Client of Windows Server 2012 R2 10 PC's, laptops and smartphones on the WLAN.

    1GBps Ethernet ports
Thanks for the replies. I think I'll stick with Defender. My PC seems nice and snappy right now and I'd like to keep it that way, besides, I've never had an infection or problem with Defender. I was just tempted by the "sumthin for nuthin" syndrome. :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 consumer 64 bit
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Acer Aspire M5 481PT-6644
    CPU
    Intel Core I5
    Memory
    6 GB
    Hard Drives
    Spinning/SSD hybrid 500GB/20GB
    Mouse
    ELAN Trackpad
    Internet Speed
    18mbs/5mbs
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Smart move.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1 Update 1 Pro 64bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Pavillion H8-1202
    CPU
    I7-2600 @ 3.4 GHz
    Motherboard
    PEGATRON
    Memory
    8 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NIVDIA GeForce GT 520
    Sound Card
    Realtek ALC656GR CODEC
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung SyncMaster S22B350
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080 32 bit color
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 850 EVO SSD 500GB
    Keyboard
    Razer Blackwidow Ultimate 2013
    Mouse
    Logitech M510
I would rather not use anything than use McAfee. It is inefficient and ineffective. Almost every infected PC I clean up has McAfee, Avast or AVG on them and it obviously didn't prevent these infections. I know that no product is 100% effective, but these products aren't even close. I test AV and manage AV and endpoint security for 200k devices in a corporate environment for a living, so I'm not an expert but I've seen a lot....


You forgot to add Norton to that list :geek: The only Norton product I will even touch is Norton Ghost.

I concur with azasadny on this one. McaFee SiteAdvisor, PRO, all of them just are not that...good. They are inefficient as he said. I will say this though the Enterprise version has some amazing controls and most local/state governments use it. That's probably also though because of the price they are offered/and also the free virus removal if they get the platinum contract though lol...I work for the state government and we use McaFee 8.7i which is pretty sweet.

Edit: oh yeah...and McaFee overall takes up way too many resources!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    iBUYPOWER
    CPU
    AMD 8320
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon 7850
    Screen Resolution
    1024x768
    Case
    Azza Solaris
    Internet Speed
    50MBps download/10MBps upload
    Browser
    Chrome/Firefox/Internet Explorer
    Antivirus
    Malwarebytes PRO
Having a dad that was a system administrator and me likely going to profess into computer engineering, I kind of know about this stuff. I personally hate McAfee (before all of you begin to hate me, read on) because it uses a lot of resources, some research I have done to make sure that my information is correct is that McAfee takes up almost 85% of your resources after only being used for about 30 minutes, also from my own experience with McAfee it can take up to 100% of your resources on boot. Using Windows Defender is very nice to use because it takes hardly any resources, its super fast, super easy and super effective in my tests with Windows Defender I ending up with around 7% of my resources used after 30 min. If you still don't trust Windows Defender then I would recommend installing and testing AVG or AVAST both are very effective and promising.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8
I've used MS Security Essentials for about 10 months on my old Windows 7 computer and Windows Defender on my new Windows 8.1 computer for 2 months, both along with Malwarebytes. All without a single virus infection.

Our cable provider, Consolidated (use to be SureWest), provides free Kaspersky 2014. I've tried that on my two computers and removed it after about a week because it just bogs them down and takes up too much system resources. At times it would use 100% CPU on both machines and wasn't even scanning at the time.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 64-bit OEM
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 17R - 5737
    CPU
    Intel i5-4200U Processor (3M Cache, up to 2.6 GHz, UMA)
    Memory
    8 GB Dual Channel DDR3L 1600MHz (4GBx2) Memory
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Graphics
    Sound Card
    Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    17.3 inch LED Backlit Display with Truelife and HD+
    Screen Resolution
    1600 x 900
    Hard Drives
    Western Digital, 1-TB WD Blue SATA III, 5400 RPM, 8 MB Cache
    Mouse
    Microsoft Comfort Mouse 4500
    Internet Speed
    20 mb up / 17 mb down
    Browser
    Google Chrome 64-bit
    Antivirus
    MS Defender / Malwarebytes PRO
McAfee was a PITA. uninstalled it, disabled defender. Only KIS 2014 , works smoothly and no hog.
Weekly checks with free MBAM too.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 8.1 Update x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavilion 15
    CPU
    Haswell Core i5 4200U
    Memory
    8GB Dual-Channel DDR3L @1600
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4400 Integrated; 2GB Dedicated NVIDIA GT 740M
    Hard Drives
    500GB Samsung 840 EVO Internal SSD ;
    2TB WD MyPassport Ultra EHDD ;
    1TB TOSHIBA HDD
    Cooling
    Deepcool X6
    Mouse
    Logitech B175 Wireless Mouse
    Internet Speed
    10 Mbps
    Browser
    Opera v25.0
    Antivirus
    KIS 2014
    Other Info
    Microsoft Wired Xbox 360 Controller
If you don't already use it, add Malwarebytes to your list of defense programs. The free version will work fine. Run regular scans with it. Remember, there is no AV out there that gets everything 100% of the time.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 7 32, Win 7 64 Pro, Win 8.1 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    It's a Dell, Dude.
    CPU
    Intel Caffinated Core Duo
    Motherboard
    Father is bored too.
    Memory
    4 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVidia something-or-another
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" HD TV/Monitor/Alternative Dimensional Viewing Portal
    Screen Resolution
    Fuzzy after a couple drinks
    Hard Drives
    2 or 3, depending on if it's a night they're arguing about having a "split personality crisis" because I partitioned the drive.
    Case
    Don't get on my case....man
    Cooling
    Scotch on the rocks on the weekends..
    Keyboard
    Mad Catz Cyborg V7. Or maybe Cyborg Catz Are Mad At V7's??? I know it lights up...far out.
    Mouse
    currently being stalked by the cat...
    Internet Speed
    Never fast enough...
    Browser
    Defeated by Mario...wait...OH...BRowser...
    Antivirus
    Various
If you don't already use it, add Malwarebytes to your list of defense programs. The free version will work fine. Run regular scans with it. Remember, there is no AV out there that gets everything 100% of the time.


I concur with this... I switched from McAfee about 1 1/2 years ago, and haven't looked back. WD supplemented with Malwarebytes has kept all of my computers clean and in great working condition. And the price is right!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Studio XPS 8100 in Corsair 200R Case
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-860 processor, (8MB Cache, 2.80GHz)
    Motherboard
    Dell (Chicony - DH57M01)
    Memory
    Corsair 16GB DDR3 SDRAM at 1333MHz-4x4GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    nVidia GeForce GTX 760, 2GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    OEM Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell ST2410, 24" Flat Panel Monitor
    Hard Drives
    256GB Samsung SSD 840 Pro-MZ-7PD256BW,
    Western Digital 1TB Caviar Blue-WD10EALX,
    2 Western Digital 2TB Black WD2003FZEX,
    1 Western Digital 6TB Green
    PSU
    Corsair CX600M (600 Watt)
    Case
    Corsair 200R mid-tower
    Cooling
    OEM
    Internet Speed
    Broadcom Netlink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet Card.
    Other Info
    This Dell XPS 8100 was transplanted in to a Corsair 200R mid-tower case in June 2015; The only Dell remnants are the motherboard and cpu, which will be upgraded some time in the future...
i totally agree:cool:
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    acer apire v5 E5-521-46P1
    Memory
    6 gb ram
    Sound Card
    Bongiovi DPS FULL
    Screen Resolution
    hd
    Hard Drives
    500 gb internal +500+1000gb External
    Internet Speed
    300/50mb
    Browser
    pale moon and google chrome
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender 2018
    Other Info
    Security:Malwarebytes 3.1.2+Zemana Premium+Hitman Pro+Superantisyware Professional+Lastpass
    VPN:SurfEasy Ultra VPN+EkspressVPN+Private Internet Access
mcafee

hello i have used McAfee for many years now and i have not had any problems:)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    acer apire v5 E5-521-46P1
    Memory
    6 gb ram
    Sound Card
    Bongiovi DPS FULL
    Screen Resolution
    hd
    Hard Drives
    500 gb internal +500+1000gb External
    Internet Speed
    300/50mb
    Browser
    pale moon and google chrome
    Antivirus
    Bitdefender 2018
    Other Info
    Security:Malwarebytes 3.1.2+Zemana Premium+Hitman Pro+Superantisyware Professional+Lastpass
    VPN:SurfEasy Ultra VPN+EkspressVPN+Private Internet Access
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