Product Description

Symantec - Norton Security

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #189 in Software
• Brand: Norton from Symantec
• Released on: 2009-03-31
• Platforms: Windows Vista, Windows XP, No Operating System
• Format: CD-ROM
• Dimensions: 1.57" h x 7.48" w x 9.45" l, .24 pounds

Manufacturer's Description
Norton Utilities provides the essential tools you need to optimize the performance of your PC. It finds and fixes broken registry links and damaged files, frees up disk space, reclaims system memory, accelerates startup time, and boosts application and system performance. It opens applications faster, and lets you run more of them simultaneously. Norton Utilities can help make your PC will run like new again.

Unlike other PC tune-up software, Norton Utilities focuses on performance and provides easy-to-use tools that make a real difference. Make your computer boot faster by prioritizing the startup programs with Startup Manager. Instead of letting Microsoft Windows load programs you don't need, Startup Manager loads only the programs you choose. The Service Manager works in a similar way to accelerate the PC's startup time. Need more PC memory? The registry defragmenter and cleaner free up and reclaim memory by fixing registry errors, organizing registry files, and repairing broken links. The result? Programs open faster and you can work on multiple open programs simultaneously.

Boost the overall performance of your PC by optimizing the hard disk with the disk defragmenter and cleaner. It removes hard drive clutter, temporary files, and Internet cookies. It allows you to permanently delete unwanted sensitive data from your PC so hackers cannot access it. Management tools let you view and manage the memory usage of running applications so you can make adjustments that improve PC performance. You can also evaluate the performance of your PC by benchmarking it against other PCs.

Free online technical support is available 24x7. Regular Internet connection fees apply. Phone support is also available as a fee-based service. For full details and to access support, go to www.symantec.com/globalsupport. Norton Utilities offers the tools you need to optimize the performance of your PC.

Customer Reviews

Extremely limited offering
After trying out lots of alternative offerings for 'speeding up my pc', I was keen to try Norton Utilities.
After installation you are presented with a nice interface to launch different tools. Within the list of options for optimizing the system, the only really useful ones are `Clean Your Registry' and `Defragment Your Registry'. The registry cleaner found 980 bad entries in my registry, but after running both tools and rebooting, I did not notice any difference in my computer's speed.
The rest of the NU's options are mainly icons to launch Windows processes (e.g. Windows Update). Why they bothered creating pretty icons for this is a mystery to me, when they are all accessible from the Start Menu anyway.
Another tool is the `Clean Your Disks' feature, which wipes away temporary files etc (again, notice how this can also be done natively in Windows!).
You can also manage your startup programs (again, just like you can in Windows), but Norton offers no guidance to identify what you are potentially removing from the list. This could lead to problems for inexperienced users.
I don't feel as though Norton Utilities brings anything useful or worthwhile to my system. It seems to be more of a wrapper to launch other tools, many of which do not add value. My advice is to simply download the free (and very impressive) CCleaner tool, which will also clean the registry and wipe away temporary files for a lot less money.

A rebadged 'PC Tools Desktop Maestro'...
In my experience, Norton products are generally thorough, reliable and trustworthy although some of the heavy-duty packages can slow a system down. As my aging and cluttered PC has been experiencing problems recently I hoped this might diagnose the cause so launched it optimistically.

My first surprise is that it appears to be virtually identical to the Desktop Maestro 2009 package. The options and layout are identical with the only noticeable difference being that Norton Utilities 14 also offers a 'Performance Test' which benchmarks a PC using a variety of different speed tests and compares the results before and after changes. I didn't actually spot this until I'd already run the program so can't judge whether or not it did boost my PC's speed or performance.

The quibbles I had with Desktop Maestro (see my review) also apply to Norton Utilities 14 ie there are too many standard Windows functions badged as features of the Norton package and clicking the 'Optmise System' button merely replaces it with a 'Reset Optimisation' button without actually appearing to do anything. Like Desktop Maestro, it also mis-read my system memory as 2GB on the 'Monitor your System... System Information' screen yet on the 'System Properties', which links directly to the Windows 'System Properties' screen, it correctly read 3.25GB. The 'Smart Update' has offered nothing other than an option to download language files in Brazilian, German, Spanish, Dutch, Italian... More positively, the registry and tune-up scans appeared to work, restore points were created and errors corrected.

I was anticipating an innovative, functional and original package so am disappointed to find this is nothing new - possibly this is my own fault for not realising that Symantec bought PC Tools last year...

If you have no other tune-up software then this could be a useful package offering value for money with its 3-user licence but if you already have other software, ie products branded as 'PC Tools', then be aware that you may simply be duplicating what you already have.

old rope for your money
The big surprise for me was that once loaded, Norton Utilities appears to be Registry Mechanic's slightly bigger sibling. Same interface, same styling, same acting as a front end to Windows commands which are best hidden from those who don't know how to use them. Clearly Norton have done a deal with PCTools (publishers of Registry Mechanic), or else they're in line for being sued for infringement of copyright.

So does it work? Well, yes: many of the options take you straight to the relevant part of Administrative Tools without the hassle of clicking on the start menu and looking for Administrative Tools (though I must point out that AT is usually hidden in default Windows installations, but it`s easy enough to find when you go looking).

Installation is easy enough, but my confidence was shaken when the install program put an icon on the desktop when I told it not to. The program itself says that it must be activated within ninety days, while the card in the box with the activation code on it says that it must be activated within thirty days. Right hand, may I introduce you to left hand?

The registry cleaner works exactly the same as Registry Mechanic's. Once I'd cleaned the registry I tried defragmenting it. This requires a reboot. My PC sat there displaying "saving your settings" for a long time. Long enough for me to go to the village shop, buy some leeks and a couple of bottles of beer, while putting the world to rights with the shopkeeper. Half an hour later, Windows was still "saving your settings". I pulled the plug.

On rebooting Windows, NU displayed a pop-up just like Registry Mechanic's saying that it's monitoring the system for changes. It does so in the background and doesn't seem to affect the PC's performance (I used Bryce 6, a 3D rendering program, to render a scene file whose usual rendering time I already knew and saw no difference).

The disk cleaner and bleacher work well enough - just what you need to get rid of all those dodgy files - and the benchmark section lets you see how your machine is performing.

The extras that Norton Utilities has over Registry Mechanic aren't, in my opinion, worth the extra money, and like RM, Norton Utilities allows access to areas of Windows where the uninformed can do an awful lot of damage. On the up side, if you make a living repairing Windows installations, Norton Utilities could bring you a fair bit of business...