iolo System Mechanic 7 Pro

List Price: $69.95 Discount Price: $34.95

Features:

• Built-in AntiVirus tools help shield your computer from viruses, worms, trojans, and other threats
• Block unwanted communication and keep out hackers and identity thieves with the Personal Firewall
• Seach and Recover 4 helps you get back photos, movies, email and more - from any drive, disc or peripheral
• Prevent valuable information from falling into the wrong hands with DriveScrubber 3
• One-click Power Tools offer essential repairs and optimizations based on the computer's needs

Customer Reviews:

Do not let iolo get it's claws into your system!!! [Posted on 2007-10-07]
I must agree with others that this product was apparently not ready for market and continues to be especially troublesome to Vista users.

A recent update fixed a problem whereby the interface would freeze when initializing. Good job iolo - your software may now achieve it's most elementary goal - opening. But the firewall still does not function with Vista. It fails to initialize or will freeze after a short period. This is not a conflict with other security software - it is fundamental. If there is a solution, iolo seemingly cannot provide it, yet they continue to insist that SMP works with Vista. I used run the suite without the firewall installed. It worked quite well in this state, but did not recognize the Windows firewall. Perhaps this is a kind of electronic envy directed at software that actually functions as it should.

I am, as I write this review trying to remove iolo from an XP-based system and replace it with Windows Live One Care which has proven to run very smoothly on a friend's PC - kudos to Microsoft. I was forced to restore my system after uninstalling iolo the first time - it removed files critical to the operation of my wireless network connection and Windows Firewall! I am now hoping that the prior installation of One Care will protect me against damage to my system as I try again to uninstall iolo.

At best, this is very poorly written and partially non-functional software. I will not state my true suspicions for fear of being attacked for libel. I'll leave that to your imagination.

I could not condemn this software with greater force. A key component of the software does not function with Vista, and there are no safeguards against system damage following it's removal. Don't try it, don't buy it - you'll be sorry. Iolo must learn a lesson here.

This is a TERRIBLE product! [Posted on 2007-11-17]
Absolutely do not buy this! I can't believe how many hours this cost me. For background:I have had many PC's since 1982 and am a degreed engineer. I first installed this on a PC with Windows XP SP2, it installed from the CD, then updated from the website. It would try to run and then freeze up, tried numerous reboots. This was on a cleaned up PC with full viruscan completed. I uninstalled it and then tried it on a PC with Windows 2000 and all updats and SP's, also thoroughly virus scanned. It actually ran through all the menus, looked like it was doing great things, then on a final reboot my PC locked up and I had to reboot at "last known good" configuration, finally hours later got it running again, but many files are gone. I can't believe reputable stores sell this piece of garbage.

Not even at beta level [Posted on 2008-01-01]
Do not buy this product. There are two reasons for this.

1) The user interface is terrible. It offers to do certain things, like fixing security problems, but it will not let you know what that means in detail. You have to trust blindly that it is doing correctly the things that it should be doing.

2) Help is a disaster. It is impossible to figure out how to do things from the help.

In fairness, I installed it and it did not break my PC, which is a lot given the level of sloppiness with which the program has been put together.

WHAT A WASTE OF MONEY... AND TIME [Posted on 2008-01-04]
I bought System Mechanic 7 Professional to have the most up-to-date iolo PC management system on a new PC. Having used version 5 for some time, I was looking forward to this latest version. What a waste of money... and time. After the install my PC kept stalling, closing Windows Explorer windows and creating error messages. Eventually the whole system came to a grinding halt. The Restart/Shut Down facility was inoperable too. This happened every time I tried to use the PC. I even uninstalled the software, but the PC was still doing crazy things. I have had to completely reformat the hard drive and reinstall the factory settings from scratch.
DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY... AND TIME on this rubbish!!!

BUYER BEWARE! [Posted on 2008-05-23]
Buyer Beware... I purchased this product, installed/uninstalled 3 times. Called tech support and was told they couldn't help me. After calling customer service everyday for 7 days, chasing supervisors to get my refund request authorized; all my efforts resulted in a refund denial. Fortunately I purchased the product on my credit card and can dispute the charge through my bank. On a scale of 1-10 (with 10 equaling excellence in product & service), I rate my experience with Iolo Technologies at a zero.

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