Mechanic by Bitdefender (for Mac)

Pros Puts system options in an easily accessible desktop app. Free. Clean interface.

Cons Some features are non-customizable. Lacks features found in full-fledged system cleaners. Bottom Line Mechanic by Bitdefender may lack comprehensive OS X system-cleaning capabilities, but its simple nature makes for a solid tune-up tool for novice users.

By Jeffrey L. Wilson

Windows-based computers have a wide array of system enhancing utilities designed to improve a PC's overall performance, but the Mac OS X platform is a bit thin in that regard. Fortunately, Bitdefender looks to bolster the category's ranks with Mechanic, a free utility capable of optimizing system memory, deleting digital footprints, and offering sound advice to keep your machine in shape. Mechanic is a solid tool to have in your back pocket, but it's not a thorough system-scrubber like CCleaner for Mac.

A Defensive Stance
Unlike other OS X system-enhancing utilities like CCleaner, Mechanic has an interface that's particularly welcoming to novice users. Mechanic's easy-to-navigate four-category layout is designed to get you started quickly with the Free Memory, Privacy, Stability, and Advice sections. Let's break 'em down.

Free Memory is designed to clear cached data. Clicking it displays the amount of system RAM (and the amount that's active, inactive, and free). If your system needs a cleaning, the green "Free Memory" icon will be clickable; if not, you'll be unable to click it. Computer users who aren't keen on tinkering will appreciate this streamlined feature, but those who would rather dig in and clean as they please may frown at the inflexibility.

Privacy, designed to remove traces of your computing activity, offers more flexibility. You can delete Web browser information (last session, browsing history, cookies, etc.) as well as application information (such as QuickTime's recent items, Dropbox cache, etc.). Mechanic gives you the option to eliminate the items individually or in one fell swoop—I liked that I was able to delete my browser history with just a click without dipping into browser options.

Stability displays crash-prone apps so that you can look for drivers, updates, or patches (or, in extreme cases, simply uninstalling programs) once you identify the issue. If your apps are on the up-and-up, Mechanic won't display any problematic programs. In fact, the box will be blank—I'd prefer if it said "All clear" or some other positive affirmation rather than showing an empty box.

Advice gives you, well, advice. When I clicked the Advice icon, Mechanic suggested that I turn on my firewall "for increased security." I found this very useful as I didn't realize that my Mac's firewall was deactivated. If you have a Mac that's giving you lots of problems, you may want to access the Advice section before doing anything else.

Despite those positives, Mechanic has a handful of notable missing features. Unfortunately, Mechanic doesn't let you perform actions you'll find in full-fledged tune-up programs such as uninstalling applications, freeing up hard drive space, repairing permissions, or scheduling cleanings. Those are standard-issue features in the majority of computer tune-up programs. Mechanic is, instead, a very basic tool that lets you perform quick hits. You should check out CCleaner if you'd like an app that offers a deeper dive.

Tuning Up
Mechanic by Bitdefender may not possess the wide range of system-improving features found in the likes of CCleaner, but users who want a very quick system tweak will find it a useful tool. And, hey, it's free! Give it a download and give your Mac a booster shot.

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Bitdefender Total Security (2014)

Pros Good results in PCMag antivirus tests; great results in independent tests. Accurate spam and phishing protection. Tough, no-hassle firewall. Full-scale parental control. Facebook monitoring. Private data protection. Password management. Secure browser. Vulnerability scan. File backup and sync. File encryption. Secure deletion. System tune-up. Anti-theft.

Cons Some difficulty installing on malware-infested systems. Default firewall configuration omits some protections. Password management limited. Some impact on performance. No drag/drop to encrypt or shred files. Bottom Line With Bitdefender Total Security (2014) you get all the standard security suite features plus file backup and sync, file and folder encryption, system tune-up, and even anti-theft protection. All of the components work well; it's a winner.

By Neil J. Rubenking

The phrase "security suite" covers a lot of ground. Antivirus and firewall are essential components, and some suites don't go much beyond those basics. Others add just about every security feature you might want, and then some. Bitdefender Total Security (2014) ($79.95 per year for three licenses) falls into the latter category, the kind of product I call a "mega-suite," and its many components all do their jobs well.

At first glance, this product hardly looks different from the less feature-rich Bitdefender Internet Security, or even from the standalone Bitdefender Antivirus Plus. All three reflect current security status with a green, yellow, or red banner, and all three display four panels at a time, representing four security components; a slider lets you bring the other components into view. The antivirus has a total of six component panels, the basic suite brings that number up to nine, and Total Security maxes out with a dozen panels. You can rearrange the order of the panels so that your four favorites are the ones that appear at startup.

Like Norton, Kaspersky, and others, Bitdefender has stopped using a version number or year in the product title. To help distinguish this review from later no-number reviews, I've appended "(2014)" to the name.

Shared Antivirus Protection
Bitdefender Total Security's antivirus protection is exactly the same as what you get from Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (2014). For full details on the shared features, please read that review. Here, I'll just summarize.

Getting Bitdefender installed on twelve systems crawling with malware required some help from tech support, especially for one system that was temporarily disabled by the install-time scan. A product that installs hassle-free gets five stars for ease of installation; Bitdefender earned three stars.

In my malware removal test, Bitdefender scored 6.6 points, the best of any product tested using my current collection of malware samples. Tested using my previous collection, Norton 360 (2013) and Webroot SecureAnywhere Complete 2013 also scored 6.6, as did Comodo Internet Security Complete 2013.

For a full explanation of my malware blocking test, see How We Test Malware Removal.

Bitdefender Total Security (2014) malware removal chart

Bitdefender's Web-based scanner detected 91 percent of the malicious URLs I tried to visit, which is very good. In my full malware-blocking test it earned 9.0 points. Of products tested with the same malware samples, only Ad-Aware Pro Security 10.5 did better, with 9.4 of 10 possible points. Webroot beat all products tested with the previous malware collection, scoring an impressive 9.9 points. The article How We Test Malware Blocking explains my testing methodology.

Bitdefender Total Security (2014) malware blocking chart

In tests by the independent antivirus labs, Bitdefender outscores all other vendors. The chart below summarizes recent lab test results. For more information about the labs and their tests, see How We Interpret Antivirus Lab Tests.

Bitdefender Total Security (2014) lab tests chart

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