Bitdefender's Wildly Different Antivirus Tools Both Shine

Security products tend toward a certain sameness in their user interface. The background may be slate grey, white, blue, black, green, yellow, or polka-dot, sure. But whatever the color, the main window will probably display a green, yellow, or red indicator for security status, big buttons to launch scans and check for updates, and extra panels or pages for additional security features. Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (2014) definitely falls into this camp. In fact, Bitdefender's two suite products look just the same, except they add more panels for their additional security components.

Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition (2014) is a complete departure. It offers no configuration settings, and its minimalist main window vanishes any time you click away from it. By default it scans during idle time, so there's no button to launch a scan (though you can do so from the tool's tray menu). Which of these products is best for you?

Good Test Results for Both
The free edition lacks Bitdefender's new Photon technology, designed for better and faster malware cleanup, but it did well in testing even so. In my hands-on malware removal test, the Plus edition scored 6.5 points, top score for products tested with my current malware collection. The Free edition wasn't far behind, with 6.2 points. In fact, the two products handled three quarters of my malware samples in exactly the same way.

As for blocking malware attacks on a clean system, both products performed identically. They both blocked 91 percent of malicious URLs, both detected 92 percent of my malware samples, and both scored 9.0 points for malware blocking, a very good score.

I can't compare independent lab results for the two products, because the labs haven't tested them separately. In fact, most of the current tests apply to Bitdefender's previous edition, without Photon. Even so, Bitdefender's scores overall are better than any other current product.

Phishing protection looks completely different in the two products. The Free edition diverts users to a page with a simple warning message in red block letters, while the Plus edition uses an elegant display in muted colors to accomplish exactly the same warning. Either way, the phishing protection is fantastic. Both products beat out Norton's detection rate, the Free edition by one percentage point and the Plus edition by three percentage points.

Jack of All Trades, or One-Trick Pony?
Bitdefender Free removes existing malware, prevents new malware attacks, and steers users away from malicious or fraudulent websites, nothing more. Bitdefender Plus adds a ton of additional features. Its new Wallet offers rudimentary password management along with secure storage for sensitive items like bank account details. Its hardened Safepay browser ensures the safety of your online financial transactions. It includes credit monitoring, file shredding, vulnerability scanning, and more.

If you've got no budget for security, the Free edition is an easy choice. However, the impressive Bitdefender Antivirus Plus (2014) is one of our Editors' Choice products for paid antivirus, sharing that honor with Webroot SecureAnywhere Antivirus 2013 and Norton AntiVirus (2013). You won't go wrong with any of these choices, but if you want to peruse the full range of products, check out our latest report on the best antivirus tools.