Review by Percolato

Let me preface this review by noting that I’m running Windows XP, so results with Vista may differ.

Norton 360 seems, in general, to get mediocre reviews in the press as well as from a major consumer publication that I read routinely. As a consumer, I don’t have access to–for instance–the kind of virus-catching software that professionals use to test the effectiveness of anti-virus packages. As a result, my review can only really address general performance, the user interface, and convenience.

General Performance. Norton 360 seems fine. It doesn’t noticeably slow down my system. I haven’t gotten any virus warnings, or in fact ANY kind of warnings. So I can only conclude that the software is either seamlessly protecting me, that no threats are being encountered, or that I’m being infected with all kinds of viruses and other on-line threats. Given the lack of symptoms of any problems and my history of good experiences with Symantec products, I assume all is well.

User Interface. The UI is simple and intuitive, perfect for people (like me) who just want peace of mind without a lot of fiddling. There’s an icon in the system tray with a green check, which tells me that all is well. When it changes to a red exclamation point, I know I have to do something, and the interface for correcting the problems is simple. There are four areas of protection: PC Security, Identity Protection, Backup, and PC Tuneup. Each area has a simple and intuitive menu that appears when you hover the mouse pointer over the corresponding icon.

Convenience. For me, it’s perfect. Virtually all functions are scheduled and/or occur automatically. Unlike a Trend Micro product I used before, the system doesn’t constantly present me with issues and ask me what I want to do about them.

After over a month, I’ve had no problems. However, given what I’ve read about Norton 360’s performance on catching viruses (on a consumer web-site I trust), I can’t in good conscience give this product five stars.