System Mechanic 6

Hello:

Can everyone tell me what their thoughts are on this product? I recently purchased it and have not been overly impressed with it. And they do not return sofwware once it is opened, so I am stuck with the purchase.

Thanks

 

My thoughts:
I purchased it...I ran it for a couple weeks...I uninstalled it.
I did not like being 'bugged' about needing optimizations all the time that seemed to take forever to accomplish to see no real 'improvement'.
I did not like the program.

 

I was impressed with their pimp's sales talk so, instead of trying the trial version, I bought the program about a couple of weeks ago.

I don't rmember the details now but subsequent to using it I discovered some annoying problems. I uninstalled it and sent email to the company telling them what happened. They offered to "hold my hand" and give help etc etc etc.

No thank you.

The damned thing stays uninstalled and I am a few dollars worse off.

 

That was exactly what happened to me, and why it sits in my shelf, uninstalled.

 

I got mine free (+ the cost of S&H) when I bought some RAM for my desktop. Within hours after running 'Total Care' it tells me optimizations are required and 'Total Care' is recommended! Also after I run my OS's own scan disk and it comes back "no errors found", SM6 tells me it found errors and repair is required! If this was antispyware, those would be two false positives. No, I'm not impressed and am sure glad I didn't pay full price. Besides, I can't think of anything that SM6 does that I can't do with things I already have, like CCleaner, CleanUp, my OS's own scan disk and defragmenter, etc.

 

Shucks! Dog-gone it!

 

>> System Mechanic 6 - Hello: Can everyone tell me what their thoughts are on this product? I recently purchased it and have not been overly impressed with it. And they do not return sofwware once it is opened, so I am stuck with the purchase. Thanks << techiegirl2

Sorry to hear that you already purchased System Mechanic 6. The company offers no refund for this product or any other developed by them. Once you pay Iolo Technologies or any third-party vendor "All software sales are final."

I personally do not like the newer System Mechanic versions (v5.0+ and above) very much. I believe this program started out as a fairly decent and useful cleaning and optimization utility; in versions 4 and below, but has unfortunately 'evolved' into yet another trying-to-be-the-end-all-be-all "suite" type of bloatware utility.

The System Mechanic earlier versions were actually very handy as well as quite innovative for it's time; when the program was first introduced. This program was definitely a "must have" when it first came out prior to the availability of the numerous currently accessible and useful separate and individual freeware utilities which can do pretty much the same thing at no cost and generally with far less risk involved while using them.

For all the money you have to pay for System Mechanic 6 approx. $50 and $70 for pro; quite incredibly, this program lacks any documentation at all (i.e. even a minute printed manual), either in print form or in file format regarding installation, use and uninstalling. This is a very important but lacking feature when attempting to get the most out of such extensive utility with such complex product features as this is program has. There isn't even a PDF-based manual!

About the only the positive thing I can say about this program is that the context-sensitive installed program help system included with it is adequate; as is the "online support," with its FAQ; step-by-step, diagrammed tutorials for using the new wizards and the searchable knowledge base offer a lot of useful info as well.

The last time I tested this program there was so-called "Free live phone support" available, but it is not really "free" because it is actually a toll call, from 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM, Monday though Friday, Pacific Standard Time. Also you cannot contact the company directly via e-mail; the users must use the e-mail-based online technical support form to contact the company for help when you have a problem.

Additionally incredible is the fact that the Iolo Technologies Customer Care Quick Solutions (the program’s support area) area of the website does not have any onsite forum available. This is almost always a very bad omen for shareware products when you are considering downloading trial versions and purchasing later; because the company obviously does not want you to see the problems which users are currently having.

The web is filled with extremely negative reviews and nightmarish situations (i.e. causing frequent system freezes, crashes and constant exception errors, etc.) caused by this System Mechanic 6 version as well as 5.0+ product versions; especially regarding the PRO versions, on various websites which offer it as a download and allow objective reviewers to post there. This is particularly true for sites that have listed version 6 "user" reviews.

Google the terms "System Mechanic Reviews" and see for yourself. The only place you will find the majority of reviews to be "extremely positive" are on sites that simply review based upon the 'developers description' listed and do not allow any objective commentary.

Good Luck!

 

Iolo Technologies eh! Might this be the same lot that are currently inviting people to try out their Advanced Window Care progrram. I installed the first Beta and had to undo its mistakes by using ERUNT and Sys Restore - the next beta was a joke. As to System Mechanic - tried an earlier (free or trial version) ages ago - heap of crap!
HTH
Robert

 

now i know its not only me, i give a shot to the trial
then to a full version, it really get messed in my PC

one thing to remember, even you uninstalled it, there is "still" the iOLO in your registry, try to check your "regedit"

infoseeker

 

Exactly what I thought after I uninstalled the software. What a joke..

 

Thanks so much for your insight. When I purchased the product I had a feeling that it was not going to be a good purchase. So now it sits in my computer desk and stays uninstalled. The next time I buy software I am definetly going into research mode...

 

>> Thanks so much for your insight. When I purchased the product I had a feeling that it was not going to be a good purchase. So now it sits in my computer desk and stays uninstalled. The next time I buy software I am definetly going into research mode... << techiegirl2

You are quite correct.

It is amazing how much trouble even a little bit of research will save computer users and unfortunately; how much wasted cost [in terms of time as well as money and system damage] that any "gotta-get-this-right-now" impulse buying can consequentially cause. To rush to actually purchase anything on the web or anywhere else; be it hardware, software, web-based resources, etc. is a prescription for disaster in my opinion.

This is particularly true regarding any 'software' purchases because they are almost always (99.99% of the time) non-refundable after purchase. Buying something on impulse without using a more extensive web search, is as reliable as making a service or product choice by simply "flipping a coin" or opening a phone book to the 'Computer Products' page and then with your eyes closed and pointing out a company.

My advice to anyone seeking PC related products is always to check as many reliable sources as possible; including typing in the product name and the word "problem using" or even the word "sucks" in a reliable search engine. Whenever I'm considering a new product or service, online or retail - I always do a web search using carefully arranged words like the following example:

(1) Go to say, Google, AltaVista or AlltheWeb.com (all three – even better!)
(2) Type in these exact words: "Product XYZ problem"
(3) Type in these exact words: "Product XYZ review"
(4) Compare results then Copy & Paste the reviews onto to a WORD or Notebook file
(6) Name the document after the product.
(7) Save the document in a folder named something like "Possible Buys."

Also, always beware of the reviews of so-called "Referral" websites which are notorious throughout the web for leaving out critical information; particularly shareware sites that are always interested far more in "turning a buck" than pleasing customers.

This method may sound like a lot of work; but after you try it a few times it becomes like clockwork. And doing this beforehand will definitely save you money, time and aggravation later on down the line. The more information that you have from a variety of sources the better the chance of getting the desirable outcome will be.

I never even download freeware software without searching for reviews and visiting the actual software developers’ website to see if there are any critical updates, newer versions, bugs, etc. [not to mention a thorough read of the entire HELP file prior to using any utility or application after downloading and before use].

It is simply far too risky to do otherwise.

Good Luck!

 

I tried SM too and didn't like it. Anyone want to suggest an alternative?

 

>> I tried SM too and didn't like it. Anyone want to suggest an alternative? << Tisatashar

If you're looking for a "shareware" equivalent to System Mechanic you should try TuneUp Utilities 2006 which is a very handy tool, with numerous features. It certainly does a heck of a lot more than the somewhat buggy System Mechanic ever did; and it even costs about 10 bucks less!

With TuneUp Utilities users can easily remove all unnecessary and/or redundant files from the hard disk (or disks), thoroughly clean out and optimize the registry, tweak the internet connection settings, recover deleted files, and optimize memory.

You can also use this utility to analyze your system, receive automatic "suggestions" for potential performance improvements and observe very detailed hardware information. TuneUp Utilities also includes an Uninstaller, registry Editor, Task Manager and even a VERY handy and useful "Undelete tool" to recover files that have been deleted from the recycle bin.

Important Note: If you decide to try this program be aware that using this program does require a bit of configuration. This is definitely not one of those programs/utilities that you download and simply start clicking away without knowing how it works and how to restore whatever it cleans or changes. Therefore, a thorough reading of the included HELP files will go a long way in order to get the most out of using it.

Side Note - Limitations: 30-day trial; after that the shareware license costs $39.99

Good Luck!