Is it worth the money?
Iobit Uninstaller Free is Mike Plant‘ s go-to tool for removing unwanted apps and software. So, would he be impressed when he paid for the Pro version?
Iobit Uninstaller Pro Format: Windows XP to 10 Website: www.snipca.com/22843 Price: £19 Free trial period: N/A
They say a tidy home means a tidy mind, but could the clutter on a computer’s hard drive say just as much about a person’s psyche? Well, I hope not, because having taken a good look at the state of my own hard drive, I found it bloated with programs and apps that I barely remember downloading – never mind plan to use again. Suitably chastened, I began clearing out those programs that are surplus to my needs.
Uninstalling multiple programs at a time is a clunky process using Windows alone, which is why I’d always recommend using Iobit Uninstaller to speed up the process. This time I decided to go one better by buying Iobit Uninstaller Pro – but would paying for it make for a smoother experience still?
Spot the difference
Well no, not really. Uninstaller Pro doesn’t actually add much to the comprehensive software-removal tools already available in the free version. Just about the only difference I could find was the ‘Automatically delete leftovers of program uninstalled by other uninstaller’ option in the Settings menu (see screenshot below). To find it, click Options (the three horizontal lines at the top-right), click Settings and scroll down.
The problem is, the added setting doesn’t really do anything advantageous. In fact, when I posted a question on Iobit’s forum asking whether the option was worth ticking, a moderator told me to leave it switched off. His reason? Well, you might have noticed that some programs uninstall the current version before installing an update. Apparently, if you tick the box there’s a danger that Iobit Uninstaller will automatically delete your program’s settings when that happens. That would be particularly galling if you’ve gone to great pains to set it up just as you like it in the first place.
The hard sell
So, having found that Iobit Uninstaller Free was all I really needed to restore order to my cluttered hard drive, I turned my attention to what else comes in the Pro version. Most of this has to do with removing malware and adware from my browsers. Like asking a doctor for a second opinion, it’s good to have an additional program take a look at potential problem browser add-ons. But Iobit Uninstaller didn’t find anything that Malwarebytes hadn’t already removed.
I also found it irritating that, having paid for Uninstaller Pro, the program still tried to foist Iobit’s other programs on to me. I was met with screaming exclamation marks and
warnings about registry errors and outdated drivers, when I clicked the Action Center tab (see screenshot above). The cure for which was – surprise, surprise – to be found in Iobit’s other paid-for programs, such as Advanced Systemcare and Driver Booster.