Category: (CE)
4 new, starting at $23.50
PC Clean Machine will give you a personal PC concierge who checks your computer regularly to keep your data protected and your computer running at optimal levels. A detailed report will be provided to explain what was done to protect your PC and improve its performance. Clean Machine has more safeguards than any other solution and is audited and insured to keep your information secure. Don't interrupt your life to fix your PC - your PC Concierge will work at a time that's convenient for you - even while you sleep!
*Updated review* Very poor customer serviceReviewed by Elmira, 2009-07-16
**11/11/09 Updated Review. I originally gave this 3
stars--downgrading to 1 star after a few months due to customer
service**
Customer service for this product is TERRIBLE! They send out emails
when each updated service is due (every couple of months). They
consistently have the wrong date (they put the previous month on
all of the emails I received). They ask for permission to do the
work, but if you don't respond, will log into your computer anyway.
They give a time to update your computer, but don't always follow
the time given. The last straw for me was when this morning when I
didn't respond to the IM (a screen pops up on the computer), they
called my home--at 5am (they usually do the work after 10pm Eastern
time)!!!! In my home, 5am calls means it is an emergency. They
called twice and when we answered each time there was no response.
I realized when I went to the computer room that the IM window had
popped up, so I knew who was calling. I answered them right away
and told them to cancel my account. I do not appreciate being woken
up because of a routine computer scan. They obviously did not pay
attention to the time difference between the west coast of the US
and India (where the workers are located). I DO NOT RECOMMEND this
service. If you are unsure of how to make routine scans on your
computer, find a friend to help you.
My original review:
I received this item through the Amazon Vine program. I picked it
because my computer has been running a little slow and getting
overloaded with "stuff." I already have anti-virus and anti-spyware
software on my computer and regularly run checks on my computer.
Since I don't keep myself completely up-to-date on every new attack
on computers, I figured this service would do to help clean up my
computer and give me a little added security and comfort that it is
protected.
I have had the "First preventive Maintenance Service" completed so
far and it was a lackluster experience. It began with a contact
email about 12 hours after I installed the software asking to set
up the service on a date last month. I emailed them back to clarify
that they meant July and not June, but never did get a response to
my email. On the day of the "scheduled" (though not confirmed with
the correct month) service, I had a message on my answering machine
that I could barely understand, but I figured out it was PC Clean
Machine--nothing else, though (the person had a very heavy Indian
accent). I emailed the next morning for a confirmation and finally
received another email from them asking if I was going to be around
the computer that morning because they had tried to log in and were
unable to do so. I didn't get that email until I returned home from
work at 4pm and immediately responded back to them when I would be
available. At 7pm I went to check on the computer and the
"concierge" was logged into my computer and had opened a "chat"
window to ask if it was okay to perform the service. I agreed and
off he went.
I watched for quite a while as he downloaded free software from the
internet and ran them on my computer (anti-spyware, anti-malware,
and cleanup tools). He also ran my anti-virus software, windows
update, and checked if the hard drive needed to be defragmented.
These are all things that I can do and have done in the past. My
computer was in-use until after I went to bed at about 10:30pm that
night. I should have asked for them to clean the computer later,
but I figured that I might as well have them do it while they were
already on my computer.
The next morning, the computer was restored to my use. I
immediately noticed a couple of things: (1) a new user had been
created (Clean Machine), (2) Windows Live popped up on my computer
(something I had disabled because I don't use it), and (3) Windows
security was "yelling" at me because the User Account Control had
been turned off (in Vista this is on and requires you to "allow" a
program to run). I was a little irritated with the Windows Live
popping up because I find it annoying and didn't want it there. I
wish I would have been asked if I wanted it on my computer instead
of them running an update and adding it.
I also received an email with the service report and logs from the
session (time stamped around 4am). I noticed there was no mention
of the program they downloaded and then removed from my computer
(ccleaner), which I watched them do. I thought I would get a
detailed report of EVERYTHING, but I must be mistaken. The rest of
the report showed what was found (some malware and one thing
through my anti-virus program) and removed.
After this first service, I don't think this is the service for me.
The computer wasn't running any faster or in much better condition
that I already had it in. I can do everything they did and not have
to worry about needing to contact someone else to help me out with
it. That isn't to say that I don't think this is a worth while
idea. I'm thinking this would actually be better used for someone
like my in-laws or my parents--people who know how to use a
computer, but not all the little things to keep it safe.
Some people may have concerns about giving someone else access to
your computer, but I was not concerned. I could watch everything
that he does and the company has strict rules against accessing
anything that is not part of their service. I watched the service
person working on my computer for more than an hour and all he did
was run the necessary programs. I am pretty certain they run
multiple service calls at one time because after some of the
programs starting running, there was no movement on the computer
for 30+ minutes.
NOT recommended for people who already run
anti-[virus,spyware,malware] software and know how to use the
computer's administrator tools (like defrag). The tools they use
are free and if you know where and what to download, you can do it
all yourself.
Recommended for people who don't have the time to run the
anti-[virus,spyware,malware] tools or don't know what tools to run.
Perfect for grandparents or less tech savvy people who know how to
use a computer, but not all the up-to-date tools.
I'm giving this 3 stars--one off for the lack of response and
difficulty understanding them and one off because it is all stuff I
can do myself.
Might be acceptable to newbies, but even then I imagine they would
want the human touchReviewed by Andy Orrock, 2009-05-22
If you have any type of computing experience at all, you probably
know to engage in good practices like spyware protection,
anti-virus upkeep, firewall set-up, registry cleanings, defrags,
etc., etc. If so, there's little value this service can provide to
you.
Beyond considerations of value, there are concerns: despite the
CEO's point [in his comments on one review] that "our security
record is perfect and unblemished," an unseen, unknown resource is
accessing your computer and performing a series of remote tasks.
Isn't that behavior akin to what we're trying to prevent in the
first place? I might consider something like this for a user like
my mother - someone who uses a computer only as a basic e-mail
client and little else. Even then, I imagine the concept of remote
control would be disconcerting for her.
The CEO positions his service as an advancement vs. the "first
generation [of support] in which people either came to your house
(some even took pictures of your kids), you left your computer off
at a store for a week giving the techs complete access, or you sat
and watched for 3 hours while someone had complete access
remotely." Well, there's a small, little company out of Minnesota
called "Best Buy" who have put together something called "Geek
Squad" (you might have heard of it) - hugely popular and successful
and predicated on the human touch of this supposedly flawed,
discredited first generation model. For millions of people, this is
the winning model.
Still, I give the CEO tons of credit for his use of the Amazon
forums to get his side of the story out. He's monitoring the
conversation and for the most part seems to be correcting some
misconceptions and reaching out to others who've had some
legitimate issues. That's exemplary leadership.
They came through when I needed themReviewed by Steven, 2009-03-24
I was having PC troubles and they got the work done while I was out
of the house taking care of a sick relative. It took a couple of
services over two nights but they got it done and it worked great.
I had a problem with the printer printing out gibberish all the
time. After the service, the printer worked better to print out
claim forms. It was a problem with the printer driver.
The service and repair was was done remotely while I was out or
resting. It is great to have this type of support, when you are
unsure of how to resolve or improve your computers performance.
I like themReviewed by Dr. Hani Almashhadi, 2009-03-19
I love their service. I believe 4 times a year they clean and update and correct anything wrong with my computer.
Minimal benifits while being obtrusive and a hassleReviewed by S. Gunnell, 2009-03-17
The only people I could see possibly benefiting from this product
are those with no computer experience whatsoever. The service is
expensive for what it offers, which isn't much. They aren't going
to solve issues you are having with your computer, they just do
basic preventive maintenance that can be accomplished with programs
you set-up to perform certain processes on a monthly basis - and
they come on your computer for free!
The part I disliked the most is just how much control they have
over your computer. I watched them several times in the early
morning hours (1 or 2 AM) take over the computer and have the power
to do whatever they want as if they were sitting in front of it.
They say that they have strict "rules" to prevent anyone from
hacking into your private stuff, but it makes me uneasy
nevertheless.
All in all, unless you are a fan of monthly recurring fees and
having someone messing with your computer in the middle of the
night, stay away
