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| View Larger Image | PC Clean Machine Personal PC Concierge Service | Electronicsby Clean Machine
| List Price: | $119.99 | | | Available: | Not yet released |
| | Publisher: | Clean Machine | | Color: | Blue | | Model: | 0-94922-14789-9 | | Sales Rank: | 37,498th |
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FEATURES | - Everything you need, including software, is on the thumb drive to get your own personal PC Concierge, a real person working for you. Click on the video to see how it works.
- Use our anti-virus/anti-spyware and other tools, or we will work with any anti-virus or anti-spyware you already have.
- PC Concierge will check your computer regularly to keep your data protected and your computer running at optimal levels. Protects both MAC and PC
- Receive a detailed report explaining what was done to protect your PC and improve its performance
- Your PC concierge will perform computer maintenance at a time that's convenient for you
- Includes ID Theft coverage whether computer related or not
- Includes computer breakage coverage
- Includes all security software: antivirus, antispyware, firewall, antiphishing, IM encryption, family network, protection, gamer mode, laptop mode, antispam, parental control, backup, tuneup, file vault, antiadware
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EDITORIAL REVIEWS |
Product Description
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! |
CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 4.0 based on 41 reviews)
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*Updated review* Very poor customer service by Elmira (San Jose, CA United States)  1 Stars
July 16, 2009
**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.
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Might be acceptable to newbies, but even then I imagine they would want the human touch by Andy Orrock (Dallas, TX)  2 Stars
May 22, 2009
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.
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They came through when I needed them by Steven  5 Stars
March 24, 2009
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.
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I like them by Dr. Hani Almashhadi (NEWPORT BEACH, CA USA) 5 Stars
March 19, 2009
I love their service. I believe 4 times a year they clean and update and correct anything wrong with my computer.
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Minimal benifits while being obtrusive and a hassle by S. Gunnell (Watauga, Texas United States) 1 Stars
March 17, 2009
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
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