Best Free Low Resource Antivirus for Android?

[SingleDad]

Anyone know or have an opinion on which particular FREE antivirus/security app is lightest on resources?

I typically use AVG, avast, or Avira on PC's and find they've worked well. (avast is currently my favorite free a/v program for pc)

I gave the free avast program for android a try for a day or two on my 7" Polaroid PMID 701c which has a 1Ghz ARM Cortex processor and 512MB RAM.

It seemed to run well and not be a resource hog. However I like the option to temporarily disable antivirus software whenever I feel the need. Although I didn't spend a great deal of time trying to figure it out, I couldn't easily find how to do that or fiddle with many settings through the software.

I don't want something that is going to bog me down, because the specs on this tablet are a little anemic. I'm thinking of trying AVG next, but I'm open to suggestions and feedback on those popular a/v apps that are known to be resource hogs.

[tattman65]

anti virus protection

ive been using netqin mobile for sometime and it is very good not really a resource hog . so you might wanna give it a try.

[ZonaMojo]

I use Lookout. I believe it is the best rated for Android, and I've noticed no resource issues.

[tattman65]

I use lookout on my phone. My brother also uses it on his tablet no worries there either guess it's just all in what your after.

[SingleDad]

Thanks guys. I guess I'll just give those two a try and see what I think! I've heard a lot of people recommending Lookout...I'll start there I suppose.

Thanks again!

[Guest]

I wish they made Lookout for iOS devices.

[petrus]

I use "antivirus free" by creative apps. It seems light on resources.

But I have never found a real serious test of mobile antivirus. If someone have a link to a test or a bench, I'm interested.

[infected]

Hi all, this looks like a fairly comprehensive test:

http://www.av-test.org/en/tests/android/

Based on this I was going to have a look at Avast...

[petrus]

Hi all, this looks like a fairly comprehensive test:

http://www.av-test.org/en/tests/android/

Based on this I was going to have a look at Avast...

Thanks very much for the link. The site seems to be trusted by some other sites I trust. That seems to be the test I looked for

Let's see what they say...

[petrus]

From what I see, I would trust karpersky, but I can't find it on my mobile. Maybe not compatible, so maybe a little greedy on resources. Avast seems to be a good choice. Lookout too, but it has too much in it, and I don't like products that can trace where my phone is.If it's stolen, I change my passwords, but I don't like the idea to be traced.

But my first guess "Antivirus free" from "creative Apps" doesn't seem to detect much

Maybe I'd go for avast or mcaffee.
Any opinions?
Too bad kaspersky doesn't show on the market for me, that would be my first choice, even if I have to pay for it.

[ZonaMojo]

From what I see, I would trust karpersky, but I can't find it on my mobile. Maybe not compatible, so maybe a little greedy on resources. Avast seems to be a good choice. Lookout too, but it has too much in it, and I don't like products that can trace where my phone is.If it's stolen, I change my passwords, but I don't like the idea to be traced.

But my first guess "Antivirus free" from "creative Apps" doesn't seem to detect much

Maybe I'd go for avast or mcaffee.
Any opinions?
Too bad kaspersky doesn't show on the market for me, that would be my first choice, even if I have to pay for it.

Of all the anti-virus apps in that test, most were not optimized for Android. Don't get me wrong, I am sure they are all good apps as they have a great record on PCs. Lookout is optimized and was designed for Android...and scores just as well as the other big named PC apps. Also, you have the option of turning the phone locator on or off when setting up the program. I would try a few and see which one fits your specific needs.

[cybertwigg]

i use lookout find it really good and it hardly makes a difference to running speed or battery life