------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
MyDefrag
Price: FREE
Publisher: JC Kessels
Web: www.mydefrag.com
MyDefrag's predecessor, JKDefrag, was a command-line based defragger, which was very light on system resources. MyDefrag is based on the same program, but it's switched to closed rather than open source.
It even has a special mode for SSDs, if you insist on defragging your solid-states - not that we'd recommend doing this.
One of JKDefrag's best features was its ability to run as a screensaver. You could actualyl see it doing its business, bit-by-bit, which makes for fascinatingly ugly viewing. In fact, it prompted my ex to say "I THINK YOUR COMPUTER'S BROKEN".
But it is immensely satisfying to see everything fit into place properly. At 54 minutes long, MyDefrag was also the fastest in our roundup, and it certainly defragged our hard drive properly.
It's not particularly the most aesthetically pleasing of defragmentation software, but it does the job perfectly, and has a whole host of extra settings. Highly recommended.
Score: 90%
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Defrag Professional
Price: £30
Publisher: O&O Software
Web: oo-software.com
O&O's defragger doesn't just defrag your disks, it does it PROFESSIONALLY. It wears a suit and tie, and probably some nice, polished shoes. It also seems to have taken a leaf out of MyDefrag's book by letting you run it as a screensaver.
It's a fully-featured package, with a ton of settings, such as eight defragmentation methods. It even sits in the background and monitors your fragmentation levels. It's certainly the most gorgeous and easy-to-use of defraggers, but at over an hour it didn't score too well in our tests.
If we could rate software on looks alone, this would be a winner. But we can't, and it's not. Plus, you're paying £30 for something that - at its core - is not actually as good as free software.
Score: 65%
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PerfectDisk 10
Price: £18
Publisher: Raxco Software
Web: www.perfectdisk.com
Do you enjoy drinking the rank Australian lager that is Foster's? If you do, you can thank PerfectDisk for the unfragmented flavour of your weak tin of koala urine. You see, PerfectDisk is endorsed by Foster's. Is it endorsed by Format? Kind of.
PerfectDisk 10 is also the first defragger to be approved by Microsoft for Windows 7, although we can't say we noticed any compatibility issues with other software and the latest OS.
It's sleek and user-friendly, if a little derivative of Defrag Professional. Like Piriform's Defraggler, it lets you specify folders and files to defrag. It's also got something called 'SMARTPlacement', a proprietary technology which organises the bits on your disk according to usage.
In our tests, it came in at just a minute behind Defrag Professional. But overall, PerfectDisk is a more complete package, and cheaper to boot. If you insist on paying for something you can get for free, it's just about right.
Score: 80%
