1
00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:04,240
We did a video a while back on why you should probably stop using C-Cleaner,

2
00:00:04,240 --> 00:00:09,760
and that's advice that we stand by. But did you know that now Microsoft has widely distributed

3
00:00:09,760 --> 00:00:16,000
its own app, simply called PCManager? And no, this isn't a soccer coach who's very concerned

4
00:00:16,000 --> 00:00:20,560
about not offending anyone during press interviews. If I speak, I am in big trouble.

5
00:00:20,560 --> 00:00:27,680
PCManager is Microsoft's answer to C-Cleaner and other PC cleaning utilities. And although it's

6
00:00:27,680 --> 00:00:33,520
actually been around since 2022, it was just recently released for all Windows users. So what

7
00:00:33,520 --> 00:00:39,360
are the main features and would we recommend trying it out? PCManager attempts to be a

8
00:00:39,360 --> 00:00:45,360
many things in one type of program. The most prominently displayed feature is PCBoost,

9
00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:51,120
which clears up space used by temporary files and terminates some unnecessary processes to

10
00:00:51,120 --> 00:00:57,200
free up part of your RAM. There's also a smartBoost feature you can set that performs these functions

11
00:00:57,200 --> 00:01:02,640
automatically once your overall RAM usage or disk usage from temporary files hit certain

12
00:01:02,640 --> 00:01:08,000
thresholds. Speaking of freeing up space, there's also a deep cleanup function that lets you drill

13
00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:12,960
down a bit more and choose different kinds of unnecessary files to delete, including cached

14
00:01:12,960 --> 00:01:18,480
data from non-Microsoft programs. You also get health check, another easy way to clear space,

15
00:01:18,480 --> 00:01:24,640
and manage your startup programs in case unwanted crap keeps popping up when you boot up your PC.

16
00:01:24,720 --> 00:01:28,560
And another option that lets you see running programs and easily terminate them,

17
00:01:28,560 --> 00:01:32,960
as well as a more granular startup programs menu. Over on the left side, you'll see a

18
00:01:32,960 --> 00:01:37,680
protection tab that gives you more specific options for virus scanning, system updates,

19
00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:41,920
controlling your default browser and apps, pop-up blocking for certain applications,

20
00:01:41,920 --> 00:01:48,640
and something called taskbar repair, which really just disables any third-party taskbar

21
00:01:48,640 --> 00:01:52,720
extensions you might have installed and gives you options to re-enable some

22
00:01:52,720 --> 00:01:56,480
default Windows features you may have turned off, such as the search box.

23
00:01:56,480 --> 00:02:01,360
The storage tab lets you quickly display all large files on your system,

24
00:02:01,360 --> 00:02:06,960
set by default to mean anything larger than 10 megabytes, and purge anything you don't want,

25
00:02:06,960 --> 00:02:11,840
while also providing similar functionality for duplicate files. There are also shortcuts to

26
00:02:11,840 --> 00:02:17,040
your downloads into the storage sense feature, which automatically deletes temporary files.

27
00:02:17,040 --> 00:02:21,680
Apps basically just copies the same functionality from the home menu and adds a couple of links to

28
00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:26,800
the Microsoft Store and the Settings app, and Toolbox displays shortcuts to certain programs

29
00:02:26,800 --> 00:02:32,320
like Notepad and Calculator, and, annoyingly, tries to encourage you to use Microsoft Web

30
00:02:32,320 --> 00:02:36,800
tools like Bing Translator. There's also an option for a quick access toolbar that

31
00:02:36,800 --> 00:02:41,360
replicates this functionality in a smaller window, while also providing a shortcut to that

32
00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:46,400
PCBoost function we mentioned earlier. But we actually had issues with it on our own end when

33
00:02:46,400 --> 00:02:50,960
playing full-screen games, as the system kept trying to keep that toolbar in the foreground.

34
00:02:50,960 --> 00:02:55,200
Now if you were to ask me, can't you do most of this stuff elsewhere in Windows already?

35
00:02:56,320 --> 00:03:01,600
I would say yes, you're absolutely right. Many of the tasks we just discussed can be easily

36
00:03:01,600 --> 00:03:05,680
accomplished in either Task Manager or the Settings app, but we're not trying to say

37
00:03:05,680 --> 00:03:10,560
PCManager is completely useless as making these settings more easily accessible,

38
00:03:10,560 --> 00:03:15,840
especially large and duplicate file scanners, could be more helpful for novice users who could

39
00:03:15,840 --> 00:03:20,720
be quickly overwhelmed by all the options present in the full-fat versions of those programs.

40
00:03:21,200 --> 00:03:27,200
Indeed, Microsoft originally described this app as based on user pain points and a one-stop

41
00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:32,000
problem-solving solution. So it sounds like they were fully aware that it largely replicates

42
00:03:32,000 --> 00:03:36,800
functionality, but that the point was to lend a hand to less experienced users who just want

43
00:03:36,800 --> 00:03:42,160
a way to try and quickly fix a sluggish PC, or one that's running out of storage space.

44
00:03:42,160 --> 00:03:47,360
Of course, there's a more cynical take that Microsoft is trying to push its own services

45
00:03:47,360 --> 00:03:52,800
and take more control out of the hands of users. Earlier versions of the PCManager app came under

46
00:03:52,800 --> 00:03:58,960
fire for saying that your system needed repair when you had a search engine other than Bing set

47
00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:03,520
as your default. And while it appears that this has been removed from the current version,

48
00:04:03,520 --> 00:04:08,240
it makes you wonder what Microsoft's real motivation for creating this app was.

49
00:04:08,240 --> 00:04:13,600
You could also look at the Taskbar Repair feature as another way for Microsoft to try and stop you

50
00:04:13,600 --> 00:04:19,920
from making too many customizations to your PC. Although you could ostensibly use it to try and

51
00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:25,120
remove a third-party Taskbar widget, you installed accidentally. We all make mistakes.

52
00:04:25,120 --> 00:04:31,200
So would we recommend actually using PCManager? We will say it doesn't seem to have the same

53
00:04:31,200 --> 00:04:36,000
downside of Ccleaner in that there's less risk of accidentally breaking something,

54
00:04:36,000 --> 00:04:41,520
as PCManager doesn't do crap like clean-up registry entries, which have no detrimental

55
00:04:41,520 --> 00:04:47,200
effect on your system. It does also make a couple of tasks a bit easier as we previously discussed,

56
00:04:47,200 --> 00:04:51,920
but overall, we don't think it'll be all that useful for intermediate to advanced users,

57
00:04:51,920 --> 00:04:57,440
especially as features like HealthCheck don't tell you if something is actually wrong with your

58
00:04:57,440 --> 00:05:03,200
computer. But one big upside, it might reduce the number of questions you have to field if you're

59
00:05:03,200 --> 00:05:07,840
the family IT person. Thanks for watching the video guys, like it if you like it, dislike it if

60
00:05:07,840 --> 00:05:11,920
you dislike it, check out our other video on Ccleaner, comment with video suggestions,

61
00:05:11,920 --> 00:05:16,080
and don't forget to subscribe and follow TechWiki. We talk about this kind of stuff all the time!