WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.240 We did a video a while back on why you should probably stop using C-Cleaner, 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 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 00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:20.560 about not offending anyone during press interviews. If I speak, I am in big trouble. 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 00:00:27.680 --> 00:00:33.520 actually been around since 2022, it was just recently released for all Windows users. So what 00:00:33.520 --> 00:00:39.360 are the main features and would we recommend trying it out? PCManager attempts to be a 00:00:39.360 --> 00:00:45.360 many things in one type of program. The most prominently displayed feature is PCBoost, 00:00:45.360 --> 00:00:51.120 which clears up space used by temporary files and terminates some unnecessary processes to 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 00:00:57.200 --> 00:01:02.640 automatically once your overall RAM usage or disk usage from temporary files hit certain 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 00:01:08.000 --> 00:01:12.960 down a bit more and choose different kinds of unnecessary files to delete, including cached 00:01:12.960 --> 00:01:18.480 data from non-Microsoft programs. You also get health check, another easy way to clear space, 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. 00:01:24.720 --> 00:01:28.560 And another option that lets you see running programs and easily terminate them, 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 00:01:32.960 --> 00:01:37.680 protection tab that gives you more specific options for virus scanning, system updates, 00:01:37.680 --> 00:01:41.920 controlling your default browser and apps, pop-up blocking for certain applications, 00:01:41.920 --> 00:01:48.640 and something called taskbar repair, which really just disables any third-party taskbar 00:01:48.640 --> 00:01:52.720 extensions you might have installed and gives you options to re-enable some 00:01:52.720 --> 00:01:56.480 default Windows features you may have turned off, such as the search box. 00:01:56.480 --> 00:02:01.360 The storage tab lets you quickly display all large files on your system, 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, 00:02:06.960 --> 00:02:11.840 while also providing similar functionality for duplicate files. There are also shortcuts to 00:02:11.840 --> 00:02:17.040 your downloads into the storage sense feature, which automatically deletes temporary files. 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 00:02:21.680 --> 00:02:26.800 the Microsoft Store and the Settings app, and Toolbox displays shortcuts to certain programs 00:02:26.800 --> 00:02:32.320 like Notepad and Calculator, and, annoyingly, tries to encourage you to use Microsoft Web 00:02:32.320 --> 00:02:36.800 tools like Bing Translator. There's also an option for a quick access toolbar that 00:02:36.800 --> 00:02:41.360 replicates this functionality in a smaller window, while also providing a shortcut to that 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 00:02:46.400 --> 00:02:50.960 playing full-screen games, as the system kept trying to keep that toolbar in the foreground. 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? 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 00:03:01.600 --> 00:03:05.680 accomplished in either Task Manager or the Settings app, but we're not trying to say 00:03:05.680 --> 00:03:10.560 PCManager is completely useless as making these settings more easily accessible, 00:03:10.560 --> 00:03:15.840 especially large and duplicate file scanners, could be more helpful for novice users who could 00:03:15.840 --> 00:03:20.720 be quickly overwhelmed by all the options present in the full-fat versions of those programs. 00:03:21.200 --> 00:03:27.200 Indeed, Microsoft originally described this app as based on user pain points and a one-stop 00:03:27.200 --> 00:03:32.000 problem-solving solution. So it sounds like they were fully aware that it largely replicates 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 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. 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 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 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 00:03:58.960 --> 00:04:03.520 as your default. And while it appears that this has been removed from the current version, 00:04:03.520 --> 00:04:08.240 it makes you wonder what Microsoft's real motivation for creating this app was. 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 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 00:04:19.920 --> 00:04:25.120 remove a third-party Taskbar widget, you installed accidentally. We all make mistakes. 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 00:04:31.200 --> 00:04:36.000 downside of Ccleaner in that there's less risk of accidentally breaking something, 00:04:36.000 --> 00:04:41.520 as PCManager doesn't do crap like clean-up registry entries, which have no detrimental 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, 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, 00:04:51.920 --> 00:04:57.440 especially as features like HealthCheck don't tell you if something is actually wrong with your 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 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 00:05:07.840 --> 00:05:11.920 you dislike it, check out our other video on Ccleaner, comment with video suggestions, 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!