14 DAY TRIAL // You may be satisfied by the Add or Remove Programs provided by Windows. There is no doubt that it's one of the most common options used on a PC. And most of you think that if there was no error during the uninstall of a software, then no trace will be left in the registry and the application is definitely gone from your computer. And yet taking a look in Registry Editor, you will still find the entries of that uninstalled application. This can lead to later problems and these issues, unattended, may result in re-installing your operating system.
Freeware solutions for clean uninstalling the software you no longer need on your computer are very few and generally do not work too good. Despite the price tag of the commercial programs, you will find a great number of applications that besides uninstalling the applications on your computer will also remove all the registry entries it created.
$27.95 is the price of Smarty Uninstaller Pro 2006. This nifty utility uninstalls the software on your computer and removes the registry entries, making Windows XP's Add or Remove Programs option obsolete. Unlike the XP feeble opponent, Smarty Uninstaller Pro 2006 will show you every item that is installed on your computer, even those system components that are hidden. Additionally, you will be provided with all sorts of details for that application and the software can detect the registry entries created upon installation and use.
The 15 day fully functional copy of the application is more than enough a period for properly testing Smarty. The interface is skinnable (actually only the toolbar, menu bar and title bar will change the color) and the main application window consists in presenting the installed software on your machine.
At launching Smarty, the software will perform a thorough analysis of the programs installed on the computer. The window following the analysis is divided into three sections: the software installed by the user, those that are hidden and the updates section. In the right panel there is a short presentation of the number of programs installed (including the updates and system) and then a broken into categories one.
If the user has a myriad of softwares installed a search function can help finding the one you are looking for. Also, items that had been deleted and have no correspondent shortcut can be safely eliminated from the list.
When in doubt about one application residing on your computer (search bars, malware) you can use the Advanced Details option to learn more about it. The categories available include name and publisher of the program, date of installation and last access, location of the installation or version. The only downside is that the size information is not as accurate as it should (a 40KB item was displayed as gulping 3GB of my HDD space).
The uninstalling options include both the normal removal as well as the forced variant for those stubborn applications that wouldn't go away willingly. Immediately after the uninstall process has completed, Smarty will proceed to finding the registry entries that were left behind. During our test, the software successfully deleted the registry entries belonging to removed programs. The only mischief is that in 2 out of three cases I received a message saying that not all the data has been purged because it may be in use and that Smarty will eliminate it later. But there was no specification as to when this will take place: restart of the machine or next scan for installed applications.
For security purposes, Smarty Uninstaller Pro 2006 comes equipped with a registry backup tool and system restore function. Having these tools at hand you can proceed to deleting the registry entries displayed by Smarty without fearing an aftermath.
Testing the system restore function resulted in sheer success and everything was restored to the previously created restore point.
To fragment the default sections even more, the user can create groups and move the programs in there. This way, you can get more organized and know at all times what softwares you have for image editing or for protecting your computer.
The Good
The interface is simple and very easy to use and during our testing, the application proved its value and performed clean and safe uninstalls.
Advanced Details function provides important information about the softwares you have installed.
Once you uninstall a software with Smarty, be sure that it will also eliminate the registry entries after the process is finalized.
The Bad
There are some minor glitches with handling the interface when trying to move a new window here and there on the desktop.
The lack of a Help file (despite the fact that it is listed in the Help menu) is an aspect that cannot be overlooked. But I guess enabling the tips at program startup partially fixes the problem.
Fixing incomplete uninstalls still remains a mystery. When will Smarty remove all the items of those softwares? My solution was creating a restore point right before uninstalling and if the removing leaves behind some data, restore the system and retry. In my case it worked fine, but it is still too much trouble.
I hope a future version will add an option to check invalid entries in the registry by comparing with what it is installed, although if you use the application with a clean installation of Windows, you will no longer have this problem.
The Truth
The price is a bit spicy, but the software is worth it. Everything went super smooth, from installing Smarty to uninstalling different softwares on my computer.
Here are some snapshots of the application in action:
