What The Heck Is A FixMeStick?
I’m going to repeat myself for literary sake. What the heck is a FixMeStick? This was the exact question I asked when I first learned of the product, long before I began this FixMeStick review.
Now whenever I mention it, people ask the exact same question. Based on their responses, I’ve compiled a list of what the FixMeStick can’t do.
- It doesn’t repair your car.
- It can’t fix your love life.
- It doesn’t pay your bills or college debt.
- It has nothing to do with a selfie-stick.
- It can’t actually fix you. Sorry folks.
- And it definitely can’t keep your family from arguing during holiday gatherings. (How I wish.)
What the FixMeStick can do is suck out viruses from your computers. It did so on mine.
How Does The FixMeStick Actually Work?
Set it and forget it, as Ron Popeil of Ronco Rotisserie Oven fame used to say.
The FixMeStick works very much in the same way. (See the 6-step process below.) Once you’ve gotten through the initial steps, which take between 5-10 minutes, you can let the product do the rest. Some hours later, which varies for every user, you’ll see the results.
As you can see from the image to your right, and the video below, the FixMeStick functions very much like a vacuum. It sifts through all your files, finds the infected ones, and cleans them.
The stick uses 3 of the most common anti-virus engines available:
- Kaspersky
- Sophos
- Vipre
Now, the stick isn’t designed to work as a stand-alone item on your computer. It complements the internet security, anti-virus, and anti-malware programs you already use (or should already be using.)
Let’s say this is your first time using the stick and you’re using Windows OS. (It’s available for Apple OS too.) Run the RunFixMeStick.exe file. A dialog box will appear stating “The FixMeStick is good to go!” Now click the Reboot and Launch FixMeStick button. This leads to another dialog box with the FixMeStick License Agreement. Click the Accept and Run button.
Once running, you’ll see a Scan dialog box on your monitor. The scan goes through a 6-step process. Now register your product and proceed.
- Checking Internet Connection
- Checking For Product Updates
- Updating Malware Definitions
- Initializing Malware Scanners
- Scanning Computer
- Results
Once the scan is complete, you can choose to Clean Computer or See Results. Give both a try. Once cleaned, exit the program and remove the stick while the computer is powered down. Upon restart, go back to using your computer as you normally would.
Here’s a quick one-minute video on the stick.
How-To Set Up a Remote Connection.
From the Run FixMeStick dialog box, click the Settings tab. Then hit your keyboard’s Control Key 3X. Click the Initiate Remote Support button. A new window will appear with a 9-digit ID and a 4-digit password. You should see a green light below the password stating “Ready to connect (secure connection)”. Provide these numbers to the FixMeStick agent and the remote connection will be established to your computer. Easy as pie. [Tweet “What the @FixMeStick can do is suck out viruses from your computers. It did so on mine.”]
Running Into Complications.
While unlikely, it’s possible that one of the three following scenarios occur.
- The FixMeStick fails to update itself.
- Scans are quitting unexpectedly.
- Scans are freezing.
To remedy this, conduct a factory upgrade of the stick and you should be good-to-go. If you’re still running into problems, the visit the FixMeStick Support page and/or call 1-800-530-6125.
The FixMeStick Review Results.
My desktop and laptop computers consist of the following protection software:
- A major internet security/anti-virus program. (Oddly enough, 1 of the 3 engines listed above.)
- An anti-malware program.
- And multiple cleaning programs.
After an overnight scan time of 7 hours, 23 minutes, it produced the following results for my desktop computer:
- It caught the Trojan.W32.Generic!BT virus.
- It quarantined two files: AutoPico.exe and KMSELDI.exe.
While the quarantined files are questionable in nature, the Trojan is not. The latter is a problem and good-sized one at that.
Where to find the FixMeStick.
It’s more like where can’t you find this product. There are so many options available.
The FixMeStick comes at three price points. You can choose $9.99 for the one month trial or $59.99 for one full year. Both of these choices allow for the product to be used on up to three computers. The third and final choice, an all-you-can-eat option, allows for the use of the product on an unlimited number of computers for $299/year.
You can purchase yourself one here on the FixMeStick website at the prices stated above. If you would rather use one of your favorite retailers, feel free to check out the Find a Store link and choose. Retailers in North America are pretty well represented on their heat map.
Note: I have seen significant discounts during holiday sales, so you may want to subscribe to those Fry’s and Newegg newsletters.
Here’s a partial list of major online retailers:
The warranty is a pretty good one. It comes with a 45-day return policy with a money back guarantee. And did I forget to mention the unlimited free support?
Conclusion.
Initially, I had doubts about this product and its claims. Heck, I was already using 3+ software programs to keep my computers safe.
While it took longer than expected to scan my desktop computer, (more than twice the time according to the FixMeStick literature,) it did so while I slept through the night. So, it never interfered with my daytime work. The FixMeStick did catch the Trojan.Win32.Generic!BT virus. None of my current software programs were able to do this.
The scan on my laptop produced no viruses, which is a good thing.
So…can I recommend this product to you readers? Oh Heck Yeah! Who wants an infected computer that allows for unauthorized remote access? Certainly not I.
While many of you (myself included) may feel that the $59.99 price is too steep, might I suggest looking at the 30-day purchase. After all, the product does come with a 45-day return policy and money back guarantee. It’s tough to beat a guarantee like that.
In the end, the decision is yours. Regardless of how you proceed, always and I do mean ALWAYS, protect your computers.
All photos and/or videos are the property of and copyrighted to FixMeStick Technologies.
FTC Disclosure: Beantown LLC received one FixMeStick for review purposes. We are not a paid sponsor or ambassador of the product.
