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TechRadar is dedicated to helping you choose the best software tools. Hence, I reviewed one of the most popular torrent clients to help you decide if it’s worthwhile.
You might have heard of Vuze, formerly called Azureus. Its name frequently appears when people search for torrenting clients on Google and across the web. I tested the app extensively to judge whether it lives up to its fame. Read on to learn about its features, pricing, security, user-friendliness, and other crucial factors.
Vuze: Pricing
I’ve tested endless torrenting clients, and many of them are completely free. However, Vuze is not. It has a free version that includes ads (which I often found annoying), but an ad-free interface requires paying $3.99 monthly for Vuze Plus.
To be fair, Vuze Plus includes other features like DVD burning and the ability to play media files while they’re still downloading. Yet, I’m not a fan of paying for a torrenting client when many free alternatives are available.
Vuze: Versions
Vuze is available on the three major desktop operating systems: Windows, macOS, and Linux. But, something feels odd about this app. It was officially released in 2017, and development seems to have stalled since then.
Vuze used to have an Android app available on the Play Store, but I checked endlessly for it and found none. The app was removed from the Play Store for unclear reasons, making it only accessible by directly downloading the APK file. I think the APK process is too much work for the average user.
Vuze: Features
Vuze is a feature-rich torrenting client whether you’re using the free or paid version. The free version includes a search bar to find torrents right from the app. This feature is important because many torrenting clients don’t provide help in finding .torrent files to download. Instead, you’ll have to visit an external site to get the files.
The search feature is split into a torrent search and web search. The former encompasses .torrent files stored on Vuze’s database, and the latter helps you find .torrent files across the web. For instance, if you search for Jazz music, you can view torrent files for them across the web or the results directly from Vuze’s database.
If you have the relevant .torrent file already installed on your PC, you can add it to Vuze and begin the download. The .torrent file contains the metadata of the larger file you want to download, and Vuze quickly begins the process.
You can also download torrents via their magnet links, which are hyperlinks containing the metadata of the relevant file. Paste this link into Vuze, and it’ll quickly begin downloading the file.
Likewise, users can download files by providing the torrent hash. I liked that Vuze offers flexible ways to discover and download .torrent files. I encountered variable speeds when downloading content from this app. Some files downloaded much faster than others, likely due to the availability of more seeders for those files.
Seeding in torrenting is the process of uploading a file for other users. When you download any content on Vuze, you automatically become a seeder uploading that same content for other users. That’s how the network maintains enough capacity to offer reliable downloads for users. Uploading content can consume considerable bandwidth, so Vuze lets you cap your upload speed to conserve bandwidth.
Though downloading the APK file for the Android app seemed tedious, I had to do it to provide a rigorous review. After setting it up, I used it to control torrent downloads on my PC. The Android app lets you start, stop, and pause downloads remotely from any location. For instance, you can be at work and control downloads on your home PC.
I enjoyed testing Vuze Plus even if I wish I didn’t have to pay for the extra features. It includes a built-in DVD player that lets users play media directly while downloading. I couldn’t wait to watch my favorite movie when downloading, so I had to press that play button.
Vuze Plus also removes ads, which I mostly found distracting. I’m not a fan of ads, so maybe that’s why I found them annoying. However, I think an average user can easily tolerate and ignore the ads on the free Vuze version.
Vuze has an outstanding feature called Swarm Discoveries. This feature searches for similar content based on what you’ve previously downloaded on Vuze, akin to an algorithm recommending related content to download. It recommends related content that you may enjoy, helping you discover the best movies, music, and more at no cost.
Vuze: Interface and in-use
I didn’t have issues navigating Vuze’s interface on the desktop and Android apps. It’s a well-designed app with a modern, sleek interface. The features are arranged on the left, and the main dashboard is on the right.
Vuze is a lightweight app that didn’t consume significant computing resources, which I can’t say for many torrenting clients. Some clients I’ve tested hijacked my PC’s resource space and left little room for other apps, but not Vuze.
However, I think Vuze has a steep learning curve for the average person. You’ll likely need some time to get used to its numerous features.
Vuze: Security
Security is paramount when using any torrenting client. ISPs don’t like torrenting and often want to identify users downloading torrents. Hence, you should switch on a VPN before downloading torrents to protect yourself from third-party snooping.
I liked that Vuze Plus has a built-in antivirus scanner (based on Bitdefender). This tool scans all incoming torrents for viruses and alerts you if any are detected. It’s vital, given that torrents are a common vector through which malicious actors spread malware.
Vuze: Final Verdict
I enjoyed Vuze’s feature richness and user-friendliness. I have some complaints, such as the free version including distracting ads, but we don’t always get what we want. Overall, I’ll recommend Vuze as a torrenting solution for everyone.
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