IDM 6.38 build 16

[Mohammad]

Internet Download Manager Review (version 6.38)

 

Every day we surf the internet, and when we use the internet we almost always “download” stuff. Stuff we need for reasons of entertainment or for school work of the kids (and some for personal reason’s like personality development like modules and articles and stuff!).

 

There are a lot of so-called download managers, some are extensions which help you get what you want to download via the browser. They do the trick and some (or most of the times do the job) but oftentimes we (like I) encounter problems with videos or applications that we need. Yes, it sometimes happens that what we need we get issues! There will be always an experience when you needed something but you can’t download it or when you have downloaded it, you check it and it is “corrupted”.

 

Let’s face it! Not all downloaders work for a specific website (or a  specific download item). And sometimes (or often) we can’t get the full speed. There are many download tools like extensions (as mentioned like GetThemAll, DownThemAll, VideoDownloadHelper) and programs (EagleGet, FDM and the like) which can help you, but if there is one download manager that has not failed me it is “Internet Download Manger (IDM)”.

 

Here is my review of Internet Download Manager version 6.38

Internet Download Manager (--- IDM to those who use it) has been around and has proven to users that “it” is the best download manager there is. Never will it fail you in your endeavours!
 
 

 

 
The program grabs (url) links automatically, refreshes link, resumes download and even gets new links from the site without visiting the page. For sites that have limitations, you need to go there and start a new download, but the good thing is that IDM will resume the download from wherever it left it.
 
 
The application is very easy to use as of the interface which is easy to understand.
 
 

1. Tasks.
The first tab is Tasks (#1), which you can use to add a new download task. “Site grabber” is a good option if you want to download a single file type from a website for offline work, and want to check the website contents offline.

 
 

 

 

 

You just need to set up a few basic things, like the username and password of that website which you want to grab. The next one is batch download, this feature allows you to download specific file types, like .img, .png files. See url sample below.

 

https://geeks.fyi/pictures/img*.jpg

Once you insert the (url) address, Internet Download Manager will download all files of the type you specified. In this case, Internet Download Manager will download “.jpg” files from https://geeks.fyi/pictures

 

More information about IDM Site Grabber can be seen below,

https://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/support/idm-grabber/idm_grabber.html
 
 
 

 
 
 
2. The File tab
 
The File tab (#2) is for download control, sometimes files can get stuck or time out, in which case this tab could be helpful, you can re-download or remove files from the queue.
 
 

 

 

The main screen interface of IDM is my favourite! All the controls that a user ever needs is available at your fingertips and the most useful controls at that! Here you can control the downloads, queue up several files (like parts of a video list) etc. When you set the queue and start it, IDM will download each file one by one.
 
 

 

3. The Download tab
 
This tab in the sidebar has sections which the program uses to list your downloads. In case you have unfinished downloads, queues, etc., you can find them all from their respective sections.
 
 

Internet Download Manager Options

 
Options > General allows you (the user) to set system and browser integration. Here you can set how IDM starts (automatic start-up), URL clipboard monitoring and browser integration. By default IDM integrates into Internet Explorer, Opera, Mozilla , Netscape, and many other popular browsers (automatically). If you need more help with this, go to the link below and search “Extension”.
 
http://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/
 
 
 

 

 
 

 
 
Options > File types
IDM has a default list of file types that it will download automatically once a specified site (url) is set. The File types tab allows you to specify / set "specific file types" that will be taken over from the browser. Here you can also prevent IDM from downloading "file types" from a custom site list (--"Don't start downloading"). You can edit and enter the sites via an "Edit list..." button.
 
 

 
Options > Save to

Allows you to set "your" preferred directory for saving downloaded files. You can set a "default-save to" directory for a "selected category". You can change / specify your own directory via Selecting a category > right-click > Properties, say, "Compressed > right-click > properties". Before downloading a file, you can change the download path in the "Save as" of the "Download File Info" dialog box. In cases when there is no more space available on a specified download path, a "Temporary Directory" path can be set where downloaded files can be temporarily stored.

 

 
 
Options > Downloads

The “Download” options can be customized per your requirements. You can set it to show download after completion, or skip the entire dialog to get the file in the background without being interrupted. The tab also allows you can to control how IDM dialogs boxes (pop-ups) are displayed. A "Download Progress" dialog pop-up can be eliminated by selecting the "Don't show" in the download progress box list. In relation to it, you can also set it to be "minimized" and disable "Download Complete" announcement by unchecking the appropriate checkbox.

 

 
Options > Connections

The “Connections” tab helps you to save your bandwidth and control the download speeds. You can limit the amount of data to download, choose a connection type with server protocols, and also set the numbers of active downloads that will run simultaneously. You can also set "individual" numbers of connections (threads to download) for the servers in Exceptions table. This is useful for ftp servers that usually limits the number of connections to 1 or 2.

 
 
 
 
Options > Proxy / Socks
Proxy/Socks tab can be used to make settings for the proxy servers you use. You can apply an automatic configuration script that you use or manually configure a proxy/socks setting. Alternatively, if you do not use proxies, then just leave the default setting at "No proxy/socks".
 
 

 
 
Options > Site logins

The "Site Logins" is used for making a list of login information for the sites that require user authorization / verification (this is for registered version ONLY). A user can add different login information’s for "different directories" of the same web address. This can be done via the "New" button provided. If you have a premium file hosting site subscription that requires you to login before downloading files, then here is where you can set it up.

 
 

 
Options > Dial up / VPN

Here you (the user) is allowed to set-up an old "Windows Dial-Up service". The list box provided you can select a connection to use with IDM. If your computer is connected to the Internet, IDM shows this connection by default. VPN users can take advantage of IDM’s built-in settings, which the download manager detects automatically, you can also configure it to use specific servers. Note: You can’t create a VPN connection in IDM, it has to be done through your VPN/OS after which the program will pick up the connection.

 
 
 

PERTINENT LINKS

 

Internet Download Manager Home Page

https://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/

 

Internet Download Manager_Revision Changes

https://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/news.html

 

 

Internet Download Manager Full Features List

https://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/features2.html

 

Buy Internet Download Manager

https://secure.internetdownloadmanager.com/buy_idm.html

 

Internet Download Manager FAQs

https://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/...cgi?mode=1

 

 

Internet Download Manager Registration Guide

https://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/reghelp.html

 
 

Internet Download Manager Support Link

https://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/support/index.html

 

Get Internet Download Manager Trial for 30 days

https://www.internetdownloadmanager.com/download.html

 
 
 
OBSERVATIONS:
 
 
Downloading a AMD Radeon driver
 
For this review I have made a little "raw" comparison using the AMD Radeon driver from the AMD Radeon driver site which is 457.25mb. Now to compare how fast Internet Download Manager 6.38 build 16 downloads this particular file I also used:
 

• Free Download Manager 6.13.3.3555
  

 

• Eagle Get 2.1.6.70
  

 

• Firefox DownThemAll "add-on"
  

 
My internet speed is 30 Mb/s and no VPN has been used to peg the comparison at even. See data below. I was surprised that Free Download Manager 6.13.3.3555 came out the fastest at 41 seconds, followed by Firefox DownThemAll "add-on" at 42 seconds. Internet Download Manager 6.38 build 16 was third at 46 seconds while Eagle Get 2.1.6.70 was the slowest at 56 seconds.
 
 

 

Now this is ONLY a "raw" comparison to show download speed comparison. I have not tried yet to compare downloading a movie file or, torrent file as I do not have the time (as of the moment). Free Download Manager 6.13.3.3555 and Eagle Get 2.1.6.70 can accommodate torrent files and it may be a good comparison with Internet Download Manager 6.38 build 16. I will update this review when I have the data in hand. For now this is just a "raw" comparison and results may vary depending on the internet speed / connection and other variables. See application images below.
 
 
 

 

 
 
 

All-in-all there were no issues encountered during making of this review and while using IDM version 6.38. It worked flawlessly.
 
 
Pros:

IDM is the best download manager that offers the best speeds as possible based on your connection. It supports many sites; resumes download without restarting or re-downloading it from scratch whenever possible. Options default (configuration) can be used but when warranted granularity is offered. Best download speeds as shown in the comparison above!
 
 
Cons:

You can’t add playlists for direct downloading. Other than that no issues at all!
 
 
Final Word:

Internet Download Manager is optimized for speed and it starts to download a file once you set your preferences. It will allow changes to what you have set while the download is in progress also. When a file modification is detected by IDM it will re-download the "target download file" from scratch to correct such error to give you the "intended" correct files you desire. If the user needs to be more "granular" then IDM allows it further in the "options" tab. Granular set-up that will cater to the user's preference (intermediate or advanced) is readily available via additional buttons and checkboxes provided. For the new user the default settings are good enough out-of-the-box and can be instantaneously used/applied once registered/activated. There isn’t any better or best download manager that you will encounter other than IDM. Many users will attest to its capability and features.

[dinosaur07]

Thank you so much for this excellent review, Mohammad.

[harlan4096]

Great and detailed review! thanks!

[Decimuss]

Very good review.
Thank you.

[jasonX]

YEAH!!!! GREAT CONTRIBUTION MATE!!!! CHEERS!!!!! More please!!!!

Any comparisons used in a review is always a welcome add because it shows the capability of the software being reviewed in an unbiased way. This raw comparison presented is one such case. I am sure if given more time there would be more to show IDM's superiority. I have used the alternatives above and they do the job but in "torrent downloads" it's "hit-and-miss" with FDM and EagleGet..well depending on the connections really but based on experience when I used IDM (earlier version) for torrent I did not have any issues at all as compared with FDM and EagleGet. Now I am using qBittorrent for my "torrenting" needs. Congratulations mate! Well done!

[Mohammad.Poorya]

Great review.thanks

[Mohammad]

YEAH!!!! GREAT CONTRIBUTION MATE!!!! CHEERS!!!!! More please!!!!

Any comparisons used in a review is always a welcome add because it shows the capability of the software being reviewed in an unbiased way. This raw comparison presented is one such case. I am sure if given more time there would be more to show IDM's superiority. I have used the alternatives above and they do the job but in "torrent downloads" it's "hit-and-miss" with FDM and EagleGet..well depending on the connections really but based on experience when I used IDM (earlier version) for torrent I did not have any issues at all as compared with FDM and EagleGet. Now I using qBittorrent for my "torrenting" needs. Congratulations mate! Well done!

Thanks for commenting my friend,
Even me too, when I was testing many time I have disable and enable add-on from browser and I feel something, which I would like to share here too.

Each time enable and disable add-on some not working fdm, mostly IDM grab almost download, like there is some contest is running between downloaders who will grab first lol, and sometimes fdm always first but after enable and disable IDM add-on was good.

If I get more time to test will try with other downloader too.

I hope you guys enjoyed this review.

[jasonX]

YEAH!!!! GREAT CONTRIBUTION MATE!!!! CHEERS!!!!! More please!!!!

Any comparisons used in a review is always a welcome add because it shows the capability of the software being reviewed in an unbiased way. This raw comparison presented is one such case. I am sure if given more time there would be more to show IDM's superiority. I have used the alternatives above and they do the job but in "torrent downloads" it's "hit-and-miss" with FDM and EagleGet..well depending on the connections really but based on experience when I used IDM (earlier version) for torrent I did not have any issues at all as compared with FDM and EagleGet. Now I using qBittorrent for my "torrenting" needs. Congratulations mate! Well done!

Thanks for commenting my friend,
Even me too, when I was testing many time I have disable and enable add-on from browser and I feel something, which I would like to share here too.

Each time enable and disable add-on some not working fdm, mostly IDM grab almost download, like there is some contest is running between downloaders who will grab first lol, and sometimes fdm always first but after enable and disable IDM add-on was good.

If I get more time to test will try with other downloader too.

I hope you guys enjoyed this review.

Yes, I too have observed that behavior (though not with IDM) it is a fact that downloaders especially when the Chrome / Firefox extensions are active try to out-do each other. I have XDM and the SOS Ant Download Manager here and they compete with each other. You'd really have to disable the rest. Great work mate! More please!!

[jasonX]

Thanks for the review. The comparison is very informative and the images are very good

After doing some search FDM support BitTorrent direct download meanwhile IDM only supports cloud torrents. The speed test has similar result in favor of FDM in the test here https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O5HTvKMCfsM

But in this test he compares both at the same time

I think the comparison needs large files (for example 1 Gb) and each download manager alone. Also, it must be repeated

The OP just used a "raw comparison" (as mentioned above) because of time constraint. Also conditions may vary depending on usage and elements used. I'm sure given the time the OP could have presented more. When I had FDM (ver4) way way back it was not okay with torrents. It will accept some but I ended up with nothing. Perhaps this may be due to my poor connection but I never did got anything from it (on torrent download -- had some luck with Deluge, uTorrent and IDM which I got from the defunct TipRadar). Stayed with FDM for downloads for a time then encountered Eagleget and later Slimjet (a nice turbo built-in downloader they have). Anyway I hope there will be more like this here. Cheers guys!

[dhruv2193]

Thanks for the review. The comparison is very informative and the images are very good

After doing some search FDM support BitTorrent direct download meanwhile IDM only supports cloud torrents. The speed test has similar result in favor of FDM in the test here https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=O5HTvKMCfsM

But in this test he compares both at the same time

I think the comparison needs large files (for example 1 Gb) and each download manager alone. Also, it must be repeated

The OP just used a "raw comparison" (as mentioned above) because of time constraint. Also conditions may vary depending on usage and elements used. I'm sure given the time the OP could have presented more. When I had FDM (ver4) way way back it was not okay with torrents. It will accept some but I ended up with nothing. Perhaps this may be due to my poor connection but I never did got anything from it (on torrent download -- had some luck with Deluge, uTorrent and IDM which I got from the defunct TipRadar). Stayed with FDM for downloads for a time then encountered Eagleget and later Slimjet (a nice turbo built-in downloader they have). Anyway I hope there will be more like this here. Cheers guys!

Eagleget is the worst. Can't download videos since many months/years.