Free zip software features
Performance on top of being free is the reason behind the raging popularity of 7-Zip. In fact, the user base for 7-Zip is already steadily catching up to that of WinRar and WinZip and should match or even surpass them within the next couple years. We will highlight some of the top features of 7-Zip below.
Efficient compression algorithm- As more and more users find out, besides being free, 7-Zip is actually more efficient in most compression tasks compared to the competition. In general day to day use, 7-Zip will result in 2-10% smaller files compared to the competition.
Widest support of compression formats- 7-Zip supports the widest variety of compression formats that are out there including 7Z, XZ, BZ2, GZIP, TAR, ZIP, ARJ, CAB, CHM, CPIO, CramFS, DEB, DMG, FAT, HFS, ISO, LZH, LZMA, MBR, MSI, NSIS, NTFS, RAR, RPM, SquashFS, UDF, VHD, WIM, XAR and Z.
This wide support even for older compression formats will ensure that 7-Zip is the only file archiver that you need in your computer.
Strong Encryption ability- 7-Zip has the ability to encrypt all information with strong AES-256 bit encryption so that information that you store within a 7-Zip archive will be safe from prying eyes. As a comparison, a device that could brute-force a 56 bit encryption key in 1 second will take about 150 trillion years to brute-force a 128-bit key. Suffice to say that 256 bit encryption is going to be very safe.
Unparalled convenience- Files and folders stored in the 7-Zip format have the ability to be self-extracted without the use of any additional software for added convenience so you won’t find yourself in a public computer having to access your archived files but do not have access to a file extractor. All you need to do is to double-click on the file and it will extract itself automatically.
With such a rich feature set as well as being free to own, you should definitely check out 7-Zip the next time you are looking for a file archiver for home or business. You could end up saving thousands of dollars if you are buying licenses for more than a single computer.