WinZip 20.0.11659.0

Even in these days of high-speed broadband, it can be handy to squeeze file sizes down to save transfer time or fit onto removable media such as USB sticks. WinZip makes this complex process beautifully simple.

Zip files work in a surprisingly basic manner. All computer data is made up of strings of 0s and 1s. Zipping simply restates those strings in a shorter fashion. For example "00000011111" is effectively restated as "0x6/1x5." Apply that across a whole file and it saves a lot of space, particularly in image or video files where a lot of information is repeated (blue sky, blue sky, blue sky etc.)

With WinZip though, you don't even need to worry about how this works. The application supports a wide range of Zip file formats and has a simple drag-and-drop interface for choosing and manipulating both the zipped and unzipped file.

Even better, it does a tremendous job of integrating with Windows Explorer. That means that if you get a zip file, you can just right-click on it in Explorer and choose the unzip option. Alternatively, you can right-click on any ordinary file and quickly zip it without having to open WinZip first.

Of course, this comes at a price, and casual users may find it too much to pay considering other zipping utilities -- albeit not as good in many fashions -- are available without charge.

Pros: Oustanding speed; lots of options but a simple interface.

Cons: 32-bit edition can struggle with extremely large files (as in multiple gigabytes); zipped files larger than some rival applications.

Conclusion: Number one in the market for a reason, but it comes at a price. Ideal for regular zip-file users.