B1 Free Archiver

B1 Free Archiver lets you create and view archives through a straightforward process. Supporting multiple archive formats, this free utility integrates with Windows Explorer and features advanced options like protecting archives with a password and splitting them into smaller parts.

Pros

Very accessible settings: The developers of B1 Free Archiver have taken the time to make sure that the most popular options in the app's settings are properly explained, even to the point where you'll see screenshots displaying the end results of some features. There is also an extensive list of display languages available.

Password protection and archive splitting: When creating an archive, you have the option to add a password to it as well as split it into smaller pieces for easier transfers. Unfortunately, some of those options are only available if you opt to use the proprietary .B1 archive format.

Windows Explorer integration: You needn't open the app in order to take advantage of its functionality -- you can create and extract archives by right-clicking on files in Windows Explorer. When we tested these features, we were able to create an archive of a 3.42GB HD video that was password protected and split into 700MB pieces in approximately 25 minutes.

Cons

Limited number of formats during archive creation: When you try to create an archive, you'll be given the option to choose only between a ZIP file and a B1 archive. To make matters worse, not all archive features are allowed if you opt to use a ZIP format.

Bottom Line

B1 Free Archiver turns out to be a great piece of software if you're looking for a straightforward way of creating and extracting archives. If you're looking for something advanced and powerful, however, you will find this free app quite restrictive, especially for creating archives.