Yea, the service to download cost money, but the check doesnt. The check will let you know whats out of date then you can go to the manufacturers website to get the drivers for free. The check is a one-stop-shop to see where you stand rather than checking all of your driver versions manually then having to to check with each manufacturer. Its just a tool.

Did you try AutoRuns and disabling some of the applications that launch during startup?

Rick