Anyone want to suggest VPNs I should look into, that are especially suited for use on my router? Thanks!
I doubt that there's much that's router specific. AirVPN, IVPN and Mullvad are all good. PIA used to be OK, but it's Chinese now (or soon). Insorg is good too, but it's Russian. Of the more mass-market VPNs, ExpressVPN is arguably the best.
I'm glad there is still a handful of VPN providers that are considered good or at least acceptable. I have always followed privacytools.io list of recommended providers, but it has gotten very small these days. According to them, only 3 VPN's make the cut: Mullvad, Proton, and IVPN. Since they don't mention ExpressVPN i haven't even considered them. Ironically, I recommended against it on another forum recently. I suppose this is why it's important to get info from multiple sources! Thankfully, you are a credible source worthy of trust. What factors make ExpressVPN arguably the best? Is it feature rich? I used NordVPN for while and was pleased with the service - good speeds with all the "bells and whistles". But then they made some mistakes and fell from grace, so I was forced to switch providers. I currently use Mullvad, which does the important things well, but lacks the features and options I am used to. (Maybe this is a positive though).
I've been using ExpressVPN for 3 years in a row now. Here is why I like it better than others. 1) It's the only VPN that works in Dubai for now. 2) It's the fastest in terms of speed. 3) 0 logging policy 4) Superb customer service. They reply within 24 hours max and they always resolved any issues I may have had, not just sending me some scripted reply that asks me to read articles. 5) Works on all devices including iOS and Android. 6) They listen to suggestions. I suggested to them that if I set ExpressVPN to auto start upon boot up, I don't need it's window to show up, I just need it in the taskbar ready for when I need to connect. Within 2 weeks, they actually added an option in the settings "Start Minimized". It's very rare that companies take customers' suggestions into account in my experience.
Thanks for explaining your experience. Yes, great customer service is very convenient and helpful. That's one benefit i miss about NordVPN. You can reach their customer service 24/7 via live chat. It was nice getting my questions answered immediately. However, as convenient as it may be, customer service can be a privacy risk. I'm content with my current service because they value customer privacy enough to accept crypto and they do not require an email address at any point. Is this your opinion? What others have you compared it to?
Not an opinion, but actual testing. Now my results may vary from yours because I live in Dubai but I compared it against hide.me (speeds were very close, I would call it margin of error but hide.me doesn't work great anymore in Dubai), compared it to Private Internet Access (when it used to work), VPN.AC (horrible VPN), IPVanish. I am not trying to convince you to use ExpressVPN, just stating my experience. It works the best for me as I'm in Dubai. I heard many good things about NordVPN too but that doesn't work at all. Heck it wouldn't even let me login to the app once I installed it to try it.
express is one of the best commercial vpn service providers. great choice for users in repressive regimes like iran, united arab emirates, china, saudi arabia, etc. because it's one of the best services for bypassing dpi and other restrictive tech. speeds are impressive, support staff are very helpful.
I think that it was basically that I used ExpressVPN, and it worked OK. I don't like how it bought high ratings on "review" sites. And I generally prefer older VPN services that have stayed relatively small. But for a large VPN, it's fine. Edit: I'm not saying that it's app doesn't leak, because I didn't test it. I just used stock openvpn in Linux. It was one that I used in https://github.com/mirimir/vpnchains.
I have been using ExpressVPN for 2 years with no issues. The speed is impressive across the locations. I have tried a few VPNs, ExpressVPN provides fast & consistent speed across the locations. The support, live chat, email, is helpful.
I tried many over the years but I have not used anything better or easier than IVPN on all of my devices.
Don't worry, I don't feel pressured. I appreciate your response. I am surprised to hear that you have such trouble connecting to a VPN in Dubai. Is this due to government laws and restrictions? I am far from a geopolitical expert, but i would have guessed UAE ranks #1 among middle-eastern nations when it comes to tech and internet freedom/infrastructure. I am a self absorbed westerner so what do i know!
yes, we have the best speeds and tech, but VPN and VoiP is banned just as it is in many neighboring countries.
Oh, good to know. Well I am glad Dubai has a viable VPN option at the moment. Everyone deserves that.
That is definitely a turn off in my book. When it comes to the internet privacy industry I also prefer companies that are smaller by design. I like to believe that this means they are more virtuous and value quality over profit. Maybe that's just a fantasy though! I remember 2-3 years ago most people were devoutly against using a VPN providers app and advised that the only truly secure way was to connect through OpenVPN. I don't hear this being said as often. I actually hear the contrary more often now that with some providers the app is equally if not more secure than through OpenVPN. What is your opinion?
I think that the best option is Linux with stock OpenVPN and strong iptables rules to prevent leaks. Only connections to the VPN server are allowed via the LAN interface. Given that, you must use the server's IP address, because no DNS lookup is possible. Connections to anything else must go through the VPN tunnel. If you must use Windows, you can do basically the same with Windows Firewall. For those who don't know how to do firewall setup, using custom apps from VPN services is the safest option.
I have been using Express for just over a year now from my location in Malaysia and had very little trouble with it until recently when I (they) cannot access BBCiPlayer anymore. Been in contact with them about the issue and they say they are working to find a solution to get it back. Yesterday I had an email from support saying live BBC can be accessed by using Swiss location on Express and logging into website called Zattoo. Tried this but no use to me because I just use vpn for catchup on UK TV sites. My Express subscription is about to expire and I have tried several alternatives and now in first month of SURFSHARK 2 year subscription and finding it excellent. No problem with BBCiPlayer or ITV Hub or any of the other UK TV channels or Tubi TV in USA. Despite some adverse reviews of Surfshark I have found it really reliable so far with excellent customer chat support.
I also have Express using it from my location in Malaysia to access TV catch up sites in UK. Been good for a year but no longer can get BBCiPlayer, they say they are working on it but not successful so far. Meantime using Surfshark which has been brilliant from here, fast, very economical and good customer support with plenty of help to get around blocked sites etc.
