The Best VPN Services and Apps of 2017 (Including Free Options) (Archive)

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I use PureVPN and recently they have introduced free advance features including Antivirus/Antimalware, IDS/IPS network protection, App Blocker, and Parental Control that's a huge plus and cost saver for me in the same subscription. Definitely a must have VPN service for all-in-one function.
https://www.purevpn.com/advanced-vpn
 
I'm using NordVPN. I have great speeds and connections stability so in my mind it's the best service keeping in mind that price starts from around $ 3.3 per month for no logs service based in Panama (out of 14 eyes) with a lot of servers and 400+ streaming services available.
 
Opera Free VPN is a pretty solid free version with acceptable speeds and decent functionality. Express VPN is fast, but also has log storage, which is not entirely ideal for privacy. Nord's support is questionable and the speeds can drop. However, they do not keep the logs, the best option for privacy.
 
Have only used NordVPN so can't comment on others. However Nord only costs me about 1-2 megs on my 50 Mbps connection and I check my speed every day. Cost is very reasonable when purchased on an annual or two year plan.
 
I have been trying PIA for the last month or so. I wish my experience were even half the experience the judges / experts had. I found it extremely slow, the support service ignored my email regarding set-up, and finally it would lose connection in the middle of my torrents thus exposing my activity to the world. Though I am writing calmly and in normal case, please use your imagination to insert expletives and put my text above in all caps. I thought Nord was overrated until I tried PIA.
 
Wow. Just spent time detailing my experience and then was required to log-in - submission gone.

SO, one more time.

I have been trying PIA as it is so well reviewed. I should say I WAS trying PIA. I become so frustrated with it that I cancelled my subscription (but I will receive no refund, of course. And yes, it was a yearly membership.)

I wish my experience had been half as good as the judges'/experts'. The three reasons I am moving on NOW even though my subscription isn't up for 11 months:
1) Ignored my support request email. I wrote them with a problem about the way the software had loaded and never heard back.

2) Sloooooooooooooow. Nord was a speed demon in comparison.

But the final straw? 3) PIA kept dropping my connection in the middle of activities thus exposing my actions to the regular good old web and all the snoopers accordingly.

In comparison Nord, when used with Viscosity, was a dream.

So, though I have put my experience mildly above, please imagine it curse-filled and in ALL caps. I can't adequately express my frustration and disappointment.
 
Astrill are a diabolical service!
This was their suggestion to a support issue:-
[Ticket ID: 899410469] Accessing BBC iPlayer
Hi Mark,
Thank you for contacting Astrill support!
BBC is actively blocking our shared server. The only solution now is to have a Private IP but unfortunately we do not have available Private IPs now. We have run out of stock because our clients bought Private IP for BBC.
If you are willing to purchase Private IP, we will have new batch of IPs in few days.
Private IP cost $5/month.
Let us know if you still have concerns and we will be glad to assist you.
Best regards,

I paid $99 for the UK Private IP but it was so slow it was completely unusable. But, they refuse to refund my money. They've offered to transfer me to another UK Private IP but there aren't any available and they can't tell me when there will be one available. So, I paid my $99 2 weeks ago, I haven't heard anything more from anyone in their support team about getting a different Private IP and, therefore, haven't been able to use my product for 2 weeks. The final straw is that, BBC iPlayer has suddenly started working with the normal Astrill IP's so I needn't have bought the Private IP at all. Keep away from Astrill unless you want to be ripped off!!!
 
Have you ever known a person who tries too hard to be cute? That's TunnelBear...with all of the same pitfalls.

Even rudimentary features of TunnelBear feel unfinished because most of the development effort has focused on presenting an image of "cuteness".

Support is probably the worst aspect of TunnelBear. As expected, the cuteness actually masks mean-spiritedness. When I failed to participate in the cuteness game by contacting TunnelBear about a problem and suggesting how the unfinished features could be improved, TunnelBear responded with a pompous, sactimonious attitude.

In short, TunnelBear needs more substance and less cuteness.
 
What does the author mean here, "anyone wary of the U.S. government may want to choose another service?" Does the government own or run Private Internet Access, their top pick? Or is that warning simply because the company is based in the US?
 


based in the US.
 



Got it. Thanks
 
My experience doesn't match the authors at all. My first VPN PureVPN had great speeds in my opinion. Once I learned it has logs I quit ofc., but the service was not 6/10 in my experience. Other VPN I loved ProtonVPN is not even on list. Also great speeds, seem safe and secure because its same company as ProtonMail we all know and trust! Lastly I use NordVPN right now and my speed loss is nearly inexistent. It has many features and superb customer support, I do not think this review is fair. I suggest giving all these services another shot - NordVPN and Proton has trials, Nord also has 30 day refund guarantee so it doesn't cost anything to try. Pure has no trial, but I don't know, you have a budget for these things anyway probably.
 
I still strongly advocate PIA.
I tried NORD, the speed was just as good but I found it took longer to connect. I was unable to watch netflix through nord unless I went to the specialty servers and even then netflix knew I was in the states not the UK. PIA is cheaper to boot for these reasons alone I prefer PIA.
 
I use NordVPN for streaming on my firestick. Setting up my router was a b****, but once I got used to it it's all smooth sailing. 5/5 GG NordVPN!
 
This is my second year with NordVPN. I have tested it and compared it throughout the years with other VPN services. The features that they offer are exactly as advertised and I am happy with the speed. The support informed me even at the very beginning that the speed might be affected by more than their servers or even my own network speed but such things as my device or OS and driver versions. However, their service just kept improving in the past year so I'm really happy with it.
 
What a shame ProtonVPN is not on the list... Well I have tried few of these too, but my experience seems to differ from the author's. I moved from Express to Pure and after their log scandal blew up I moved to NordVPN. Set up on my router wasn't easy but the speed drop is almost unnoticeable.
 
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