Easy to use VPN

Posted on Posted in Security

A few months ago I decided I needed a VPN and wrote 5 reasons why you need a VPN.  After experimenting with a few services I had more ideas about what I need from a Virtual Private Network and settled on the following two essentials:

  1. The VPN needs to be sold with one licence that covers the whole house.
  2. It needs to be installed on the router with little or no fuss.  The first reason for this is so that everything in the house just works without individual configuration.  The second, was highlighted when I recently fixed a computer for someone; VPN software installed on computers will use resources and slow the computer.

… and then I was approached by Unblock-Us, so I have been trialling their product.

My experience with the Unblock-Us VPN

I started testing this with expectations of what a VPN should do, but I hadn’t really worked out the detail.  I had however figured this.  Last time I was in America I had started watching Vikings season 2 through an Amazon Prime account, legitimately paid for, but had not been able to finish that last two episodes here, in Australia, on my return.  Whilst my first test for the VPN was configurability, the second must be finish watching Vikings the way I had started it (without going back to America).

VPN Test one: configure Unblock-Us VPN

This really did only take a few minutes.  The slowest part was waiting for the router to reboot after I was done; the hardest part (actually, the only part) was to copy and paste a number (the IP address of the VPN service) into the VPN fields in the router control panel.  Unblock-Us provide step-by-step graphical instructions for dozens of brands of routers and, as someone who helps technical novices all the time, I think it could be done by just about anyone.

VPN Test two: Does Unblock-Us VPN actually work?

After configuring the router, which was really simple process, I logged into my Amazon account and I actually watching video that had been previous geo-blocked, only a few minutes before.

VPN Test three: Is Unblock-Us VPN cost effective?

There is a seven day free trial, which you should always use to make sure the product is right for you, and I did use to all of the testing above.  After that it cost $US49.90 per year, for the whole house.  Yes this is cost effective.

Unblock-US is the cheapest and most easily configured VPN I have found.  It can be ordered directly from Unblock-Us.