WideVPN

WideVPN offers 50 servers in 34 countries worldwide and is compatible with macOS, Windows, iOS, and Android devices. Unfortunately, it doesn’t offer an in-house app, so you’ll be setting up the VPN manually. Not a great start if you’re a VPN newbie.

The service does unblock Netflix and a variety of other streaming services, but is it safe? Let’s take a look.

Can It Unblock Netflix? Yes

I wasn’t expecting too much considering WideVPN only offers the most basic VPN security, and the server network is fairly small, but I was pleased to be able to access Netflix UK and US, Hulu, and BBC iPlayer.

WideVPN unblocked Netflix UK.

I couldn’t stream Netflix AU, though I did get access, I just got a buffering wheel. I did try after peak hours but it was the same. The speeds on the Australian server just weren’t fast enough for streaming.

Speed – Varies Heavily By Location

The first server I connected to was in the UK, primarily because I wanted to see if I could access BBC iPlayer and Netflix UK. The speeds were pretty fast for being so far away from my true location in the US. Download speeds were around 34Mbps, more than fast enough for buffer-free HD streaming, while uploads were approximately 21Mbps.

Speed test on a WideVPN UK server.

The next server I tested was near Denmark. My download speeds dropped by less than 1%, but upload speeds dropped by 55%. That’s a pretty significant drop.

Speed test performed on a WideVPN server near Denmark.

The last server I tested was in Australia, which is known to have pretty poor internet speeds in most places. Unfortunately, the Australian server through WideVPN was no exception.  Download speeds dropped by over 97%, and uploads were reduced by 75%.

That’s extremely drastic in comparison to Denmark, which explains the buffering I talked about earlier while accessing Netflix AU.

Speed test performed on a WideVPN server in Australia.

Overall, I was impressed with WideVPN’s speeds, but the Australian server was disappointing. The security was strong enough to bypass anti-VPN technology, so it’s a letdown to not be able to view content because the speeds are sloth slow.

Security – VPN Basics

WideVPN says it uses enterprise-grade security, doesn’t keep logs, offers double VPN, and it even offers WireGuard protocol. In addition to WireGuard users can choose PPTP, L2TP/IPSec, OpenVPN, SSTP,  or IKEv2 protocols.  Plus, WideVPN offers easy setup guides for each device and protocol the service supports.

The website of WideVPN did not disclose any specifics regarding its encryption type, even though typically, enterprise/military-grade encryption involves 256-bit AES.

Privacy – Just Ok

I couldn’t find any sneaky small print while reviewing the Privacy Policy, the company is pretty straightforward when it comes to the information it uses but I wouldn’t call it a no-logs VPN.

A screenshot of WideVPN’s Privacy Policy.

It’s not unusual for a VPN to collect certain non-identifiable information for the purpose of developing upgrades, maintaining services, and making overall improvements to the service or marketing. WideVPN collects data on its website, including your email, username, password, payment data, emails you send, and temporary cookies. Once you exit the WideVPN site it seems the no-logs policy goes into effect, it doesn’t collect any of the following:

• IP addresses
• DNS requests
• Traffic
• Bandwidth and data transfer
• Usage activity

Despite my misgivings, WideVPN did pass the DNS/IP test that I ran on the service. My IP address wasn’t revealed, and it didn’t leak any DNS requests that led to my true location.

Results of a DNS/IP leak test run on a WideVPN server.

Overall, WideVPN does a decent job of covering your true location and isn’t dishonest about the data it collects. Still, there are plenty of quality VPNs that feature completely solid no-logs policies.

Is It Safe for Torrenting? It’s Risky

I would say torrent at your own risk, there’s no kill-switch or split-tunneling feature. I’m also not sure that its ‘cookie collection’ practices are that safe, especially since they use the cookies to help them quote, “market our product.”

Is It Good for Gaming? Some Slow Servers

Some of WideVPN’s global servers are too slow for gaming and you will likely experience disconnects and significant lag. If you want consistent speeds for gaming try one of our best VPNs for gaming.