Based in Philipines, Droid VPN is a provider that is set to offer security for you online activities. While Droid VPN started as a solution specially designed for Android users, the compatibility of the service is increasing and it now supports Windows. Versions for Linux and Mac are soon to be released. Still, Droid VPN is mainly an option for Android users who are looking for a VPN that adds a layer of protection to their browsing. Although Droid VPN is fairly basic when compared to other VPNs, the service is simple and free (a premium version is also available), which makes it an appealing solution. In this review, we’ll further explore the features that Droid VPN offers.
Security and Privacy
One of the main reasons why people use a VPN service is to protect their privacy and ensure that their data is secured, even if they are using public WiFi. Although DroidVPN promises to keep your internet traffic protected, unfortunately they don’t provide details about how is this achieved. There is no information about the encryption technology used, which is disappointing. This may not be a big deal if you are mainly looking for a simple solution to bypass restrictions, but if security is your priority and you want a high level of protection, it is advisable to consider an option that is more clear and transparent about the encryption used.
When it comes to the privacy policy, there are also reasons for concern. Droid VPN keeps logs of connection details such as time of your session, IP address and bandwidth used. This information is stored and Droid VPN states that it can filter the content that you can access on the internet, if they have reason to believe that it is illegal or potentially harmful. While it is unlikely that general users who just want to access popular websites are unlikely to be affected, the fact that the provider could impose censorship is not a good sign. If you want a VPN to keep your privacy protected, the last thing you need is a provider that could monitor or control your activities.
In case Droid VPN receives a request from law enforcement, it may hand over your data, including payment information. If you want to use a VPN to download torrents of the latest movies, Droid VPN is not the best choice. They state that they don’t monitor their customers’ online activities, but the terms of service clearly state that your account would be immediately terminated if it is discovered that you are downloading copyrighted material. Still, there are some servers that support P2P, as long as the content can be downloaded legally. It should also be noted that Bitcoin is not accepted.
Features
As previously mentioned, Droid VPN supports Android and Windows at the moment. The Windows client is easy to use and it doesn’t require installation. However, you need to try to remember the downloading location since there is no icon on your desktop. In the Settings, you will be able to select TCP, UDP, ICMP and HTTP. It is possible to check the list of servers and see the live connection log. While the Windows software is simple and straightforward, its performance is not exactly the best. The VPN connection tends to drop and you are not notified about it. This means that your browsing may not be secured and you may not even realize it.
On the other hand, the Android version works much better and you won’t experience disconnections or other issues. This is not a surprise, considering that Droid VPN started as service focused on Android and the PC client was only released recently. Hopefully, the issues that are currently affecting the Windows software are solved in the near future. In the meantime, if you are using the service on your Android tablet or smartphone, you will be able to select from a wide variety of connection options. You can find many settings for UDP, TCP, HTTP, proxy and VPN connection.
There is also an option that allows you to route your traffic through Internet Control Message Protocol (ICMP), which is not a common feature. However, ICMP is only available for rooted devices and in general, Droid VPN defaults to OpenVPN protocols like UDP. While there is an auto-reconnect option, you won’t find a kill switch. This feature shuts down the internet traffic if the VPN suddenly drops. This is a very useful feature and considering that in the Windows client, you are likely to experience disconnections, it would have been great to see a kill switch included. You can download the Android version as a direct download from Google Play or as an PK download from the developer’s site.
In terms of speed, Droid VPN offers good results, particularly when you are using the Android app. It only slows down the connection slightly and while it is not capable of bypassing Netflix’s restrictions, it offers good performance for streaming. You will be able to watch videos on YouTube, listen to your favorite tunes on Spotify and more. There are no WebRTC issues, DNS or IPv6 leaks. Droid VPN has servers in the United States, Netherlands, Japan, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Australia and Singapore. Droid VPN doesn’t support simultaneous connections and it is only possible to connect to the service using one device.
Plans
The free plan only allows you to connect to certain servers. Currently, the free servers are only available in the United States. In addition, free accounts can only use 100MB of data, which resets at midnight every day. If you want to connect to more servers and enjoy unlimited bandwidth, you can upgrade to the premium service. One month costs $4.99 USD, the monthly price for 3 months is $4.66, when you pay in advance for six months, the monthly price is reduced $3.99 and for one year, you pay $2.99 USD per month. You can pay using cards, PerfectMoney, PayPal and Google Play in-app billing. There is a 7-day money back guarantee but it comes with some bandwidth restrictions.
Customer Support
There is not a great deal of information on the website and the FAQ is very short. There is a blog as well, but it doesn’t provide information about troubleshooting issues. It is only possible to contact the support team via email and the responses can take a while.
Conclusion
If you are only looking for a free VPN that is easy to use and that allows you to bypass restrictions and add some security to your general browsing activities, Droid VPN could be a practical solution. However, the limited compatibility and the performance issues (particularly with the PC client) are a disappointment. In addition, this provider wouldn’t be the most solid option if you want to protect your privacy. There is no good customer support available and considering the scarce features, the prices are high. Overall, it is only a good option if you use the free plan when you just need a VPN occasionally.