ShadeYou is a VPN provider based in Scotland and it has been operating since 2012. The service is set to offer a high level of security to make your online experience more enjoyable. The fact that no logs are kept will attract customers who want to browse internet, stream media, chat and play online games without worrying about compromising their privacy. With ShadeYou, it is possible to get peace of mind and defeat any restrictions that prevent you from access the content you want. Nowadays, there are many security threats to worry about but ShadeYou wants to be the solution you trust to take care of your internet traffic. To help you decide if ShadeYOu deserves your trust, we will review this VPN service.
Privacy and Security
ShadeYou supports L2TP, PPTP and OpenVPN, which is the option that should be selected when you want the highest level of security. L2TP is convenient because it offers great compatibility, while PPTP offers good speed, although it is not the best option in terms of security. ShadeYou uses super strong 2048-bit encryption and its Premier plan upgrades this to 4096-bit encryption. This gives you strong security, allowing you to keep your personal information safe from eavesdropping and attacks. ShadeYou will help you to stay safe even when you are connected to the internet using public WiFi.
When it comes to privacy, ShadeYou promises not to keep any logs of your online activities and when you sign up for the service, you are only asked to provide a username, email address and to create a password. Although the company clearly states that no logs are kept of their customer’s online activities, they don’t clarify if connection details are logged. In addition, the fact that the provider operates from Scotland raises concerns due to the fact that it falls under the jurisdiction of the Five Eyes spying alliance. On the bright side, ShadeYou accepts Bitcoin as method of payment and it allows P2P.
Features
It is possible to use the service on popular platforms like Windows, Mac, Linux, iOS and Android. You can also set the VPN up on Tomato, DD-WRT and Synology routers manually. Although ShadeYou only has dedicated software for Windows, the website offers guides that will help you to get the service running on all the other platforms supported. The Windows client is fairly basic, but it offers the necessary features to protect your data and enjoy the flexibility that ShadeYou offers to bypass geo-blocks. The interface is user-friendly and you can easily switch between servers whenever needed.
ShadeYou has servers in 15 countries: United States, France, Romania, Australia, Canada, Sweden, Singapore, Russia, United Kingdom, Germany, Hong Kong, Ukraine, Netherlands, Finland and Spain. Although the speed of the service is not exactly impressive, it is enough to browse and stream content. ShadeYou doesn’t impose speed or bandwidth limits and it includes kill switch and DNS leaks protection. There is also a free proxy available called Anonymizer, which is ideal for changing your IP address to bypass restrictions that stop you from acceding websites.
Plans
ShadeYou has two plans available. The first one is called Standard and it provides 2048-bit key encryption. It gives you access to 18 servers in 12 countries and you can connect up to 3 devices simultaneously. This price of the plan is $3.95 per month and when you subscribe for a full year, the monthly cost is reduced to just $2.16 since you pay $25.99 in total. This is a very affordable option and it means that ShadeYou is one of the most affordable options available.
If you want to get 5 simultaneous connections, access to 25 servers in 15 countries and 4096-bit key encryption, you can upgrade to the Premium plan, which costs $7.95 per month. You can save up to 71% when you pay for one year in advance because the total cost is just $27.99, which makes the monthly price as low as $2.33. There is a free trial that lets you test the service for 24 hours and the money back guarantee covers you for 7 days. The payment methods include cards, PayPal, WebMoney and Bitcoin.
Support
The website offers practical information about the service and the support section includes an FAQ section that covers technical information as well as details about the billing and other features of the service. There are set up guides for all the platforms supported. If you need to contact ShadeYou, there is a Ticket system, as well as a chat. They also offer remote support. Although the response to the tickets can take a while, ShadeYou’s support team provides detailed information when you reach out to them this way. There is also a live chat option, but it is not available at all times since ShadeYou disables when there are too many tickets to respond to. It should be noted that Customers who are subscribed to the Premium plan have priority. Remote support is also offered.
Conclusion
ShadeYou is one of the cheapest options available and while the service is basic when compared to other options, it works well and will suit new users who want to stick to a budget. The security offered is strong and the customer support provides professional assistance. Unfortunately, the software is too simple and we’d like to see custom clients for more platforms. The fact that the service operates from Scotland may put off customers who are concerned about the surveillance efforts of the likes of the GCHQ. Still, ShadeYou can be a good choice if you only want to get stronger security for your connection for a low price.