In our attempt at finding the best VPN services, we have been checking out the best options currently available for your needs. In our series of VPN reviews, we will today cover AirVPN. Considerably lesser known service provider, it has still been one of the good options that has lived up to the expectation of the people who have been using it. The service itself proudly claims that it was launched by the activists who wanted the freedom from restrictions over the use of internet.
AirVPN Cyber Monday – An Overview
AirVPN should be one of the prime options for almost all your requirements in opting for a VPN service is Privacy. While it may be a great service for the advanced users, you would find it not much comfortable for the beginners.
Launched in 2010, the services began with only two servers in one country. However, they have now been one of the powerful VPN servers with more than 200 servers. AirVPN is one of the popular Italian service providers and provides you access to an advanced security and privacy features. A stronger VPN encryption through Tor and other essential features such as OpenVPN encryption, port forwarding, and cryptocurrency payments.
Security
It should be one of the most popular and capable secure VPN services. If you are looking for the best possible privacy, the AirVPN should be your prime option. The top end AES 256 encryption can be one of the excellent options with OpenVPN. You can be assured of the best possible security and performance improvements.
The VPN Kill Switch functionality can be one of the excellent options for all your needs in an improved security levels. You can even be assured of a powerful protection against the DNS, IPv6 and WebRTC leaks which should be one of the strongest factors in favour of the VPN service.
It does work with Tor Browser which should further enhance your performance. The doublehop feature which keeps changing the IP address to prevent your IP address from being tracked.
AirVPN recently came up with announcement that WireGuardsuppot will soon be made available. That would be yet another powerful security feature when launched.
As for the VPN protocols, it only supports OpenVPN, and that should ensure an enhanced level of security and privacy. The use of Perfect Forward Secrecy by AirVPN further enhances the security features already offered by OpenVPN protocol. Developed by activists and hactivists, the service stays protected from even the most advanced of the hacking attempts and threats. The decision to avoid the other protocols such as PPTP and L2TP/IPsec has indeed been the strongest factors in favour of AirVPN, especially because these protocols have long been known for their vulnerability to attacks.
Speed Tests
With respect to the speeds, you will get access to a decent above average speed in the same country servers. Of course, you would not be getting the exceptional peak speeds that you would get on the fastest VPN services out there. But, you will indeed get the best reliable speeds nevertheless.
You will ideally get access to a drop of not more than 20 percent which should be one of the good options.
However, a limited number of servers can be a bad news for the speeds. While the individual servers have been marked to provide you a good speed performance, you may face a few issues of server overloads and congestion.
Server Locations
The AirVPN service comes with over 200 servers in 38 countries spread across 22 different countries. AirVPN has been one of VPN services with the smallest set of server network. The lower number of servers can be one of the prime concerns when using the services because of a possible server overload and congestion issues.
However, the service displays the server load when displaying the servers. This is exactly what would make it one of the excellent options when picking the right servers that are not overloaded. You will find a majority of the servers located in the US. You will find as many as 37 servers across 10 cities in the US. This can be an indication that the VPN service is targeting the US market.
Europe as a continent has over 153 servers spread across 15 countries. The servers in Asia are the lowest with one each in Japan and Singapore.
What about the logs policy on AirVPN?
The logging policy on the official website is quite vague. It does not specify exact whether it keeps the logs. However, the customer care has a different version that clearly mentions that they do not monitor the logs.
AirVPN mentioned that it does not monitor any of the content while you are connected to the internet through VPN. It will only collects the technical data and nothing more than that. The technical data is collected for the maintenance purposes, and you can request their deletion whenever you choose to.
None of the information that will identify you will not be logged. This includes the data such as date/timestamps or your IP address. That would ideally make it one of the most reliable VPN services if you are checking out for the best privacy friendly browsing.
Which streaming services does AirVPN work with?
The AirVPN services may not be the right one to go with if you are into streaming. While the faster connection speeds can be a great option for a HD streaming with no buffering, it may not work with the geo blocking from the services such as Netflix and BBC iPlayer.
None of the servers on AirVPN are optimised for streaming servers. We wont say you will not get it working, but it would rather be a case of a trial and error method.
The AirVPN website lists the blocked websites section which can help you get access to a better understanding and a better performance with streaming services.
Does AirVPN work with torrenting?
If you are into torrenting and P2P activities, they can be your best bet for almost all your torrenting activities. It can be your best option for the strong torrenting ever.
The great download and upload speeds and a minimal logging can be a couple of features that can make it one off the excellent choices for almost each of the needs you may have in terms of achieving the best torrenting and P2P activity.
Availability of port forwarding available on AirVPN is yet another prime factor that can make it a good option for torrenting – especially for the advanced users.
AirVPN Customer support
AirVPN claims that its customer service is not outsourced. That should be the prime option to ensure that you are in for a reliable redressal of the issues you may be facing. The non outsourced customer service ensures that you have access to a reliable and high quality support mechanism.
However, in practice, you are likely to get annoyed whenever you face issues. There is no Live Chat support which can be a huge let down. The delay in getting email responses can further make it something you would not be comfortable with.
The website does list out an extensive list of knowledge base articles. You will find a wide range of extensive FAQs arranged by topics. The community forums that cover different areas should be yet another plus point you would find rather impressive.
The Apps and Extensions
The AirVPN service does provide you access to plenty of options in terms of apps and other options. In addition to the desktop client available that works with every platform, you will also get access to well laid out install instructions for Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, and iOS. The service also offers support for different routers such as DD-WRT, Tomato, AsusWRT, pfSense, and TOR.
You can even get access to SSL and SSH layer as per your preferences. While you would find it offering support for almost all the major platforms, you will not find a good support offered for browsers.
Unlike most other VPN services, the AirVPN does not provide support for any browser. There is no browser extension made available for Google Chrome or Firefox. Most of its competing VPN services provide support for extensions for almost all major browsers.
How much does AirVPN cost?
The pricing offered by AirVPN is extremely attractive and competitive. You can opt for subscriptions for a shorter span such as three days or you can go with a long terms of subscription such as a year.
One of the prime factors that you stand to gain with he subscription plans is that you get the same features on all of them irrespective of the plan that you have opted for. That would mean, you need not opt for any high end plan for getting the high end features.
You can get a trial option by sending them a request for the same. You will receive a code to activate the trial account. You can even have a money back guarantee on all the plans. But, unlike the 30 days moneyback guarantee provided by a host of the competing service providers, you are restricted only to three days money back guarantee.
You will also have access to several payment options. This would include support for most major credit cards, PayPal, and a whole array of cryptocurrencies. You can also find a wide range of international payment options such as Alipay and Giropay.
A Few Pros and Cons
Pros
- Free trial available, although limited to three days
- User friendly and intuitive interface
- Focussed on security and privacy
- No logs policy
- Transparent info on server status
Cons
- Smallest number of server locations
- Adware and malware protection not available
The Concluding Thoughts
If you are checking out the right options for a perfect and powerful privacy protection on your VPN service, AirVPN should be what lives up to your expectations. One of the strongest features in favour of the AirVPN lie in the fact that it provides the true control over what they are doing into the user’s hands. The support provided by the active community can be one of the exciting options that can definitely prove to be a perfect option for almost all your needs for a trouble-free service quality.
However, it may not be the right choice for the beginners. It comes with an intimidating and unfriendly interface. That should be something that would drive away the users who are shifting to a VPN service for the first time. Of course, if you have used the other VPN services already, you will not have any sort of confusion. Check out the best options for the enhanced experience in achieving a safe, secure and perfect compatibility for almost all your needs in an improved experience ever.
A Few FAQs
Is AirVPN Secure?
Yes, AirVPN is extremely secure. In fact, it has been treated to be one of the unique options for the security and privacy. It is the best budget friendly, secure and safe VPN service with high end security features.
Does AirVPN provide free trial?
Yes, AirVPN does provide you access to a free trial. However, it should be noticed that the free trial can only be obtained if by getting in touch with the customer service. They will send a code and you will need to use the code for signing up for the service. The free trial lasts only thee days. However, given the fact that most of the VPN services do not offer a free trial, this should be a welcome move.
Where is AirVPN located?
AirVPN is located in Italy and has its server locations spread across 22 countries. They have more than 200 servers in 38 different cities.
Does AirVPN work in China?
You can connect to AirVPN in China through a little manual configuration. Using OpenVPN protocol over SSL can be one of the excellent options for an enhanced efficiency. Availability of additional obfuscation tools such as SSH/SSL tunneling and access to Tor through the VPN should help you get connected to the VPN in China or any other similar other countries that follow a high degree of censorship – a few of the countries apart from China – being Turkey and Iran.